Former eBay CEO Meg Whitman was mentioned numerous times last year as a potential running mate for John McCain and is now a leading contender for the 2010 GOP nomination for Governor of California. Today Whitman backed out of a fundraiser for Bob McDonnell here in Virginia.

Yes, California is a blue state… but that’s the general election. Right now Whitman is in a very contentious fight for Republican primary votes. A race for the Republican nomination is about showing how conservative you are and how much you subscribe to party orthodoxy. That’s why the fact that she doesn’t want to be seen with McDonnell is so amazing.

CNN reports that the fundraiser was called off because of scheduling conflicts. But the cancellation came immediately after Whitman started receiving criticism over the event. Her campaign is refusing to comment.

Maybe working woman Meg Whitman thinks that flying across the country to campaign for Taliban Bob might be detrimental to her political future, even in the Land of Reagan™?