Thompson, Richardson air new ads

Fred Thompson goes for biography and Bill Richardson for education in new TV ads they hope will help boost them into the top ranks of presidential contenders.

Republican Thompson is airing two ads that fill out his resume.

In one, Maria Ragghianti, a Tennessee parole official who blew the whistle on a clemency scandal, vouches for Thompson as a "man of genuine integrity." (Watch it here.) As a young lawyer in 1977, he represented her, helped her get her job back, and eventually played himself in a movie about the case that launched his acting career.

In the second spot, the announcer praises Thompson's record as a counsel on the Senate Watergate Committee and in the Senate. (Watch it here.)

Democrat Richardson lays out his education plan, which calls for ending "No Child Left Behind," increasing teacher pay, expanding pre-kindergarten, and creating math and science academies. (Watch it here.)

The ads are the latest in a post-Thanksgiving deluge from the candidates, sprinting toward the Iowa caucuses Jan. 3 and the New Hampshire primary on Jan. 8.