Sen. John McCain would win a general election challenge with Sen. Hillary Clinton, ABC political news director Mark Halperin told the Manchester Union Leader on Weds. "I think she's strongly positioned but I would make him a favorite today," Halperin, who also co-authors the widely read news blog The Note, said in an interview with the paper. He declared the two Senators as the frontrunners in a field that also includes Sen. Barack Obama, Former VP Al Gore, Former Sen. John Edwards, and MA Gov. Mitt Romney. Notably absent from his list of viable contenders: Former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Halperin also speculated that current NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg might enter the race as an independent candidate if McCain doesn't run, though he believes he would enter the race late.