Yesterday, the Washington Post reported on a scheduled meeting next week with a dozen of high profile Democrats and Republicans.  The meeting, organized by New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg, will take place to explore the possibility of an independent candidate for president to challenge the current presidential contenders and advocate for a "government of national unity" to end partisan gridlock. If Mike Bloomberg does indeed go through with his plan and run as an independent, then his candidacy will have an adverse effect on the Republican Party, should Rudy Giuliani be our nominee.  I haven't put in much research on this, but just from what I have been reading, Bloomberg will likely draw more votes from Giuliani than the Democratic nominee, just like Ralph Nader to Al Gore in 2000.

Like Giuliani, Bloomberg is also pro-choice, pro-business candidate.  Both are from the same state and have similar political experience.  Giuliani's main campaign slogan throughout 2007 is his electability and appeal to independent voters by presenting himself as a fiscal conservative, socially moderate candidate who is strong on national security issues.  A Bloomberg candidacy would at least draw some of the independent or decline-to-state voters from Giuliani who aligned with the former NY Mayor because of his right-leaning economic view and "open-minded" social position.

Anyway, that's just my take, feel free to disagree or agree.