Mark R Warner for 2008?

From the old unto the new

"Maybe the Democrats cannot win in this day and age without a southerner with true folksy appeal? Maybe they need someone with massive popular appeal to whom the Democratic label can quietly be attached?"

Well, the answer to these questions may lie in the personality of Virginia Governor Mark R Warner - a southerner and entrepreneur in the American mobile phone industry. The Democratic Party is sensibly getting ready for the 2008 contest NOW, and Mr Warner is, apparently, already considered a frontrunner in some circles.

People say that the UK is more democratic than the US - but here a PM can serve as many terms as his or her party and the electorate allow. Who will the Republicans put forward in 2008?

John Edwards will I think almost certainly be in the race again, however, and may provide stiff competition. Maybe the Democrats would have done better last month if he and Kerry had reversed candidacies? I'm just speculating.