Posted on 02/20/2007 6:02:13 AM PST by areafiftyone
Daniel Weintraub, the respected Sacramento Bee political columnist, says it is looking more and more as if former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani can win the GOP presidential nomination. Writes Weintraub:
Only a few months ago, conventional wisdom throughout much of the political world was that former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani might make a competitive Republican candidate for president in a general election, but he could never win his party's nomination because conservative primary voters would reject him.
Now, suddenly, that wisdom seems to have shifted, and as Giuliani trouped through California last week, he was wowing conservatives with his charisma, his gift for sounding spontaneous on the stump and his call for bold national leadership.
"Rudy" - as he is known everywhere - has already been accepted as one of three top-tier Republican candidates, along with Arizona Sen. John McCain and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. With California and several other large industrial states set to move their primaries up to early February, Giuliani might be more formidable than ever.
"All three candidates have challenges when it comes to proving themselves to conservatives," said Jon Fleischman, a party activist whose Flashreport.org Web site is considered by insiders to be the voice of conservative Republicans in the state. "Giuliani has just as good a shot as the other two of trying to articulate to conservatives why, as they compromise to pick a candidate, it should be him."
Giuliani just might be the perfect Republican candidate for California, a state that prefers Republicans who are not-so-conservative on certain social issues.
I am going to keep an open mind for the time being. I think when the candidates debate each other that will tell us much.
Yeah, that's why Eisenhower and Nixon and Bush Sr. never got elected, and Barry Goldwater had such a successful two terms.
-ccm
Now tell us when that was, since you have only been around for a couple of years? Some on this site are former democrats and did not support GWB until late in the election cycle. Why don't you do some research and get your facts straight? This forum has always accommodated both conservative and moderate views. Lately the vitriol coming from some posters here is reminiscent of DU. It alienating a lot of people who have been around for many years and supported this site. So why don't we all stop with the name calling and allow everyone to espouse their views without being attacked. It's digusting and you should be zotted for your childish name-calling.
That was then this is now.
Agreed. It takes an astonishing amount of self-delusion to think that a candidate from the hard right fringe could win the next election.
-ccm
Winning is important but its short-sighted for them to think that Rudy polling ahead of Hillary now means that Rudy is the one who can best beat the Democrats in 2008. And its infuriating to think that we are simply expected to follow their lead in who will be at the top of the ticket.
Well, you're the one who said we "always" lose without a social conservative. I would like to know just when you think "always" was.
You Hunter guys need to cool it with the name-calling and wishing "zots" on those you don't agree with. It should perhaps tell you something that you are perceived as deluded right-wing zealots here on one of the most conservative sites on the Internet.
-ccm
It will be huge. I look forward to watching what goes on in California.
Re post #20.
Great point and I hope you are correct. The social conservatives hijacking the 92 convention perfectly illustrates your point.
"I know I will never vote for the liberal."
You just like big government protectionists. /s
"Back when FR was a conservative site--rather than an organ of the "New Republican" party (see the Whigs)--they would have been *zotted*."
I remember those days- there were lots of Gary Bauer fans on here. And Buchananites. Real winning candidates!
LMAO.....
"If Rudy can take California, he wins. It's that simple."
Realistically, that's probably not going to happen.
But Giuliani will force Dems to spend money in New York and California, which means they won't be spending as much money in Florida, Ohio, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and so forth.
Hillary and Osama Obama won't stand a chance against Giuliani. Giuliani's coat-tails may also allow us to take down "safe" Democrats like Senator Turbin here in Illinois.
Zee Joan Wilder???
Sorry. I'm stuck in the 80s.
If you call an 84% favorable rating with conservatives "Splitting" the party, then yeah I guess your right :) And folks know about his social liberal positions. You can not turn on a news report about him from any network including fox and cbn without them laying out his views on gays,abortion, and guns. In a two minute piece on him at least a minute if not more will be devoted to his views. Folks know where he stands, but they want him anyway because in war Leadership trumps all.
If poor Ronnie could come back, he wouldn't reconize his beloved California, overrun by socialist politico's and illegals.
Thats the one!The best part of that movie, if you watched it closely was Danny DeVito, LOL!
The quote you provide is not from Giuliani. If the document cited by The Smoking Gun is authentic, your quoted words were written by Giuliani's campaign advisors in 1993, and were intended as a possible rebuttal to the attacks of his opposition.
Your entire post and this last sentence is one of the best I have read in a long time--applause for you Freeper.
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