Posted on 07/07/2006 7:32:14 AM PDT by chiller
Twenty-eight months to go, and I can't wait.
( edit )
Since Condi insists she isn't interested - and for the moment I believe her - speculation ranges from base-pleasing Republicans like Sens. Bill Frist, Sam Brownback and my current favorite, George Allen, to the intriguing prospects of envelope-pushers like John McCain and Rudy Giuliani.
And these two intriguing figures constitute my point of the day. There are two things I have stopped saying: first, Mr. McCain can't win, and second, Rudy won't run.
I still don't believe Mr. McCain will be the '08 nominee, but his loyal support for the war has healed some distaste that the GOP base has had for him since he challenged Mr. Bush six years ago. His disconnect with many Republicans on overhauling campaign finance is still an anvil around his prospects, but I can no longer write him off.
As for Mr. Giuliani, I used to say that he won't run and couldn't win if he did. The gay-friendly, abortion-rights-supporting ex-New York mayor whose legacy includes an embrace of gun control? It would seem highly unlikely.
Unless you were in a room with me at the Hotel Crescent Court last month as the Dallas County Republican Party welcomed Mr. Giuliani to a fundraiser also heralding local congressional candidates.
I served as master of ceremonies, and there was a thoroughly polite welcome for the GOP primary survivors who will try to unseat Reps. Eddie Bernice Johnson and Chet Edwards.
But it was Mr. Giuliani who put a room of Reagan-loving red-staters into a positive swoon.
He did it with steadfast support for the Bush war doctrine, coupled with a passion for tight borders that even the still-admired incumbent cannot muster. He did it with strong fiscal conservatism, another Bush weakness. And he did it with a passionate pitch for school choice, an issue Republicans have neglected - mysteriously, since scads of Republicans and Democrats want it.
His content was great. His style was even better. His sharp wit and off-the-cuff comfort are miles beyond the average glazed, scripted politician. He sports a good-natured partisan streak that puts him a head above Mr. McCain, who seems to gag on any sentence suggesting that a Democrat might be wrong.
This is not my prediction that Mr. Giuliani's hand will rest on a Bible at the swearing-in on Jan. 20, 2009. But the Bible-embracing core of the GOP shows a willingness to consider him as he includes evangelical groups in his curious tour of various Republican constituencies.
He will not launch a national gun grab, leaving gun statutes to the cities. He will not push for nationwide gay marriage, happy to leave those decisions to the states, where the Constitution says they belong. He will not pound the bully pulpit for affirmative action, leaving that to the courts.
And speaking of the courts, he speaks glowingly of Mr. Bush's Supreme Court selections, Samuel Alito and John Roberts, suggesting he does not necessarily dream of packing the court with sure-fire abortion-rights opponents.
Throw in the tasty imagery of the Mayor of America wiping the debate stage floor with Mrs. Clinton or virtually anyone else, and it's the kind of thing to make a Republican heart quicken.
I don't know yet whether I can be a Rudy voter, but I'd enjoy watching him try to make me one.
Mark Davis is a columnist for the Dallas Morning News. The Mark Davis Show is heard weekdays nationwide on the ABC Radio Network. His e-mail address is mdavis@wbap.com.
The Rockefeller/Ford faction of the G.O.P. is alive 'n kickin'.
As you yourself insightfully posted----all he has to do is tell non-NYC residents out on the campaign trail: " Just vote for me, if you lived in New York City when I was mayor you'd understand why!"
(Poster laughs uproariously).
There's nothing wrong with this, of course -- despite how inconvenient it can often be. This is exactly how people with solid moral/ethical principles approach their duties as citizens. If the Republican Party wants to appeal to voters with solid moral/ethical principles, then they'll promote candidates who appeal to people with solid moral/ethical principles. The Democrats long ago gave up the notion that they have any interest in this kind of voter.
Why?
Rudy is far preferable to any and all dems.
If Rudy is nominated FreeRepublic will implode!
I once supported a former actor. So what?
Of course most mayors have no national profile and could not be taken seriously if they ran for POTUS. Rudy is not most mayors.
Rudi Giuliani is well-known by people who don't closely follow politics as well as those who do. So is McCain.
Most people have no idea who Brownback is and think George Allen is a former Redskins coach who got beat by Shula in Super Bowl V. The Conservative candidates people talk up are simply not that well known. It will be difficult for an unknown to build up a grass roots organization AND raise a lot of money. That's just a basic reality of Presidential politics.
If not for WWII, Eisenhower would never have been President.
Even without 9/11, Giuliani performed a miracle in NYC. (Today his detractors minimize that it was a miracle, but all you need do is research articles about ungovernable NYC prior to Giuliani). How many candidates for Office have performed positive miracles when given the chance?
Not to mention is you remember that he was almost a victim of 9/11 and watched close friends die.
Right. Will Rudy Giuliani stand up today and explain to us who came up with the brilliant idea to build an emergency response center in the basement of a building that had long been identified as a terrorist target?
YDR: The conservative names bandied about are all, nationally, lightweights.
jla: But you have no problem supporting a former mayor?
Hey, lets be fair, Rudy has Washington experience - he was on the staff of some deputy up there and then had an associate position for a couple of years.
Horse Hockey. Vigorous debate is what makes this site great. The Mods will show those who can't debate cleanly the door, and Free Republic will become stronger.
Unlike DU, people here actually think for themselves and don't march in lockstep with anyone. Differences of opinion are perfectly OK.
Hat tip to Sabramerican.
(Poster joins Liz in laughing uproariously)
RUDY'S POSTITIONS HAVE BEEN FRONT AND CENTER FOR YEARS! If any Evangelical doesn't know what Rudy is and where he comes from then they need to learn to read a newspaper! Rudy polls higher with evangelicals than any other candidate! He polls higher in the Southern states like Georgia than any Republican/Conservative candidate. Rudy will get the vote and will win.
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