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Heroic is the wrong word. Too many acts are considered heroic today that I really don’t consider heroic. I apologize for using that word. I admire his leadership during and after 9-11. His words and actions during that attack meant something to me - his speeches were uplifting and filled with pride and a no surrender attitude that seems to be lost almost 7 years later. I admire what he did for NYC as Mayor: cleaned it up quite a bit, more cops, backed the cops when it’s so easy to trash a few that make a bad name for the majority in uniform, and was partly responsible for turning the city around economically too, at least in my opinion.

I don’t agree with his stand on abortion as I’m as pro-life as one can get - I don’t think there’s any reason to murder an innocent baby, and abortion is murder in my mind and heart. I voted once for a candidate that didn’t share my views on abortion (Christie Whitman) - the Dem candidate also didn’t share my views so I voted for the fiscal conservative republican candidate.

I don’t know enough about any of the current republican presidential prospects to make any decision but I do know that I will vote republican unless a dem nominee is pro-life, anti-gun control, pro military/supportive of our troops and our current involvement in Iraq, and not a socialist when it comes to healthcare and our economy, or a secular-progressive, etc. - in other words, I’ll vote for whatever candidate is the most conservative but not sure about the republican primary yet. I like some things about Rudy, some things about McCain, and I don’t know enough about any of the other prospects yet. I know I don’t like anything at all about Hillary, Obama, or Edwards. Not a thing. And I didn’t hate Bill Clinton, I didn’t like him but I didn’t dislike everything about him. Any of them (Hillary, Obama, Edwards) winning P or VP is something that really frightens me. Gore frightens me. Kerry frightens me. More than the other 3. I liked former PA Gov. Casey - he was pro life and the dem party trashed him. He was a dem but I liked him as Gov of my former state.

I have no idea who I’ll vote for in the repub primary (or who will be running by then, it’s too early for me). I need to read/hear/see more about them. I do know that I will support/vote for whomever is against the 5 dems I mentioned. I’ll never vote for someone running 3rd party because it only takes votes away from the 2 party candidates - we’re a 2 party government whether I like it or not - and a 3rd party candidate doesn’t have a chance to win, imo, yet. I wish that weren’t the case but I also wish I were a multi-millionaire so my wishing doesn’t mean much.

My ideal candidate is pro life, anti-death penalty, anti-gun control, anti-universal healthcare, pro military/pro troops, pro family, anti-nanny state, anti welfare (the current system), anti-Union, anti-homo agenda, anti illegal immigration, etc., someone who doesn’t give a damn about what the rest of the world thinks about Americans because my personal view is the world is jealous of our freedoms and economic success and I have little patience with this whole global crap.

I think our major problem is the media and hollywood - they control the show. And we continually allow them to control it. They’re liberal/leftist, anti capitalist as long as it doesn’t impact their income or way of life. Elitist mentality to the extreme. IMO.

I too was inspired by his words after 9/11. And I think he was a good mayor for New York City. And in some ways, I wouldn’t mind him being president. I don’t think he is evil incarnate.

I just don’t equate the feeling he gave me after 9/11 with actual leadership. It FELT like it, but when I objectively examine his record, I see it was all feeling and emotion for me, not anything he actually did or accomplished.

That’s not an “indictment” of him, I don’t think there was something he was supposed to accomplish that he didn’t or anything, I just don’t see him as really special or especially suited for being the leader of the war on terror.

When the fights first broke out here with Rudy people, I was on the pro-rudy side, NOT because I was going to vote for him, but because I didn’t like the attacks on Rudy, who I figured might well be our nominee. I don’t like us tearing apart our own people (I’m still defensive of all the other candidates we have, I’ve even been known to say nice things about Hagel and McCain).

But while defending him, I started realising I didn’t like the company I was keeping. As infantile as the anti-rudy people were from time to time, I found myself agreeing with their sentiment while decrying their words. And the rudy posters I was agreeing with were very unagreeable, very smug, ill-prepared to defend their candidate, full of words of fear and defeat.

And at some point, I decided that at least he had enough people fighting to keep him viable, and I decided I’d rather fight for a candidate I felt more in tune with. So I joined another hopeless cause, trying to defend Mitt Romney against those who said he was too liberal to support here. (Given the number of people who say that about Mitt, who’s way more conservative than Rudy, I think the Rudy people have nothing to complain about).

I’d be happy to vote for Mitt Romney, but I don’t think he’s going to win the primary. Heck, I’d love to have President Duncan Hunter, but I don’t expect that either. But I defend Romney because I think he’s a good man who is overly maligned out of fear he is lying to us, which I don’t think he is. But I’m not married to Mitt, he could lose my support as I learn more.

My guess is I’ll end up supporting Fred Thompson, because he’ll be viable and conservative. If I were in charge and it was the day to vote, I’d love to vote for a Thompson/Romney ticket.

Anyway, that’s how I feel about all this. I thank you for your opinions.