Fred Thompson, man about town?

More news from the Washington Post political gossip columns

A close Thompson confidant, meanwhile, told The Sleuth that Thompson has "the luxury of sitting back and waiting" before jumping in the '08 waters. And while the former senator has been "bombarded" with requests to appear on TV shows to discuss his potential candidacy, the source said, he's going to "wait and see how things develop."

The Rest of the Story

After having lunch Monday at the Mayflower hotel restaurant with Republican Party master strategist Ed Gillespie, the actor and former Tennessee senator met for three hours that day at the same location with former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, also of Tennessee.

The back-to-back meetings underscore just how serious Thompson is about mulling a run for the presidency. And who wouldn't run after managing to place third among GOP presidential candidates without even lifting a finger?

A Frist confidant familiar with the meeting between Thompson and Frist said he thought Thompson was "deadly serious" about learning as much as he could from Frist, who had considered a run for president himself and who, as the former top Republican in the Senate, is a proven fundraiser and has a Rolodex full of donors' names.

Courtesy of Mary Ann Akers Sleuth blog in the Washington Post