In an announcement that could have huge ramifications in the 2008 balance of power battle in the Senate between Democrats and Republicans, Senator John Warner will announce later today whether or not he will seek re-election next year. From last night:

Sen. John Warner will announce tomorrow at the University of Virginia whether or not he intends to seek a sixth term, according to two top Virginia sources. Warner is planning a 2 p.m. news conference on the grounds of the Charlottesville, Va., school, where he took his law degree over 50 years ago. The Virginian will give his speech near the statue of Thomas Jefferson on the steps of the school's famous Rotunda, adding a fitting Warner flourish to the event.

If Warner goes, I'd have to give the advantage to Democrats for his seat. Former Democrat Governor Mark Warner is still very popular in Virginia, and would be a formidable contender. On the Republican side, you would have Rep. Thomas M. Davis and former Gov. Jim Gilmore vying to replace Warner. As Davis has already set in motion a statewide get-to-know-the-candidate tour, and has already raised over a million dollars, he would probably be in the lead on the GOP side early on. There's even a good chance that he'd run against Warner in a primary, should Warner choose to seek re-election.

I haven't hid my disdain for what the distinguished Warner has become in the last year -- I've written here twice on the trouble with his recollections on personal experiences during the Vietnam War, which he claims is defining his calls for an exit from Iraq. Quite simply, he's old and way past his prime -- reduced to playing for posterity and media approval. It's long past time for the GOP to get new blood into the party, more of the type that ran and won in 1994. In particular, the Senate has become too much like the British House of Lords, with members "to the manner born" and appointed. If rebuilding the party means that a chance to regain the majority in the Senate will have to wait another couple of years, so be it.