Perhaps presidential ambition? If Giuliani decides not to run, she might could fill a moderate vacuum of semi-interesting candidates with name-recognition and some crossover appeal(at least in her mind). McCain is too much a hothead, Hagel's an ass, so hey, why not give it a shot? Or maybe even banking on a Giuliani win, and positioning as a followup in 2016, she's not terribly old, right?
I don't think Whitman is very well positioned to win any GOP presidential primary anywhere, including NJ. Mid Atlantic aristocrats who display a cultural distaste for fly over country, and lack a down to earth touch, simply are not very appealing, unless they hare unique charisma, or awesome personal accomplishments, and Whitman has neither.
If this is her first step down that path then she is an idiot - and everyone will know because she bothered to put it in a book. This type of talk will really energize the Republican base - energize them against her.
Diva's Husband