Mr. Excitement

"Voters who came out to see him as he traveled through Iowa — even while expressing admiration for his views and intense interest in his candidacy — said they were struck by how little energy or passion he appeared to bring into a room." NYTimes (10.03.07), via Kos:

"Twenty-four minutes after he began speaking in a small restaurant the other day, Fred Thompson brought his remarks to a close with a nod of his head and an expression of thanks to Iowans for allowing him to 'give my thoughts about some things.'"

Then he stood face to a face with a silent audience."

Subdued Thompson Stirs Few Sparks on Stump"

"'Can I have a round of applause?' Mr. Thompson said, drawing a rustle of clapping and some laughter."

"'Well, I had to drag that out of you,” he said.'"

Kinda sounds like Fred was being a bit of a dickhead here, wouldn't you say?

Ahhh, we get it. He was gassed. "In a late-afternoon rally in Cedar Falls, Beverly Denney said she admired what he said and was likely to support him — but suggested that he had been outshone on the podium by local Iowa legislators who had introduced him. 'I’m sure this is his fourth event of the day,' she said. (It was, but one of them was a 'walking tour of Downtown Iowa Falls' that took him to two stores and lasted less than 15 minutes)."