Friends push Ailes for president – Mike Allen – POLITICO CLICK

FRIENDS PUSH AILES FOR PRESIDENT

By MIKE ALLEN | 10/23/09 9:01 AM EDT

Friends are encouraging Fox News founder Roger Ailes to run for president in 2012. | Reuters Close

Friends and associates are encouraging Fox News chief Roger Ailes to jump into the political arena for real by running for president in 2012, top sources tell POLITICO.

“Ailes knows how to frame an issue better than anybody, and that’s what we need now,” says one Ailes friend who is encouraging the Fox founder, chairman and CEO to seek the Republican nomination to run against President Barack Obama.

Ailes, 69, has an aggessive, winning personality that made Fox News a huge success — and a huge target for liberal critics.

Frank Luntz, the well-known Republican pollster, said Ailes could be a force if he makes the run.

“I have known Roger Ailes for 29 years,” says Luntz. “No one knows how to win better than Roger.”

Talk of an Ailes run, which informed sources said is based on more than mere speculation, could escalate the White House war with Fox war in wildly unpredictable – and fun – ways.

via POLITICO CLICK: Friends push Ailes for president – Mike Allen.