Just had a thought - with the pygmies running in the GOP race, and Giuliani likely toxic (the recent immigration sanity from him won't help), what are the chances that if there is still a divided field that the powers behind the scene propose Petraeus as the nominee?
Yes, there hasn't been a nominee of either party who hasn't faced the primary system since Humphrey in 1968, but delegates do pick the nominee, and assuming that no candidate has majority support (which of course is contrary to recent history), could this be in the back of the Bush/Cheney/Rove braintrust?
McCain early on gets behind the idea; it stops Giuliani's momentum as a holding action; enough elements of the party announce their problems with Giuliani to keep things fluid; it becomes a draft with other candidates dropping out and expressing a desire for him.
The draft succeeds, Petraeus is nominated, Huckabee becomes VP candidate with the understanding that he will spearhead most dometic issues (because of course we need a president who is full time anti-terror all the time).
It is a GOP wet dream - not sure why no one has mentioned it before.
Perhaps this will start with Gingrich (with him hoping to become Secretary of State).
The GOP is going to be desperate. Bush/Cheney/Rove needs a puppet successor. Petraeus has shown he loyalty to the cabal, yet (apart obviously from Iraq) has none of the baggage of the other candidates. The GOP hierarchy, media and base want to hero-worship.
Watch for this as a real possibility.