Not a good way to start if you ask me. He’s breaking the law before he even enters the race.

Fred Thompson, facing scrutiny for stockpiling cash while he purported to be only exploring the possibility of a presidential bid, is returning some contributions to supporters.

Thompson, who plans to officially enter the race for the Republican nomination Thursday, is in the process of returning between $20,000 and $25,000 in contributions that could only be spent on a general election campaign if he makes it that far, according to a source familiar with the campaign’s operations.

His committee will only refund general election contributions it can-t shuffle to his primary election campaign, a switch it intends to make with at least another $35,000, according to the source, who did not want to be identified discussing financial details.

Though the refunds and the reallocations are only a fraction of the $3.5 million Thompson raised in June, they highlight the unique legal and strategic challenges he faces as he makes a late entry into the race.

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