• by Erik Sass , December 23, 2008

Fans of presidential also-ran Fred Thompson will get regular doses of his avuncular wisdom beginning on March 2, when he replaces "The Radio Factor With Bill O'Reilly" in Westwood One's stable of conservative talk shows. "The Fred Thompson Show" will air weekdays from noon to 2 p.m. (EST), covering politics, pop culture and whatever else strikes his fancy. 

It's unclear whether this engagement will affect his existing gig as a commentator for ABC Radio Networks.

Thompson brings a more impressive political resume to the pundit's chair than many of his conservative competitors. As an investigative counsel for the Republican members of the Senate's Watergate committee, he asked the question that forced Nixon aide Alexander Butterfield to acknowledge the existence of a secret taping system. Later, however, Thompson was accused of leaking details of the investigation to Nixon's team.

He also served as senator from Tennessee from 1994-2002.

Nor is he any stranger to show business. For years, he was probably best known as Manhattan district attorney Arthur Branch, complete with folksy Southern drawl, on NBC's hit show "Law & Order."

Conservative talk radio has new political meat to gnaw, now that the Democrats are poised to take control of both the White House and Congress. Conservative radio commentators like Rush Limbaugh played a role in the GOP primaries and the 2008 presidential race, often opposing GOP front-runner John McCain, who was viewed as lacking conservative credentials.