The 'What If' of Allen Haunts the GOP Race

Although Sen. John McCain of Arizona shares Allen's desire to achieve "victory in Iraq," as Allen was fond of saying, some conservatives are angry about McCain's stance on immigration reform.

Before Rudolph W. Giuliani dropped out of the race, the former New York mayor shared Allen's zeal to fight Muslim extremism. But the two diverge considerably on social issues.

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is campaigning on many of the same issues Allen would have touted but lacks Allen's track record of embracing conservative views.

Mike Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor, has many of Allen's personality traits, most notably being witty and personable. But Allen probably would not have supported higher taxes, as Huckabee did when he was governor.

Another candidate, former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson, was supposed to live up to Allen's potential. Allen endorsed him and was co-chairman of his campaign. But even though they agree on most issues, Thompson could not match Allen's optimism, enthusiasm or speaking skills. He dropped out of the race last month.

Some fear the GOP nominating contest could leave lasting scars on the party.

Morton C. Blackwell, Virginia's Republican National Committee member and a Romney supporter, said: "I have said for many months that unless Fred Thompson or Mitt Romney is our nominee, that any of the other significant candidates would have a very difficult time in putting together the entire conservative majority coalition. Each of the others make major segments of that coalition very nervous if not downright angry."

Blackwell said Allen would have "been right on all the issues," but others say GOP voters might have moderated this year.

Former secretary of state Lawrence Eagleburger, who supports McCain, said Allen would have struggled to reach out to independents, who helped McCain gain momentum last month after victories in the New Hampshire and South Carolina primaries.

"I just don't think [Allen] would have had that appeal," Eagleburger said.

Republican strategist Alex Vogel said that, were it not for the "macaca" remark, Allen would have had a major advantage on the campaign trail. "The fact is, George Allen comes across as a regular guy, and he had an amazing ability to connect with the people," Vogel said.

In his successful races in 1993 for the Virginia governor's office and 2000 for the U.S. Senate seat, Allen generated intense passion from GOP activists across Virginia who worked tirelessly on his campaigns.

During his early forays in the presidential campaign, Allen appeared close to winning support from the business and religious conservative wings of the GOP. But Allen's preparations to run for president might have been what ultimately cost him his Senate seat, some Virginia Republicans say.

According to friends, Allen does not dwell on whether he might now have been a few months away from the GOP presidential nomination.

Former Virginia attorney general Jerry W. Kilgore (R) noted that if Allen wanted to be in the game, he would be plotting his political comeback. Instead, Allen announced last month that he will not run for governor in 2009, even though many Republicans believe he would be a heavy favorite.

There are also questions about whether Allen could have withstood the scrutiny of a presidential campaign, given the allegations that swirled around him in the closing months of his Senate campaign.

"No one will know," said John H. Hager, a former Bush administration official and Virginia lieutenant governor who now chairs the state Republican Party. "When you get into the presidential game, it's a big game, and the stakes are so much higher, it's hard to tell what would have happened."