Chuck Hagel: Step 2

First there was this. And now this:

Republican Senator Chuck Hagel of Nebraska said he would consider entering the 2008 presidential campaign as an independent. An independent bid "is possible,'' Hagel, 60, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television's "Political Capital with Al Hunt,'' scheduled to air today. "I don't ever foreclose any options.''

He will decide in the next few months whether to run for a third Senate term, pursue the presidency or leave politics altogether, he said.

Dean Barnett presumes that should such a thing happen it likely has no effect on the GOP candidate in a general election. While likely correct in his analysis, I would offer another reason for the Hagel "no-effect" effect.

A Hagel run as an Independent would more likely resemble this as opposed to this:

In the 1992 election, he received 18.9% of the popular vote (but no electoral votes), making him the most successful Independent presidential candidate in terms of the popular vote since Theodore Roosevelt in the 1912 election.

To understand why, go back to the first link, read and learn.