Free Republic

May 23, 2006 -- IN my new book ("Can She Be Stopped?"), I suggest that the Republican best suited to the challenge of preventing Hillary Clinton's ascension to the Oval Of fice in 2008 is Rudy Giuliani. A Fox News Opinion Dynamics poll released yesterday offers some strong ballast for the idea: In a head-to-head matchup, Rudy beats Hillary 49 percent to 40 percent, the best showing among all Republican contenders. By contrast, John McCain has a 46-to-42 advantage over Hillary - besting her but not as decisively as Rudy does. Rudy is viewed favorably by 64 percent of those...

While Rudy Giuliani is known as "America's Mayor" for his leadership in the weeks following September 11, what has been overshadowed is how he brought accountability and competency to New York's dysfunctional city government during the prior seven years. The best known turnaround story of the Giuliani era is the 65% plunge in serious crime. By restructuring the NYPD and focusing its resources on the neighborhoods that needed them the most via the famous Compstat system, the poorest neighborhoods saw the greatest reduction in crime and improvement in quality of life. 'snip' Rudy could be considered the original "compassionate conservative"...