Pres. Bush gave a one-word answer when he was asked recently whether he was supporting one of the Republican candidates. (”No.) But one of his most loyal flunkies was not so taciturn last month.

Speaking at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Sept. 14, former George W. Bush advisor Dan Bartlett excoriated the presidential campaign of former lobbyist and senator Fred Thompson:

Bartlett was harshest in his judgment of Thompson, the former Tennessee senator who jumped into the contest a month ago … Thompson, Bartlett said, was the “biggest dud” because he peaked last spring when he first started talking about running and since then has yet to articulate a compelling vision for why he is running. “The biggest liability was whether he had the fire in the belly to run for office in the first place and be president,” Bartlett said. “So what does he do? He waits four months, fires a bunch of staff, has a big staff turnover, has a lot of backbiting, comes out with his big campaign launch and gives a very incoherent and not very concise stump speech for why he’s running for president.”

Bartlett held out little hope that Thompson could win the nomination. “Unless they really find a way to crystallize his message for why he’s different than the other candidates, why people should take a second look now, I don’t feel very good that Fred Thompson’s going to be the candidate for my party,” he said.

Bartlett also said Mitt Romney had a strong strategy but was hamstrung by charges he has flipflopped on key issues and:

“The Mormon issue is a real problem in the South, it’s a real problem in other parts of the country,” he said. “But people are not going to say it. People are not going to step out and say, ‘I have a problem with Romney because he’s Mormon.’ What they’re going to say is he’s a flip-flopper. … It’s a fact, it’s reality. I don’t know if it’s one that will keep him from becoming the nominee for the party but it’s something they clearly understand they’ve got to deal with.”

John McCain is a “wild card,” Bartlett said, but was most enthusiastic about former governor Mike Huckabee but said he had two problems: his hick-sounding name and the fact he and Bill Clinton share the same birthplace.

Rudolph Giuliani had the “best message,” said Bartlett:

“Republicans, I believe, are terrified about losing the presidency after losing Congress,” he said. “I think this is going to be the season of the pragmatic Republican voter. That bodes well for Rudy and it gives McCain a shot because I think people feel McCain can go toe-to-toe with Hillary in the general election.”

Bartlett worked closely with Bush for 14 years before stepping down in July.