LACONIA, N.H. - Sensing the political kill, GOP presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani yesterday slammed former Gov. Mitt Romney over his appointment of a now-controversial Bay State judge and said his rival has an abysmal record on violent crime.
“The governor is going to have to explain his appointment, and the judge is going to have to explain her decision,” Giuliani said, speaking of Superior Court Judge Kathe M. Tuttman, a Romney selection. Tuttman freed convicted killer Daniel T. Tavares Jr. on personal recognizance July 16, and the tattooed psycho stands accused of murdering a Washington state couple one week ago.
“It’s not an isolated situation,” the GOP front-runner said, asserting that Romney has a “poor record on violent crime” and adding: “He had an increase in murder and violent crime while he was governor. So it’s not so much the isolated situation which he and the judge will have to explain.”
Giulian’s attack came despite a furious effort by the Romney camp to bottle the Tavares controversy by calling on Tuttman to quit and emphasizing that the felon threatened to kill Romney and other officials on his release from prison.
by Jessica van Sack