• Duncan Hunter. Who? The hawkish California congressman who headed the House Armed Services Committee declared recently that he is taking steps to run for the White House. He regards himself as a defender of the Reagan legacy; he's an immigration hard-liner and engineer of the controversial border fence.

• Rick Santorum. Unlike fellow loser George Allen in Virginia, the defeated Pennsylvania senator who once was touted as the face of the Republican revolution is viewed as having a future in politics because of a wide following in the GOP and an ability to put the concept of compassionate conservatism into practice.

• Arnold Schwarzenegger. The California governor and movie muscle-man who was re-elected last week is showing Republicans how to appeal to African Americans, Hispanics and environmentalists. But no, he can't run for president because he wasn't born in the United States.

The Democratic field

• Hillary Clinton. She's queen of the hill in polls, and her 1.5 million-vote Senate re-election victory last week shows she can play upstate and everywhere else in New York. She will be a major player with the advantage of first-rate advice at home. Her principal task is persuading Democrats around the country that she is electable.

• John Kerry. Most of the dozens of candidates the Massachusetts senator stumped for won last week. But his "botched joke" about non-studious young folks ending up in Iraq gave the GOP something to talk about in the campaign's waning days and had some old allies remarking that the Massachusetts senator has already blown one big election too many.

• Barack Obama. His rise to the status of rock star is a cultural phenomenon that has stunned political pros. Were it not for an accompanying rise to the top tier in polls of Democratic presidential hopefuls, the pros might not be so impressed. In weighing whether the Illinoisan is ready to run, he's surely considering whether two years of Senate experience is enough.

• John Edwards. The 2004 vice presidential candidate has been a conscience in his party and kept his potent "One America" campaign theme resonating by stressing poverty issues and global hunger upon his return to North Carolina. Elizabeth Edwards' battle with breast cancer since the last campaign makes his rags-to-riches family story that much more poignant.