My early look at Monday morning's news crackles with the ongoing fizzle of the Fred Thompson campaign. Never had so many invested so much in such a non-starter as Thompson.

HuffPost's OffTheBus correspondent Mayhill Fowler offers up a nice slice-and-dice of the sputtering Thompson non-campaign in California. Thompson seems to have become the darling of the Anti-Arnold faction of the state GOP, giving him roughly the potential popularity of a Golden State pro-earthquake party. Or let's be a tad more diplomatic and say that the Thompson California core staff isn't exactly culled from the more button-downed ranks of the GOP establishment. Reports Fowler:

"What do the brander of "Thomas Kinkade, Painter of Light," an Indian gaming consultant, a horsewoman known for the motorloaf tea sandwich, a bow-tied Yale-educated litigator, a best friend of Pat Boone, a Jewish philanthropist, a home-schooling astronomy buff, a Kern County rancher, an associate of Tim LaHaye, and GOP legislators in Sacramento who oppose Arnold Schwarzenegger have in common? These are the northern California co-chairs of Fred Thompson's presidential campaign and the elected officials in Sacramento who are endorsing him."

The L.A. Times, meanwhile, can't help from piling on by running a front-pager on Thompson hesitating to can a top fundraiser who turns out having a criminal record for cocaine and marijuana sales. That's guaranteed to be a downer for Fred's family-friendly "value voters."

"I know Phil is a good man," Thompson said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." "He is my friend. He is going to remain my friend."

Hey, who doesn't consider a guy busted for selling 5 keys of grass and planning to move thirty grand in blow a good friend? Especially when you're running for President of the United States. Having that same guy lay on you $100k worth of free rides on his private plane also doesn't hurt.

The Washington Post has a follow-up story on the same matter, noting that Thompson said his good bud, no pun intended, would have done better if he had disclosed his little snafu with the law. Indeed, maybe a Sunday church confession and 30,000 Hail Mary's might have been sufficient atonement.

Kind of refreshing to read the Brit take on all this. The Daily Telegraph's U.S. correspondent files a piece free of what --in Spanish-- is called "hairs on the tongue." Right there in the lead, Thompson's pal is described as someone with a record for "drug-dealing." Kudos for the clarity of language.

And thanks to Fred Thompson for giving the morning read such a heady buzz.