Frank Keating for President

Former Oklahoma governor Frank Keating, who came into national prominence following the Oklahoma City bombing, is considering running for president:

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Former Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating is mulling a possible bid for the presidency, voicing concern that the 2008 Republican lineup lacks a Ronald Reagan conservative.

"He's kicked the idea around in his head," Dan Mahoney, an aide to Keating, said Friday. "He's just sort of thinking about it."

Keating, 62, a former FBI agent and prosecutor, served as Oklahoma governor from 1994-2002 and was in charge of the state during the deadly Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. He was a high-ranking official in the Justice and Treasury departments during the Reagan administration and considered a possible vice presidential choice by George W. Bush in 2000.

I like Keating a lot, and when I look at the current crop of Republican candidates, I like him even more. Having been out of the national spotlight for several years will make the task of gaining the nomination pretty tough, especially with the media pretty much giving it to McCain. However, McCain has an age problem (not to mention many problems on many issues important to conservatives), Giuliani is a social liberal, and Romney's Mormanism is going to be a problem for him.

Keating showed a lot of leadership in the aftermath of the OKC bombing, and in that area could compare pretty favorably to Giuliani. If Keating can get some national attention, he could be an attractive candidate.