The media's favorite Republican has already made plans to restart his political action committee, "Straight Talk America," according to McCain insiders.

And last month, McCain traveled to New Hampshire, the first presidential primary state, to make a speech.

While the Arizona Republican has been noncommittal in public remarks, behind the scenes he's laying all the necessary groundwork to make another White House bid.

All but one of his top advisers from 2000 have committed to helping him. The lone holdout, Michael Murphy, has ties to other prospective candidates.

After a rare stint as a team player during Bush's re-election campaign - a performance that defanged more than a few critic inside the White House - McCain has wasted no time reasserting his independence.

Notes the Post: "Just two weeks after the election, he renewed his opposition to Bush's policy on global warming and urged action against greenhouse gases.

"He went to Europe and promoted a harder line against Russian President Vladimir Putin than the administration has voiced, and he returned home to take a harder line against steroid use in baseball than the administration had done."

McCain is also positioning himself as the presidential heir apparent should the war in Iraq go south.

Though his recent criticism of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has ruffled conservative feathers, team McCain is betting it will help win support in 2008 – especially if the field consists of Bush clones and blame-America-first Democrats.

Still, McCain would be 72 years old in 2008, three years older than Ronald Reagan was when he sought the White House in 1980. Further clouding the picture is McCain's history of skin cancer, which he says he's vanquished.

Health and age issues, however, don't appear to faze McCain's team.

"I think he's in a very commanding position going forward." Greg Stevens, who worked on McCain's television ads in the 2000 campaign, told the Post.

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