You know, Sir Francis, that is one position that Rudy will be hard-pressed to explain away. But while Pataki was much better than Cuomo, he sure wasn't a solid principled Republican Governor himself. I don't remember what the "city-state" issues were at the time Rudy made that unseemly remark but I'm sure it will come back to dog him in this election cycle.
All that said, I still think Rudy is the best choice for the GOP just on the leadership front alone but also his consistent conservative fiscal record in NYC. JMHO.
It doesn't matter... I won't pull the lever for a liberal...