Pro-life bump.
This issue alone would get him elected!
The thing that has me most excited about Fred Thompson is listening him fill in for Paul Harvey on the radio. He is able to articulate common-sense positions and values in a folksy and likeable way. Almost Reagan-esque.
Given the hostile media climate that any conservative candidate faces, communication skills are a huge climate. Anyone conservative who has less than perfect diction will be characterized in the press as dumb. Any conservative who is articulate but too glib will be characterized in the press as mean. What Reagan was able to do, and Thompson might be able to do, is come across in a manner that people will see both characterizations as unfair.
If Thompson were to become a successful candidate (and it's a big if right now), his stints on Paul Harvey might be viewed as an opportunity to hone his ideas and phrasng in a manner similar to Reagan's work as a spokesman for GE.
I doubt that. BUT,...it knocks in the ground any issues of facillation on his part. Now other issues can be addressed by him. One hurdle down, many more to go. And this isn't a sprint.