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"We need a high profile candidate, and David would be perfect, particularly given what he has just helped to accomplish," says the RNC member. "That, and there is this strong network now to build on to take Boxer on."

Dreier would have the fundraising clout and the name recognition to piggyback off the Terminator's successful run, say some party insiders, even if he doesn't have the calendar on his side. "It's late in the game for a state like California, but then again, look what they accomplished in a six-week period of time with Arnold," says a New York-based political consultant who did work for Schwarzenneger's run.

Were Dreier to enter the Senate race, he would become the immediate Republican frontrunner and might even clear the middling field, such as it is. His presence would further force the Democratic Party to spend hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars in a state it thought little about six months ago.

Dreier, though, still has some hurdles, and surprisingly, or not, they involve the new governor. "If the transition doesn't go well, and if conservatives and moderates don't emerge from the process happy, Dreier will take a hit," says the political consultant. "He has to balance those two sets of interests and make both camps feel they are coming out ahead. If he keeps them both happy, he's golden."

Dreier, who famously has dated actress Bo Derek on and off in the past few years, has been approached about seeking higher office in the past by his Senate colleagues, but has declined. This time, the opportunity might be too good to pass up, which was exactly how Dreier described how he took the role of his political life with the Schwarzenegger run.

topics:
Harry Reid, Iraq, NATO