KEY POINTS:
WASHINGTON - John McCain, the Arizona Republican widely seen as a front-runner for his party's presidential nomination in 2008, has moved closer to a White House run, saying he is setting up an exploratory committee and will finally decide early in 2007.
"I am going to sit down with my family over the holidays and make that decision," the four-term senator, who unsuccessfully ran against George Bush in 2000, told NBC's Meet the Press yesterday.
He did not say exactly when the committee - a legally required precursor to a White House bid - would be formally established. However, "the important thing is that we will be prepared", he said.
The Vietnam War veteran has appeal to independents and many Democrats. He has also moved to shore up support among the Christian right - vital to success in the primaries, as he learned to his cost six years ago.
But there are question marks about a McCain candidacy. One is his advocacy of sending more to Iraq, when the war has never been less popular. Another is his age; if elected, McCain would be 72, the oldest incoming president ever.
- INDEPENDENT
