Giuliani's Pre-9/11 Record Should Erase Rightest Doubts

Hunan Events ^ | 3/16/07 | Deroy Murdock

[areafiftyone]

The same Beltway experts who declared Sen. John McCain (R.-Ariz.) the GOP frontrunner, even as he under-polled fellow presidential contender Rudolph W. Giuliani, now parrot equally dodgy concepts. When Republicans meet “the real Rudy,” they will abandon New York’s former mayor like cattle fleeing a burning barn. Then, the wobbly Washington wisdom continues, Giuliani’s three marriages, and his less-than-solidly right-wing views on gays, guns, and gametes will torpedo his buoyant presidential hopes.

These seers now detect unhappiness with the GOP aspirants. They cite a recent Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll in which 26% of Republican primary voters were dissatisfied with Giuliani, McCain, and former Massachusetts governor Willard Mitt Romney, among others. However, 56% called these choices satisfactory. This mirrors the 57%of conservative Republicans who preferred Giuliani, versus 31% for McCain. More broadly, Republicans backed Giuliani 38% to McCain’s 24, former House speaker Newt Gingrich’s 10, Romney’s 8, and 2% each for Kansas Senator Sam Brownback and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee.

But what if voters like Giuliani better upon understanding his pre-9-11 performance? Educating Republicans on his complete mayoral record -- and soon -- may be Giuliani’s best bet for extinguishing lingering grumbling about his candidacy.

I recently visited Baltimore, Charlotte, Richmond, Salem, Oregon; Seattle, and Johnstown, Pennsylvania, mainly to deliver speeches sponsored by Young America’s Foundation. I conversed with conservative activists, College Republican leaders, university professors, and think-tank scholars, among others.

These Americans vividly remember Giuliani emerging from the ashes of September 11, like a latter-day Churchill rising from the rubble of the London Blitz. However, these involved and informed citizens knew startlingly little about Giuliani’s other mayoral achievements:

• Through robust policing, Giuliani drove overall crime down 56.1%, while chopping homicides 66.6%, from 1,946 in 1993 to 649 in 2001.

• Following national trends, abortions on Giuliani’s watch dropped 16.9%, while taxpayer-funded Medicaid abortions plunged 23%.

• Gotham’s foster-care population fell 38% as Giuliani helped loving families adopt 17,804 boys and girls.

• By fighting fraud and finding work for legitimate beneficiaries, Giuliani cut welfare rolls 58%, starting two years before federal welfare reform. Giuliani renamed welfare offices “Job Centers.”

• Giuliani privatized 23,625 previously confiscated, city-owned dwellings, 78% of supply, benefiting family and individual homeowners and tenants.

• Giuliani dumped Gotham’s 20% set-aside and 10% overbid bonus for minority and female contractors. “The whole idea of quotas to me perpetuates discrimination,” he explained. He initiated this on his 24th day in office, far exceeding any colorblindness legislation Congress even debated during the 12-year “Republican Revolution.”

• Giuliani’s $10 million Charter School Improvement Fund helped 3,286 pupils in 17 new charter schools, up from $0 and zero campuses in 1997. He ended tenure for school principals, so slackers could be sacked. He also stopped social promotion; students needed to complete grade-level work to matriculate.

• Ex-pornography mecca Times Square now welcomes families, tourists, and locals for fully clothed musicals like “The Lion King” and “Mary Poppins.”

Beyond these socially conservative victories, Giuliani governed as a Reaganesque supply-sider:

• Giuliani scrapped three taxes and slashed 20 others, lowering Gotham’s tax burden by 17% and saving individual and business taxpayers $9.8 billion.

• While inflation averaged 3.9%, Giuliani’s average spending grew 2.9% annually. If the departed GOP Congress were that fiscally disciplined, the next federal budget would be $2.275 trillion -- $625 billion cheaper than proposed.

• While hiring 12% more cops and 12.8% more teachers, Giuliani sliced other positions 17.2%. Overall, municipal headcount fell 3.1%.

Rudy got this done thanks largely to a management style that he described Wednesday at a $2 million Manhattan fundraiser: “I’m impatient and single-minded about my goals.”

Giuliani’s legacy has earned the endorsements of such screaming liberals as President Bush’s former solicitor general, Ted Olson, Sen. David Vitter (R.-La.), and Rep. Pete Sessions (R.-Tex.) -- both proud owners of 100% ratings from the National Right to Life Committee.

Before Giuliani’s enemies caricature him as a divorce-driven, abortion-peddling, gun-grabbing transvestite, he should familiarize Republicans with his mayoral accomplishments. From Westwood to Washington’s echo chamber, Rudy Giuliani and his supporters should specify how he rescued America’s largest left-wing city through Reaganite social and economic reforms.

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Mr. Murdock, a New York-based commentator to HUMAN EVENTS, is a columnist with the Scripps Howard News Service and a media fellow with the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace at Stanford University.

[LtdGovt]

How about blaming the pro-Rudy crowd for pushing a candidate the base finds intolerable?

