The Key Word Isn't "Republican." It's "Rockefeller."

The GOP has been searching for a new militaristic hero to carry its standard, and the eyes of the hopeful have fallen to David Petraeus, despite the fact that he's shown no interest in the job thus far. Jason Zengerle points out that Petraeus was identified as a Republican in Steve Coll's New Yorker profile a while ago, but that's actually not the key word in the description.

Petraeus is registered to vote as a Republican in New Hampshire—he once described himself to a friend as a northeastern Republican, in the tradition of Nelson Rockefeller—but he said that around 2002, after he became a two-star general, he stopped voting.

There is another prominent, moderate general in the Republican Party who considers himself a "Rockefeller Republican" and once considered running for president. His name is Colin Powell. The GOP base aren't exactly fans, and if the above is an accurate description of Petraeus' political views, I don't see someone like him going full wingnut to get the base's approval.

-- A. Serwer