A New Candidate for the GOP

No, I’m not talking about replacing John McCain for this year’s election. While almost all of the political news from the weekend for McCain looked better suited to an M. Night Shymalan film, I don’t expect anyone to be rushing the Senator toward the door. But for the moment, let’s assume that Shaun Mullen was correct in his earlier column and Barack Obama wins in November. (By the way, Shaun, I get nervous whenever anyone starts counting chickens before beaks are visible.) If the GOP needs a candidate for the next cycle, would it be so far fetched to consider General David Petraeus?

This crossed my mind as I watched Morning Joe today over my morning… joe, and saw Petraeus walking the streets of Baghdad with MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell. There is a body of media accumulating, along with the General’s larger than life and still growing personal story, which are the makings of a dream portfolio for any potential candidate. Petraeus already has his signature on a strategy which took a botched and failing war and turned it around to the point where it now stands on the verge of handing a functional democracy over to the Iraqi people. He will shortly be in charge of a larger theater with responsibility over our expected efforts to turn things around in Afghanistan. Should he pull off similar, measurable success there, what better point to close out a decorated and highly successful military career and shift his focus to a different type of public service?

It is true that our nation has a less than stellar history when electing military men to the White House. U.S. Grant was, by all accounts, an ineffective drunkarnd who was either prone or blind to massive corruption in his own administration. Ike often gets glowing reviews among sentimental Americans, but most neutral observers admit that he was a hands off leader, content to let others slug it out in the muck while he rode above the fray, and had the good fortune of leading during possibly one of the easiest political eras in our history. The post war boom, with national pride at all time highs and the economy surging on the shoulders of the greatest generation, could probably have been led by a blind badger. But we have also begun to recognize that no one person can master all the disciplines required to run America, and if they surround themselves with competent advisors and staff, strong leadership and a good moral compass may be enough.

There are also advantages to having a candidate who comes from a place entirely outside the political system. A quick look at our current candidates provides a reminder of how much trash you drag along from such a background. Obama gets the worst of it in the media, given all the grease on his sleeves from years spent grinding through the Chicago machine. But McCain has a few bruises himself, from the Keating Five scandal to land grab questions, the Martin Luther King jr. holiday and more. Petraeus emerges from a lifetime of military service with no such skeletons in his closet. Granted, we would need to check for any serious personal scandals in his past, (questions completely inappropriate to ask while the man is leading two wars) but assuming there’s nothing worse than a couple of youthful highjinks or indiscretions it should be a fairly easy vetting process.

So how does Petraeus make it from the battlefields of Basra to the White House Rose Garden? He’s a New Yorker, born (natural born!) and bred. His wife is the daughter of another distinguished general, and his parents have a compelling story. (His father was an immigrant sea captain from the Netherlands.) You may not have heard, (snicker) but we’ve had a spot of trouble in the Empire State Governor’s Mansion of late, with one guy leaving because of “family issues” and the current Democratic resident admitting to a history of drug abuse and marital problems. The seat is up for grabs in 2010. Were Petraeus to retire in the early part of that year and jump into the fray, New Yorkers would likely be gaga over him as he returned victorious from the battlefields to a ticker tape parade in the Big Apple. It’s true that Hillary has hinted at a 2010 run, but her image has taken a beating during her bloody primary with Obama, and while New York is a majority Democratic state, we have a history of electing moderate Republicans as Governors.

From there the math becomes easy. If either McCain is president in 2012 or Obama looks strong, Petraeus could sit tight, gaining more executive administrative experience and waiting until 2016. (He will only be 64 at the time.) Should Obama look shakey or McCain decide – at 76 years of age – to not run for a second term, the General would find himself ideally positioned to throw his hat in the ring in 2012.

Crazy? Maybe. But this is American politics. Crazy is almost a requirement any more. Oh, but General…? Just one word of advice. If you come to Albany, do try to stay away from the hookers. There seems to be something in the water here…