"I've discovered our next president!" (1 of 6)

Ahh, the pundit-driven presidential boomlet. Every so often, a Washington prognosticator like David Brooks will latch on to an obscure figure--someone like the attractive, socially-conservative neophyte Senator John Thune--and extol his (or her) virtues to the heavens, explaining why only this person can redeem the party and become the next president. Admittedly, it sometimes works, but it's often just a passing fantasy. Click through this TNR slideshow for a look at this year's crop of media-created white knights.

David Brooks on John Thune (2 of 6)

This week, Brooks did devote his column to the well-bred Thune: “He grew up in Murdo, S.D., population 612. His father was a Naval aviator in World War II and a genuine war hero. … John was a high school basketball star and possesses idyllic small-town manners, like the perfect boy in a Thornton Wilder play. He appears to be untouched by cynicism. In speeches and interviews, he is straightforward, intelligent and earnest. He sometimes seems to have emerged straight into the 21st century from a more wholesome time.”

Christopher Buckley on Joe Scarborough (3 of 6)

In June, writer and Christopher Buckley identified MSNBC talk-show host Joe Scarborough as the one to save the GOP: “I’ve found the new face of the Republican Party. It’s not a new one, entirely, and it’s been hiding out on national television every weekday morning from six to nine. Joe Scarborough. … Scarborough comes across as a profoundly likeable and reasonable man. Reagan Lite, you might even say. Could we do better? I’m open to suggestions.”

Rich Lowry on Mitch Daniels (4 of 6)

Rich Lowry, the editor of National Review, likes Indiana governor and former OMB head Mitch Daniels: “He’s a Reaganite who is not trapped in 1980s nostalgia; he’s a fiscal conservative who believes not just in limiting government, but in reforming it to address people’s everyday concerns; he’s a politician of principle who refuses to sell his program in off-puttingly partisan or ideological terms. … As they grapple with Pres. Barack Obama, Republicans at the national level could do worse than ask themselves: What would Daniels do?”

William Kristol on Liz Cheney (5 of 6)

Bill Kristol was dead-on when he predicted John McCain would pick Sarah Palin to be his running mate. Now, he's backing Liz Cheney: “Of course, everyone’s first choice for president in 2012 is Dick Cheney. But Liz Cheney’s boffo performance yesterday in the lefties’ den, MSNBC, defending sensible interrogation policies in the war on terror, surely puts her in contention for the runner-up position.”

Related Links: Our Next Presidents (6 of 6)

Click here to read Michelle Cottle on John Thune’s new P.R. push.

Click here to read Christopher Orr on Bill Kristol’s support for Sarah Palin.

Click here to read Michelle Cottle on Liz Cheney’s appearance on Morning Joe.