The gentleman from Virginia

Here is a useful-if somewhat dated- look at George Allen, regarded by many party pros as the actual front-runner for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination.

The article does a good job of highlighting his good points- as well as what I see as his chief drawback: an undiscriminating fascination with Thomas Jefferson which apparently leaves him unable to seperate the considerable amount of that great man's theory which is either outmoded or naively impractical from his lasting, living heritage.

Allen's tendency to lean libertarian- incompatible as it ultimately is with his social conservatism- is troublesome. But along with Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee, he's one of the three men who, as of now, I'm looking at for the 2008 nomination. And he has a great deal to offer.