From the GOP rule book:
Rule No.40
Nominations
b) Each candidate for nomination for President of the United States and Vice President of the United States shall demonstrate the support of a majority of the delegates from each of five (5) or more states, severally, prior to the presentation of the name of that candidate for nomination.
McCain, Romney and Huckabee are the only ones who will qualify on the first ballot. After the first ballot, I guess a majority of delegates from 5 states can draft a new candidate for consideration.
I also take it from this that McCain and other candidates can only suggest a VP preference and none of the delegates are pledged to support the choice. This would theoretically make it difficult for McCain to choose a rino.
One problem though, I was looking at the national delegates from Alabama who were elected a few days ago and it appears that Romney's delegates were split up for McCain and Huckabee to pick half and half. That's how it appeared to me. If that's how all the states choose their delegates then it will be nothing but McCain and Huckabee delegates at the convention and the Romney portion that McCain gets to pick the delegate for will vote for McCain on the first ballot, giving him plenty of delegates to win the thing outright.
Even if McCain dropped out or meets his maker prior to the convention, based on my perception of how it was done in Alabama, all of his selected national delegates would still be there and would probably draft someone like Lindsey Graham to replace him.
If FReepers organized and made it their goal to become the national delegates for the Republicans in all of the states, we could accomplish it. That is why they public isn't informed too openly about how the process works.
Based upon the following it appears that for a name to be placed in nomination they do need the support of a majority of the delegates from five states. Based upon [e] it appears that that is when/where the horse trading begins between candidates and delegations.
RULE NO. 40
Nominations
(a) In making the nominations for qPresident of the United States and Vice President of the United States and voting thereon, the roll of the states shall be called separately in each case; provided, however, that if there is only one candidate for nomination for Vice President of the United States who has demonstrated the support required by paragraph (b) of this rule, a motion to nominate for such office by acclamation shall be in order and no calling of the roll with respect to such office shall be required.(b) Each candidate for nomination for President of the United States and Vice President of the United States shall demonstrate the support of a majority of the delegates from each of five (5) or more states, severally, prior to the presentation of the name of that candidate for nomination.
(c) The total time of the nominating speech and seconding speeches for any candidate for nomination for President of the United States or Vice President of the United States shall not exceed fifteen (15) minutes.
(d) When at the close of a roll call any candidate for nomination for President of the United States or Vice President of the United States has received a majority of the votes entitled to be cast in the convention, the chairman of the convention shall declare that the candidate has been nominated.
(e) If no candidate shall have received such majority, the chairman of the convention shall direct the roll of the states be called again and shall repeat the calling of the roll until a candidate shall have received a majority of the votes entitled to be cast in the convention.
(f) For the 2004 Republican National Convention, notwithstanding any other provision of these rules or any Rule of the House of Representatives, it shall be in the discretion of the Chair to suspend the roll call conducted to nominate the candidate for President of the United States at any time in order to conduct other Convention business under the established order of business.