Reprising his role as Rear Admiral Josh Painter in Tom Clancy’s Hunt for Red October, Fred Thompson, the former Senator and actor, and now presidential candidate wasn’t all one liners on Leno last night – his comments on the gathering Iranian threat were a well aimed – if Southernly charming – warning shot across Tehran’s bow. Not nearly as entertaining as Senator McCain’s Beach Boys romp but it seems to show Thompson’s used his months testing the waters on getting up to date on policy as well as politics.

While on the Tonight Show to announce his candidacy, Thompson waded into policy, including Iraq and the role America plays in the world. But it was responding to his host’s question on the possibility of military action against Iran that may get the most attention. Thompson averred to their nascent nuclear program, but spent more time focusing on their present – and since we’re in the Clancy mode – their clear & present danger to both the United States and our allies, notably, their support of Israel’s gravest security threats, Hamas to its South and Hezbollah on the northern border. We’d summarize, but you’re best just reading the whole bit yourself:

“… and they’re clearly responsible for more and more of our problems. They are sending in these improvised explosive devices. They’re training Iraqi militants in Iran and sending them back in to Iraq. They’re sponsoring Hezbollah and probably as we speak are planning another attack on Israel. They support Hamas. They support terrorism all around the world. They’ve got a fellow who is not put together well upstairs running the country and has threatened the destruction of Israel. I mean, sometimes, when these maniacs make threats, they mean it, and it comes to pass later on. So we’ve got to take that situation very seriously, but obviously a military attack is the last thing in the world that you want to have to do, and there’s some things that we can do that probably will not necessitate that.”

See the YouTube clip and the second clip of the interview for the full audio and visual experience.