Over at CBS News, Vaughn Ververs writes that despite what should be a Democratic year Republicans are feeling a "palpable sense of relief these days."

For starters, McCain may be uniquely positioned to run against either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. Against Obama, the likely matchup for the moment at least, McCain may have the wave of change to fight against but could Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani or Mike Huckabee pose the same threat to the Illinois senator among crucial independent voters that McCain does? Would any of them have the upper hand on Clinton on national security and experience? And could they attract the disgruntled supporters among the loser of the Democratic fight the way he has (according to this Gallup poll)?

Even more importantly in a quest for 270 Electoral Votes, McCain appears to be positioned to wage a campaign covering a much bigger map than Republicans have in recent cycles. As a westerner, he should be better able to fend off Democratic encroachments in states like Colorado and New Mexico and perhaps even eat into their west coast strongholds of Washington and Oregon. Maybe, just maybe, he could even make Democrats sweat a little bit in the holy grail of the Electoral College -- California.

Republican strategists dream of McCain playing well even in some Democratic must-have states, like Michigan where he is a familiar figure and where Democratic fighting over the primary may hurt. Other states McCain might target are Minnesota (where the GOP convention will be), Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and even New Jersey. While Democrats dream of forcing the Republican party into a retreat toward the South and their do-or-die states such as Ohio and Missouri, McCain may force them to play as much defense as offense, something that would be a huge victory given the national landscape.

Ververs goes on to cite recent polling data that shows McCain matching up well against either candidate, as well as putting up good numbers in key battleground states like Pennsylvania and Ohio. All this, Ververs says, means McCain is off to a "good start."

Indeed, and that's about as far as we should go right now. Democrats have yet to really sink their teeth into McCain (and vice versa) on many issues which could resonate in November -- the war and the economy. McCain has the luxury of time right now, to not only prepare his election team and ground game but also to brush up on hot-topic issues like the economy. Considering the economy should dominate the coming months, McCain should have no excuse for coming off uninformed when the general really heats up.

With the Democrats in disarray, the GOP has been handed an surprise gift: McCain has broken out of the gates to a significant lead. The question is whether he can sustain it.