RKMBs Forums .::Important::. Politics and Current Events Rudy in '08

After months of conflicting signals on abortion, Rudolph W. Giuliani is planning to offer a forthright affirmation of his support for abortion rights in public forums, television appearances and interviews in the coming days, despite the potential for bad consequences among some conservative voters already wary of his views, aides said yesterday.

Mr. Giuliani hinted at what aides said would be his uncompromising position on abortion rights yesterday in Huntsville, Ala., where he was besieged with questions about abortion and his donations to Planned Parenthood. “Ultimately, there has to be a right to chose,” he said.

Asked if Republicans would accept that, he said, “I guess we are going to find out.”

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the G-man said:
After months of conflicting signals on abortion, Rudolph W. Giuliani is planning to offer a forthright affirmation of his support for abortion rights in public forums, television appearances and interviews in the coming days, despite the potential for bad consequences among some conservative voters already wary of his views, aides said yesterday

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In Private Sector, Giuliani Parlayed Fame Into Wealth
Candidate's Firm Has Taken On Controversial Executives, Clients
By John Solomon and Matthew Mosk
Washington Post Staff Writers
Sunday, May 13, 2007; A01
On Dec. 7, 2001, nearly three months after the terrorist attack that had made him a national hero and a little over three weeks before he would leave office, New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani took the first official step toward making himself rich.

The letter he dispatched to the city Conflicts of Interest Board that day asked permission to begin forming a consulting firm with three members of his outgoing administration. The company, Giuliani said, would provide "management consulting service to governments and business" and would seek out partners for a "wide-range of possible business, management and financial services" projects.

Over the next five years, Giuliani Partners earned more than $100 million, according to a knowledgeable source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the firm's financial information is private. And that success helped transform the Republican considered the front-runner for his party's 2008 presidential nomination from a moderately well-off public servant into a globe-trotting consultant whose net worth is estimated to be in the tens of millions of dollars.

In crafting its image, the firm took care to burnish its most valuable asset: the worldwide reputation Giuliani had earned for his composure and leadership in the days after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. "No client is ever approved or worked on without a full discussion with Rudy," said the firm's senior managing partner, Michael D. Hess, former corporation counsel for the city of New York.

Not surprisingly, a firm that markets Giuliani and is run by Giuliani has taken on the characteristics of the politician, who even by New York standards was known for his self-confidence and sometimes defiant insistence on doing things his way.

Famously loyal, Giuliani chose as his partners longtime associates, including a former police commissioner later convicted of corruption, a former FBI executive who admitted taking artifacts from Ground Zero and a former Roman Catholic priest accused of covering up sexual abuse in the church.

Giuliani, grounded in the intricately connected world of New York politics, has been more than adept at making the system work for his clients. They have included a pharmaceutical company that, with Giuliani's help, resolved a lengthy Drug Enforcement Administration investigation with only a fine; a confessed drug smuggler who hired Giuliani to ensure his security company could do business with the federal government; and the horse racing industry, eager to recover public confidence after a betting scandal.

Clients of Giuliani Partners are required to sign confidentiality agreements, so they do not comment about the work they receive or how much they are paying for it. Though now running for president, Giuliani refuses to identify his clients, disclose his compensation or reveal any details about Giuliani Partners. He also declined to be interviewed about the firm.

Because of this secrecy -- a request to visit his wood-paneled offices overlooking Times Square was turned down -- a complete picture of the firm and its business is difficult to obtain. This report is based on a review of corporate, government and court records, along with scores of interviews with clients and government officials who have interacted with Giuliani Partners.
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Despite powerful local obstacles, Giuliani was able to significantly cut taxes; hold spending increases down below the rates of inflation and population growth; overhaul the welfare system; deregulate and privatize many local government services; and join the fight for school choice. These accomplishments played a crucial role in transforming New York City from an economic basket case into a thriving economy.

The most important question is what Giuliani’s mayoral tenure tells us about how he would govern if elected president. The answer is not clear cut, as some of his local positions are worrisome and some of his federal positions are still unknown. Nonetheless, one cannot help but conclude that if Giuliani could accomplish the pro-growth record he did in the hostile environment of New York City, the potential for him to accomplish even more amid the more politically balanced federal government is great.

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Times: Giuliani seized control after 9/11, acted as a 'benevolent dictator'
RAW STORY
Published: Sunday May 13, 2007
A story in tomorrow's New York Times (reg. req.) is highly criticial of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani's handling of the recovery operation in New York City following 9/11, claiming that his desire to downplay problems and return the city to a semblance of normality as quickly as possible has led to serious health problems for many of those who worked at ground zero.

