BOSTON—Republican Jim Ogonowski officially announced Sunday that he will challenge U.S. Sen. John Kerry in elections set for November.

Ogonowski, the brother of an airline pilot killed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, has been preparing for the race for months after narrowly losing a bid for congressional seat against Niki Tsongas in October.

“Last summer, we started a movement right here in Massachusetts — a call for change that has resonated across the state and the nation,” Ogonowski said in a statement released Sunday. “That means serving the people and not the lobbyist and Washington insiders.”

“I will stand up to the Washington insiders and special interests and fight for the people of Massachusetts. We have real problems that need real solutions, not more political lip service,” the retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel said. “It is time we send someone new to Washington.”

The Boston Globe

I am a sustaining member of the Massachusetts Republican Party.  Though I have never lived there, it is the only Republican organization I am actually affiliated with or contribute to.  I generally do not donate to the party apparatuses because in my experience they are usually just corrupt extensions of the good ole’ boys club in Washington.  I just donate to individual candidates or PACs that share my interest.  However, I became a contributing member to the MA GOP after Ogonowski ran for Congress last year.  Even though he lost, I was very impressed with the organization he put together and how the state party really jumped in and contributed rather than writing him off.  They are trying and that says a lot and that was one hell of a well run campaign.

You can donate to the state party here.

Jim also has a campaign Web site, although it is still set up for his past Congressional race.  He just made the Senate announcement today so I imagine that they will get the Web site updated for his Senate run rather quickly and will set up a way to donate to his Senatorial campaign as well.

Thompson withdrew from the presidential race last week. He ended his campaign as he had conducted it, with a minimum of fuss and no wasted words. He released a withdrawal statement over the Internet. It was three sentences long, and he hasn’t been heard from since. My guess is we’ll be missing him dreadfully by spring.

The charge against Thompson, who entered the campaign last September when polls showed him a favorite among Republican voters, was repeated so often it became a cliché. Like most clichés it tells us more about the people who used it than about the state of affairs it was supposed to describe. His campaign lacked “energy.” He didn’t get out enough on the campaign trail, and, when he did, he didn’t hold enough events. His speaking style was too low-key, and his speeches were too long, and more often than not his “performance” in televised debates was lackluster. He just didn’t have the fire in the belly.

The Weekly Standard

That was precisely the problem.  We live in a flashy Hollywood society today and ironically Thompson didn’t fit the bill.  With the exception of the final Republican debate in Myrtle Beach prior to the South Carolina primary, there was no fire with Thompson, no fury, no spirit.  There were a lot of good ideas and lot of the right stuff to reign in the conservative base, but it wasn’t presented in palatable format.

This is the key difference between someone like Fred and someone like Barack Obama.  Obama has no ideas, no plans, no details, no nothing, but he’s an eloquent speaker and knows how to liven up the party.  Look how many people are gravitating towards that guy.  Thompson was more straight forward and not really the lively type so I think people just didn’t pay attention.

It shouldn’t be that way, but such is the world we live in today.  If you can’t catch the attention span of the American Idol crowd you’re just wasting your time.