Free Republic

But that analysis may be too simple. In Delaware Giuliani is asked for the umpteenth time if his views on 'social issues' would be fatal to his presidential ambitions. 'I don't get to decide what the issues are. But they are not usually the ones you think they are going to be,' he says. He is right. National security will still be the overwhelming issue of 2008. Giuliani's strong credentials there could make up for weaknesses elsewhere. There are also signs that his problems with the conservatives could be overstated. First, their power is waning. In 2006's congressional elections the...

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...