Just hours after The Los Angeles Times report that its polling shows Fred Thompson now in second place among Republican presidential contenders, Rasmussen Reports has this to say:

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has to share his spot atop the field of Republican presidential hopefuls this week. The newest face in the race, former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson, is now tied with Giuliani.

Rasmussen's latest automated national poll of like Republican primary voters and caucus-goers shows:

• Giuliani was the choice of 24%, vs. 23% a week ago.
• Thompson is also the choice of 24%, vs. his 17% support a week ago.
• Mitt Romney and Sen. John McCain were tied at third, with 11% support each (vs. 15% a week ago for Romney and 14% for McCain).

Rasmussen says its survey of 633 "likely Republican primary voters," which includes some independents, has a margin of error of +/- 4 percentage points.

As we have noted before, there is some dispute over whether Rasmussen's automated polling -- meaning the telephone calls are made by machines, not people -- is more or less accurate than more traditional methods. See this Mystery Pollster discussion of the issue.

Rasmussen's analysis of the Thompson numbers?

It is not unusual for a candidate to gain ground in the polls when they first announce their intentions. However, Thompson's rise has been meteoric.

Monday, Rasmussen reported little change on the Democratic side of the presidential sweepstakes.