I've said it before and I'll say it again: I really don't think Mark Warner will ever be president.
Politicians don't just stay "fresh" for decades. People on this forum seem to always think that the major figures in 2020 are going to be the same people who are prominent today, as if they never age.
Maybe in India or France. Not in the U.S.
I wouldn't rule anything out, but it's more that likely that in 2016, most of the major prospective candidates on either side will be people who just won their first major race this year or are only going to win their first major race in two years, in 2010.
The 2010 class of governors may well supply some major candidates, especially from larger states: I plan to watch the governorships of Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and California.
Sadly, I agree with you. Warner is this generation's Reubin O'Donovan Askew.
Fortunately for Warner, I don't think he really wants it in the first place. Had he run this year, I am fairly confident he would have won both the nomination and the Presidency, yet he didn't even form an exploratory committee.
I think if the nomination were dropped in his lap, he'd take it, but generally he's content to be Mark Warner, Obsession of Atlasians Everywhere.