Posted on 02/01/2007 8:08:22 AM PST by meg88
2008: Republicans: Giuliani
"The question is this: Can the thrice-married New Yorker — a supporter of abortion rights, gay rights and gun control — win the nomination of a Republican Party that has become increasingly dependent on and influenced by conservative Christians?," poses Susan Page of USA Today in her front page look at the conundrum Giuliani faces in his battle for the White House.
Note that Family Research Council's Tony Perkins finds Giuliani "unacceptable," and plans to take him out if he shows strength.
Note also Page marshalling data suggesting that Giuliani's liberal views are not well known within the party.
Jonathan Tamari of the Asbury Park Press reports that former Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R-NY) has lined up an army of Garden State GOP supporters including nearly 300 legislators, chairmen, and mayors, and failed U.S. Senate candidate Tom Kean, Jr. New Jersey's presidential primary may be held as early as Feb. 5, 2008
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
Take him out?
Geez...I know he's not the best candidate, but do we really want them to SHOOT the guy?
;-)
If he wins strong at the primaries, isn't that strong circumstantial evidence he is what the GOP base wants?
He has already spoken on those issues. He has a record on them.
I'd not trust a candidate that changes that many views that much in that short a time.
(I'm increasingly wondering why Rudy supporters are so adamant about pushing him in the face of such hostility from the base. Why promote a candidate that gets this much opposition from within the supporting party? trying to split the party?)
Dressing in drag for fun to raise some money?
Stupid thing for a politician to do. Unless you are on the left.
It doesn't change the point, now does it? YOu can try to spin it as meaningless, but the pictures will still be out there. Pictures of Rudy in drag isn't going to look very presidential. And if you are someone who is supporting Rudy, then you and yours are going to have to fight pretty hard for him, because he doesn't look even moderate to me at all.
What matters is where he stands in '08 on the issue, because the circumstances could be much different by then. We could also get another 9/11 attack.
Instead of threatening to destroy the rep party, how about grooming some powerhouse conservative candidates with wide, across the board appeal???
Diarrhea.
Unless something dramatically changes for the better in Iraq (as we all hope that it will) the election will be a referendum on the war and on Prez. Bush's conduct of the war. There might be some single-issue voters who will only vote based on where a candidate stands on abortion or gun control, but I guarantee you that if things stay on their current course the only issue that the silent majority will give a tinker's damn about is Iraq.
Accepting that as a given, the only way that we can win is by running a more moderate outsider who has proven that he can bridge partisan divides and manage crises. Rudy has those credentials, and while he's not everything that I want, I'm willing to accept his shortcomings in order to prevent a Dem takeover of the Executive branch.
Yes, this was a charity fundraiser.
There are two kinds of men who would dress like that and allow themselves to be photographed.
a. Transvestites and fairies.
b. Macho men, entirely confident in their masculinity.
Which one do we think represents Rudy, honestly?
Hey, it was a gag. It was meant to be funny. And it was funny, if you know the guy.
Me, a Rino supporter? You might want to look at my posting history.
It's not funny. It's twisted.
I seriously doubt that the FRC used the words "take him out" when discussing Giuliani.
Read your Bible. National security comes from social issues. A bad king lost the favor of God. I good king had the favor of God and could not be defeated.
Think back to The Viet Nam era and tell me we could not have won that war against a 3rd world mud hole. Then think of what was happening with free sex, homosexual rights, dope, abortion and all the rest. Our country was weak, because the people are weak.
We are weaker today. When you forget God, you pay. Simple plan from the beginning.
What good is this "bridging" when you are pushing your own base off the other end of the bridge? Telling your own voters that you don't give a damn about the issues they hold dear, is NOT a way to win an election.
I understand where you're coming from, but if things continue on how they are I think that most issues are going to take a backseat to the War in Iraq. The Iraq War has an immediacy as an issue that the Cold War did not, and Americans aren't going to vote for a strongly partisan candidate.
Like it or not, if we're going to maintain our hold on the White House, issues like Abortion and gun control are going to have to be tabled for the time being. Comfort yourself with the knowledge that with a Republican president, we'll at least maintain the status quo.
By the time that '08 rolls around, Iraq, and how we're going to get out of there, will be the number one issue for conservatives too. The base will just have to accept that status quo on other major issues is better than President Hillary.
The only other possible candidate I can think of that the conservatives might go for would be Sen. Fred Thompson. It is said that every Senator would like to be President. I've always thought that Fred "looks" like a President to me. Whether he has the "fire in the belly" to go for it is another question.
Who ever it will be, will depend upon name recognition and the ability to raise cash. The less known, the more cash will be needed. So, if you have someone in mind, now is the time to put your bets down.
That would be fine in the imaginary world of commentators and self-described moderates where it's the same people who vote every time and FORCE themselves to pick someone. Alas the real world doesn't work that way. There is a vast sector of the electorate that vote now and then, don't consider themselves partisan (even though they may be registered in a party) and essentially only vote when they see something they like. This group is NOT a small one.
So go ahead and tell the prolifers and the pro-gunners and the church goers who really haven't voted regularly since Reagan that they HAVE to pick someone, and see what happens. You might as well tell your grandmother she HAS to watch the Superbowl cheer for one team.
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