Brian Chatwin
Staff Writer
Regrettably, the 2008 Presidential campaign is underway. Regrettably because for the next 21 months, the American people will be inundated with intense politicking and punditry never before seen in American elections. The Federal Elections Commission estimates that this presidential campaign will run over $1 billion — the longest and most expensive in U.S. history. And the media can’t get enough of it. But before Americans are too woozy with political talk, it is appropriate to analyze the Republican front-runner, Rudy Giuliani.
Political junkies are already watching the polls. The polls have Giuliani winning, and winning big. Of those in the race, he is the favorite of the Republican candidates. In some polls he leads by as much as twenty points. If the polls were actual results instead of predictions, Giuliani would win in a landslide.
But many don’t know much about Giuliani or why he is dominating his fellow Republicans. Other than happening to be the mayor of New York on Sept. 11th, 2001, America doesn’t know what Giuliani has accomplished or what he stands for that makes the Republican electorate so giddy over him.
Admittedly, he was successful at challenging the mob and cleaning up Times Square, or was he? Many believe that his chief of police, William Bratton (who now holds the same title in Los Angeles) had more to do with cleaning up Times Square than Giuliani. It was Bratton who introduced COMPSTAT, a computer system used to track and police crime in real time, not Giuliani. So to award Giuliani for cleaning up Times Square is naive.
As for his role in the Sept. 11th attack, while he acted as a great spokesman, he received a fair share of criticism. Dan Collins of the Village Voice published an article titled “Rudy’s Grand Illusion.” This article explains how Rudy convinced the American people that everything was going to be all right when communication failures throughout his administration contributed to much of the angst and frustration experienced by firefighters, police officers and the families of loved ones lost that day.
Giuliani must have some Republican attributes to him. Well, he is pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage, pro-stem cell research and pro-gun control. He has been married three times, once to his second cousin. Giuliani sounds like the perfect candidate for the Democrats, not the Republicans.
But Republicans are desperate for a winner. Republicans fear, above all else, that 2008 will bring another Clinton to the White House. So perhaps Republicans across the country are opting for the devil they know (Rudy Giuliani) instead of the devil they don’t (Hillary Clinton).
But it’s early. With more than a year to go before the first primary election, Republicans will be able to take a good hard look at Giuliani. The liberal media, not willing to let the next Republican president assume office without a fight, will display all these skeletons to the electorate in the hopes of discrediting Giuliani. But that might not work. Contrasted against Hillary, Republicans en mass will hold their noses, and vote Giuliani. If they do, we are better off, but not by much.
02-15-2007