[ejonesie22]

He'd do one or the other but not both. I think what he will do will depend on how really bad things are in 2-3 years. An old practiced hand that has been out of the national scene for sometime would be very appealing if things are real bad, but if things are just marginal youth would come into play.

[9YearLurker]

But wouldn’t that mean two years as RNC chair while still being open to a run?

McCain at 72 obviously opens a wide span for a next or younger generation, but of those considered to be the next crew, really only Jindal would be positioned for a presidency in his 40’s. The rest I believe would be in their 50’s which puts them in their ‘CEO prime’, if you will, rather than still ‘youthful’.

That said, the Republicans obviously have a weakness for nominating old guys, and I might put Barbour at the top of my list among ‘the old guys’.