Posted on 12/24/2007 4:39:11 AM PST by shrinkermd
HAMPTON, N.H. — Rudolph W. Giuliani has entered a turbulent period in his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, marked by what his aides acknowledge are missteps, sharp shifts in strategy and evidence that reports about his personal life have hurt his national standing.
A $3 million investment in radio and television advertising in New Hampshire, a belated effort to become competitive in this state, is now viewed by the campaign as a largely wasted expenditure.
A Boston Globe poll published Sunday found that support for Mr. Giuliani had dropped in New Hampshire over the past month, even before any fallout from the decision on Wednesday by an ailing Mr. Giuliani to have his campaign plane turn around and take him back to St. Louis, where he spent the night in the hospital.
Some of Mr. Giuliani’s advisers are frustrated at the extent to which his decision not to compete aggressively in Iowa has pushed him to the side of the stage at a moment when the political world’s attention is focused on the caucuses there that will kick off the election season in less than two weeks.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Rudy’s policy positions alienate a huge group of Republicans, and his messy personal life alienates many more.
These are solid points of attack by Democrats when the campaign season actually begins.
Rudy will lose.
It is a terrible mistake to put him at the head of the Republican ticket.
His aides declined to provide details of what had happened ... The situation grew even more muddled when Mr. Giuliani disputed what his campaign had said about his condition, saying that in fact he had been suffering from a severe headache..
Rooty said it was the worse headache he ever had. Maybe he has a brain tumor?
The same could be said for McCain.
Huckabee's personal and family lives appear to be clean, but his history of accepting or soliciting gifts and fat consultancy fees while governor stain his integrity, and his mindless class-warfare rhetoric puts him to the left of Hillary.
The half-hearted Fred Thompson is paying the price for waiting to write his term paper until a half hour before the end-of-semester deadline.
Romney's personal, family, and business lives are spotlessly clean and unimpeachably socially and fiscally conservative, but he has been governor of the most liberal state in the union and has raised the distrust and suspicions of many conservatives who like what they hear but don't like who they're hearing it from.
Meanwhile, money is a HUGE problem going into the general election and any Republican candidate will be hard-pressed to match the Democrat candidate, whoever that might be.
Romney and Giuliani have demonstrated the best ability to raise money and grind out the long, hard days and nights on the campaign trail (Romney is benefited by being able to place some of this burden on his enthusiastic and loyal wife and five sons). But both men have problems with positions (Giuliani) or trust (Romney).
It's a mess, alright.
OMG, don't these people ever learn? Mehlman was kicked out of the RNC for engineering the Repub debacle of Nov 2006. That disaster occurred in no small part from Mehlman sending Giuliani across the country to campaign for Repubs.
Conservatives were appalled to see abortion worshipping, gun-grabbing, gay-loving Giuliani hustling votes on THEIR campaign trail........and responsed accordingly.
Course Mehlman's really bright idea was for Rudy to rack up campaign chits of winning candidates that Rudy would cash in as the 2008 candidate. That never happened b/c all the candidates lost, thanks to Ridy.
And let's not forget.........this was BEFORE voters found out Rudy was porkng his mistress on the taxpayers' dime, that he had super-secret global business doings and that Kerik, Rudy's driver, bodyguard, and Police Commissioner (in that order) was a mobbed-up tax evader who lied to the WH.
Guilianni supposedly has his “firewall” in Florida. I’ve been utterly untouched by his campaign here in S. Florida. Haven’t seen a bumper sticker, had a call, recieved an e-mail, nothing, bupkiss, nada.
Most excellent rant, again...
However, I must point out that"porking his mistress" is a redundant turn of phrase..
in that the noun presumes the verb...
Oh, yeah...Merry Christmas!!!
Not even television or radio ads?
Has any Republican candidate been working South Florida visibly and hard yet? I would think SOMEONE would be trying to stake out early strategic ground there.
I’ve seen Ron Paul workers at a 4th of July event and Ron Paul bumper stickers. I’ve heard that Thompson and Guilianni were in town from friends and I heard that Hunter and I think Brownback were going to the Latin politicians conference. That’s the extent of it. No radio adverts on the stations I listen to, no TV ads yet.
Dang, I guess I better refrain from my fav then - "shagging his side-b*tch" ;-)
Merry Christmas!!!!!
Great summary, Liz. It should be turned into an internet handbill and mailed to every Republican email account in America.
In the meantime, Rudy's taken the gloves off and gone to bed with a headache and flu.
JCEccles, you're right about absenteeism on Thompson's part. But it is also true of Duncan Hunter. He's been there throughout, but just doesn't seem to have the desire to enter the ring and cause a ruckus that will get him some name recognition.
So, the only 3 with gloves on 2 weeks before the first vote are McCain, Huckabee, and Romney.
It makes me plumb sick to my conservative stomach.
The perfect Christmas present: Rudi and Hillary both getting their doors blown off in Iowa.
I feel just like I did that time when Dole got the nomination:WHAT WERE YOU THINKING???
Romney, Rudy, Huck, McCain-—NONE of them are right for the GOP!
We need a “plan B”. I like Fred, but the whole damn party seems to want to damn him with faint praise.
SO—’Ya got any better ideas??
Sadly, it just never happened.
It ain’t over till the fat lady sings
Brokered convention and draft Cheney.
He would have been my favorite, anyway, if he’d run. Maybe the party can beg him to do it.
Excuse me for butting in but since the subject is Rooty, not necessarily.
Considering his 'over active libido' (per judi) he could've been 'porking' a Blow-up Doll add in his (cough) morals, it could be a small Farm Animal. Neither of which would be categorized as a 'mistress'.
Ergo, "porking his mistress" would be correct.
and how do you really feel...? (g)
Merry Christmas!!
Do either of you remember "Deb"..who rarely posts nowadays? She was the absolute best...could destroy people in a flame war with two keystrokes..
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