It continues to amaze me that, with over three years to go, the 2008 presidential contest is already off and running. Every day in the papers, we read about various potential candidates posturing, positioning, and making pilgramages to the first-in-the-nation caucus and primary states of, Iowa and New Hampshire, respectively. Just today, the Washington Post is reporting that Virginia Gov. Mark Warner "is forming a federal political action committee and has hired a former top aide to then-Vice President Al Gore to advise him on national politics." Gee, I wonder what that could be all about?Despite the fact that Mark Warner does not command a particularly high national profile, the highly respected National Journal's "Insider's Poll" recently ranked Warner #3 among possible Democratic 2008 presidential contenders. With 179 points, Warner placed behind Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (407 points) and former Sen. John Edwards (205 points), but well ahead of Sen. John Kerry (90 points), Gov. Bill Richardson (85 points), and Gen. Wesley Clark (35 points).
Given that the parallel "Insider's Poll" of Republicans ranked Virginia Sen. George Allen #1 among potential GOP contenders, the possibility of an all-Virginia Presidential race in 2008 is well within the realm of possibility. And why not, after all, given the fact that eight U.S. presidents were born in our state. Quick quiz: can you name them? Stumped? Try this link.
The bottom line here is that Mark Warner is running for President in 2008 -- no doubt about it. And so is George Allen. Among other things, the Oval Office ambitions of Warner and Allen mean that a 2006 showdown between these two men for Allen's Senate seat is highly unlikely. More immediately, the Warner-Allen presidential rivalry raises the stakes in this year's Virginia gubernatorial race, as each man, Warner and Allen, attempts to push his respective protege - Tim Kaine and Jerry Kilgore -- to victory in November.
Which is why Republican political strategist and commentator Mary Matalin recently asserted that the Kaine-Kilgore (and now Potts) contest "is and will be the most-watched race in the country" this year. For once, I agree with her. And it all kicks off for real in just over 72 hours, as Virginia Democratic and Republican voters across the state cast their ballots this Tuesday. So, keep an eye out for candidates on the stump this weekend; you won't have to look far to find one!