All of the candidates you and I mention are far to the right of Rudy. No Republican dreamed of supporting abortion or gay marriage in those days. GHWB got elected entirely on Reagan's coattails, after acting loyal as VP, then got in bed with the Demonrat Congress (as RINOs usually do) and screwed us all. The point is, if you want to elect a Republican, and have it actually make a difference to the history of the country and the fate of the world, then choose the closest thing to another Reagan, not another Bush, Romney, Ford, Rudy, etc.
there is no Reagan in this election, and there is no one close to Reagan in this election, so conservatives will have to look for the likes of Brownback and Newt, who don't have a chance of winning a general election.