kane

I would disagree. McCain really comes off like a guy that will say anything to get elected and many people think he is too much like Bush. I think the repub with the best chance to win it all would be Rudy. Here is why I say this.

As I said earlier the hard Christian right doesn't really love any of the candidates and least of all Rudy. That said they might back him (or for that matter any of them) if it comes down to facing Hilary because they will go with the "anyone but Clinton" mentality. This election is going to be less about values and morals and more about policy than the 2000 election (which was the last time we didn't have an incumbent running) so having someone who will pound the pulpit of morality won't really help - that message won't resonate outside the bible belt. In the end there is still a republican backlash happening in this country. The democrats have disappointed, but there are still more people that dislike republicans than ever before. When you add in that plus the overwhelming unpopularity of the president it will be hard for any republican to get elected. People don't really want a leader to tell them how to think or what to believe. They want someone that will fight terrorism, keep them safe and do something about immigration (and the economy). Rudy is republican enough to get the more moderate republicans behind him and I think much of the party would support him because they don't like Clinton (that is to say that Clinton actually wins the democratic nomination). He is also enough of a social moderate that he can pull in enough of the independent moderates. In the end most people outside New York only know him as the mayor that took charge on 9/11 and he is not about to let anyone forget that. When they go to the polls they would be more likely to pick the guy that doesn't panic than they are the person that they are unsure about.