An excellent question. At this point, I’m not sure. Not so long ago, I’d have said Governor McDonnell, but he has turned into a serious disappointment. Bill Bolling turned out to be a total RINO menace, so he’s out, too. Absent running a current officeholder, perhaps recruiting a self-funding candidate from the private sector who can match Warner’s spending.
But running Newt is a no-go. He has been massively unpopular going back to his stint as Speaker, for which he has never recovered from (he would’ve performed worse than the execrable Socialist Willard). He’s a carpetbagger where VA is concerned, and nevermind his RINOesque tendencies, he’s way too old.
So the question is...who better than Newt?