I see America’s Mussolini Mayor is giving us a preview of the Republican strategy in 2008:
“Rudy Giuliani said if a Democrat is elected president in 2008, America will be at risk for another terrorist attack on the scale of Sept. 11, 2001. But if a Republican is elected, he said, especially if it is him, terrorist attacks can be anticipated and stopped.
“‘If any Republican is elected president —- and I think obviously I would be the best at this —- we will remain on offense and will anticipate what [the terrorists] will do and try to stop them before they do it,’ Giuliani said.”
Yeah, Rudy — just like you did last time, eh? Remember how you insisted on putting the command-and-control headquarters of New York City’s anti-terrorist squad in … the World Trade Center — even though it had already been attacked once before, in 1993? Smart move.
Well, anticipate this, Senor Giiuliani: While your platform of making the trains run on time is probably a good reflection of the red-state fascist mentality rampant in what used to be the Republican party, others may be more willing to look at your actual record. not to mention your, uh, unusual personal life. And i wouldn’t count on shameless fear-mongering to divert attention from other issues important to Republican primary voters. After all, you’re hardly a fiscal conservative, and you have some other positions that Republicans of the more traditional sort might find horrifying.
In a wider context, I find it hard to believe that Giuliani’s campaign will survive a closer examination of his character and personality. Here, after all, is someone who ridiculed a man with Parkinson ‘s disease, and looks lovely in a party frock. Scandal has stalked his political career, and the myth of “America’s mayor” is likely to be fatally subverted by close scrutiny.
There’s a new documentary, “Giuliani Time,” that looks interesting. And go here for the real dirt. A leaked Giuliani campaign strategy paper bemoans the “weirdness factor” as an obstacle on the road to the White House, and you can see on it on full display about 3 minutes into this Youtube video of the candidate’s appearance at a meeting of the Churchill Club.