The 'base' doesn't find Rudy intolerable, according to the polls. Don't project your feelings on the 'base', please.

[Xenophon450]

The man probably just likes tradition...

"Mr. Rockefeller represented 'a tradition in the Republican Party I've worked hard to re-kindle - the Rockefeller, Javits, Lefkowitz tradition.' -- Rudy Giuliani, New York Times, July 9, 1992"

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=16762

[showme_the_Glory]

They are so blinded by their hate

Conservatives hate liberalism. (good hates evil) Rudy has chosen to be the target of the hate all by himself. Do you support the same liberal principles?

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

The religious right has so marginalized themselves politically at this point they cannot stop a Giuliani nomination or presidency. The only question left is whether they want to have any influence at all.


I want to have some influence, so I'll ask, what are your core values and from whence do they come? What lines in the sand will you not let a domestic enemy of your family and national heritage cross?

[LtdGovt]

I've already told you, I will support the person who wins the GOP nomination (unless he's anti-war). That is hardly showing contempt for conservatives. In fact, it's more than you do. I still think that it's right to support the person who will have the best chance of defeating Hillary in this poisonous political environment.

You say that a true conservative would be able to beat Hillary/Obama/Democrat. Unfortunately, that's the quintessential partisan delusion. Liberals, too, think that their election losses are becasue they watered down their ideology too much. Someone even wrote a book about it "What's the Matter with Kansas".

[pissant]

I'm gonna compile a list of the top 200 Giuliani quotes. that one will be on it.

[LtdGovt]

Conservatives hate liberalism. (good hates evil) Rudy has chosen to be the target of the hate all by himself.

That would mean that conservatives, people who are 100% good, like yourself, would hate anyone who is less than 50% good (conservative). Since you say that Rudy is the target of your hatred, can you prove that Rudy is less than 50% conservative?

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

You can't fight Marxism with CULTURAL Marxism. Pass it on.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

Feel free to copy my post and start using it as a standard reply. In fact, I recommend it...

[DBrow]

"Conservatives who are attacking Rudy unwittingly are helping the Dems"

I disagree. Endless Rudy articles in the MSM explaining how he really is a conservative republican are helping the dems, and anyone who goes along is also a helper.

The mass media is trying to select a candidate for the RNC, one that the mass media can either defeat, or live with if elected.

[Little Ray]

He IS a divorce-driven, gun-grabbing, and pro-infanticide. He's also pro-Kyoto, and pro-queer.
Wouldn't call him a transvestite for just for dressing up funny for parties, though.

[NavyCanDo]

No one is more afraid of Giuliani than the Hillary supporters. It is a matter of her survival to make Rudy look more left than she is. I have a major Hillary supporter in my office - a guy who has had an H In 08 bumper sticker on his car for over a year, and day in and day out he brings up Rudy's left leaning stances trying to convince me and any other conservative voter that may be listening that we can't get behind Rudy. He's afraid of Rudy - very afraid and so is Hillary.

[Alberta's Child]

I'll go back and find the thread and post where this was discussed (I thought it was with you, but maybe not!).

In the meantime, I'll let YOU pick ten key issues for 2008 -- and then we'll see how Rudy Giuliani stands up on them.

[pissant]

Yes he did right that book, and he's a flaming liberal and I've heard 3 interviews with the buffoon. His premise is that Kansans should NOT vote GOP because it is against THEIR best interest. An idiot like that who cannot even understand his own state should not be waved around as proof of insight.

Michael Medved, a moderately conservative republican, ripped his premise to threads in his interview.

GWB ran as a conservative (though sometimes does not govern like one) twice. Beat a sitting vice prez during an apparently strong economy and an apparent time of peace. Beat John Kerry by 3.5 million votes, despite the "quagmire" in Iraq, 24/7 hostile media, MoveOn.org and George Soros. The church going christian conservatives, including a majority of Catholics were GWBs most solid voting block.

[Little Ray]

If we elect Rudy we WILL have a Democrat president - just one that is more competant than the average Democrat.

[Alberta's Child]

I've already told you, I will support the person who wins the GOP nomination (unless he's anti-war).

Thanks for your honesty. I find it ironic that one of the common accusations made by Giuliani's supporters is that his opponents are "single-issue voters," and yet this is exactly what many of his supporters are!

[LtdGovt]

It might have been, but I don't remember you actually telling me what the issues were.

In any case, here are my top ten issues:

- War on Terror (Iraq)
- Iran
- Gun control
- Limited Government
- Crime
- Health care (i.e., stopping universal)
- Domestic terrorism
- Freedom (no gambling ban and other garbage)
- Taxes
- Deficit

[pissant]

right = write

[Alberta's Child]

OK. So how does Rudy Giuliani grade out on these?

I'd suggest that maybe the first two should be combined -- but maybe not, since there might be legitimate reasons for a candidate to come down on different sides of those issues.

[pissant]

Those are just silly names. The one name that SHOULD disturb you is liberal. But it doesn't.