The Times also charges that Giuliani sidelined experienced federal officials from FEMA, OSHA and the Army Corps of Engineers, placing the cleanup instead in the hands of "a largely unknown city agency" that offered "a generally slipshod, haphazard, uncoordinated, unfocused response to environmental concerns." According to the Times, "one Army Corps official said Giuliani acted like a 'benevolent dictator.'"
RAW

Nearly all of New York's Republican state legislators will endorse Rudy Giuliani for president next week, The Post has learned.

Giuliani plans to do a fly-around tour of Albany and upstate on Tuesday to receive support from state senators and Assembly members, including Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Rensselaer) and Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco (R-Schenectady).

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the G-man said:
POL SUPPORT GIVES RUDY A 'HOME' RUN

Nearly all of New York's Republican state legislators will endorse Rudy Giuliani for president next week, The Post has learned.

Giuliani plans to do a fly-around tour of Albany and upstate on Tuesday to receive support from state senators and Assembly members, including Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Rensselaer) and Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco (R-Schenectady).

Cool. I'll have to give my local State Senator a call and see if he's one of the guys Rudy will be visiting. I ought to be able to wrangle an invite if he is.

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"home run?" is that anything like a "slam dunk?"

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the G-man said:
Only in San Francisco does one automatically equate "home" with "slamming".

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Rudy Giuliani Continues Slide in Polls As Abortion Criticism Increases

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Rudy Giuliani is continuing to slide in the polls as he is plagued by more criticism over his position on abortion. The former New York City mayor has drawn strong opposition because of his pro-abortion views, but recent flaps about supporting taxpayer funding for abortions and donations to Planned Parenthood haven't helped.

A new CNN poll shows Giuliani has dropped a large nine percentage points from March to May -- going from 34 percent nationally to just 23 percent.

Virtually every other candidate has gained or stayed the same in the poll and benefited from the ex-mayor's slide.
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...George Bush 41, in a seeming alignment with the philosophies of his predecessor, Ronald Reagan, had defined himself so clearly as a candidate that Dukakis was unable to wiggle past the boundaries Bush had established. As a result, Dukakis moved first to the right, and then to the left, in desperate attempts to find a position that would put him ahead.

Ultimately, it became patently obvious to the public that his constantly changing stances were merely a ploy, especially when they completely contradicted his phony persona of previous weeks.

Unfortunately for consummate Republican pragmatists, the GOP is no more immune to the adverse effects of such tactics than are the Democrats. If anything, Republicans are even more vulnerable since, at the most inopportune moment, the liberal media will publicly dissect any discrepancies in their stated platform.

At the point that a candidate finds himself on opposite sides of the same issue over such a short period of time, he is essentially campaigning against himself. It did not work for Michael Dukakis in 1988. Nor is it any more likely to be successful in an era in which alternative media and the Internet will guarantee that any inconsistencies on the issues will eventually be put under the bright lights.
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PJP said:
don't assume everyone in the GOP is part of the Christian right.....sometimes it just pays to ally yourself with those nut jobs to get elected. If Hillary or Obama is the nominee the GOP won't have to rely on them much at all, just cause those 2 are so devisive.

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Matter-eater Man said:
Rudy Giuliani Continues Slide in Polls As Abortion Criticism Increases

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the G-man said:

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Matter-eater Man said:
Rudy Giuliani Continues Slide in Polls As Abortion Criticism Increases

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Funny: another poll out today still has him in the lead.

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Mitt Romney leads Republicans
By JONATHAN ROOS
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
Copyright 2007, Des Moines Register and Tribune Company
May 20, 2007

Mitt Romney has sprinted ahead of presidential competitors John McCain and Rudy Giuliani in a new Iowa Poll of likely Republican caucus participants.
The Des Moines Register poll shows Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, is the top choice of 30 percent of those who say they definitely or probably will attend the leadoff Iowa caucuses in January.
McCain, a U.S. senator from Arizona, nips former New York Mayor Giuliani for second place — 18 percent to 17 percent.
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Desmoines Register
So you have a Mitt the flip flopper, Rudy (freaky private life & "nuanced" positions, a bit nuts, doesn't see his kids ect ect) and McCain, a war hero with a solid record of experience. Iowa picks Mitt, the guys who's virtually flipped on all his previous positions.