Let's examine our New York options, shall we?

On the one side, we have a heroic mayor who appears to have accidentally hired some pushy fund raisers.

On the other hand, we have a carpetbagging senator who killed Vince Foster.

Not a hard choice.

And more - he is incapable of NOT being a jerk. He is think skinned and egomaniacal.

He is psychologically more damaged than Bush, even.

It will be fun to watch him lose the nomination and get humiliated.

These are probably some of Bernie Kerik's mob pals making the calls -- and they will be returned.

14-year marriage to his 2nd Cousin!! Hahahaha. Dumping his 2nd marriage in a press conference. Sweet!

Oh, and I should have said "thin" skinned.

Who's this Foster fellow and how did he know Ted Stephens?

Guiliani is a one trick pony. He is hoping his moment of heroism will lead him to the presidency. He is also a proponent of the Bush Doctrine and desires war with Iran.

Reading his comments on strict constructionism, he's already showing a Kerry-like ability to not have answers to questions of extreme importance that should have been thought out long ago (re: Kerry on the Iraq resolution). It may be too generous to give him a couple of months...

A jerk, yes! But unfortunately, this may be an effective fundraising tool for Rudy. He does have a great deal of appeal in the financial community I would think. Especially for "cleaning up the streets of New York."

American Hawk,

Wow! that's just a little harsh, isn't it? No matter how much I might hate person's politics, I would not accuse them of murder without proof. I think both Nixon and Bush have committed crimes and are failures as president's, but I would never accuse them of murdering a friend without proof.

Do you really think that Hillary is such a coldhearted and talented murderer that she was able to keep the facts behind that murder from a relentless six-year investigation? If she was able to, maybe we should hire her for the top job. She would definately have talent dealing with sticky situations.

Alas, if being a jerk disqualified someone from the presidency, probably none of our recent presidents would have been elected, and none of our current candidates would have a chance.

Noah

Of course Hillary is such a coldhearted and talented murderer that she was able to keep the facts behind that murder from a relentless six-year investigation.

And she made sure Ken Starr would end up the same way if he didn't dummy up the autopsy to show that it was a suicide.

That lady's bad.

don't forget, Rudy says he's not confident the war will turn around.

loser defeatist!

Here's my theory: American Hawk is that Gannon guy with a lot of, er, time on his hands.

h

Don't kid yourself - the special interests that manipulate our politics were able to hoist an AWOL alcoholic/cocaine addict upon this nation - they can put lipstick on this pig too.

The last 2 presidential elections were demonstratibly stolen - these same interests were complicit with the fake terrorist attacks too.

Rudy's past does not matter at all if the folks behind the chimperor's administration decide he is the best figurehead to continue the "war-on-terror" meme. His is the only candidate that will be able to get away with constantly talking about 9/11 and using it to manipulate public perceptions while undermining the democratic process, bill of rights, and US constitution.

If that suits the purpose to the folks that enabled the smirking chimp to become our figurehead - then there is nothing stopping rudy.

Yes, Giuliani is a jerk--a mean-sprited, vindictive, egomaniacal, secretive jerk. But I can't be as optimistic as Kevin about him impolding. It took the relatively sophisticated people of NYC a long time to sour on Rudy: after 4 years he was re-elected by a large margin in a Democratic city. Maybe his many repellent qualities will come out more quickly in the glare of a national campaign. I hope so.

His name ain't Rude-ee for nothing.

Can we please - just for this election - laugh at the obviously imploding candidates AFTER their nomination? No need to winnow down other party's candidates for them. Let them put for their less-than-the-best!

The last thing we want is Mike Huckabee or Sam Brownback rising to the top because we destroyed the others.

jmo: the special interests that manipulate our politics were able to hoist an AWOL ... upon this nation

Yeah, but it was a superfically likable AWOL etc...character.
I don't know anyone who'd want to have a beer with Rudy.

I prefer his campaing to implode in August of 2008, not any time in 2007. I think he will be one of the easier Republicans to beat. Hopefully the GOP will fall for his faux macho man persona.

Let's not forget the police riot he led against david dinkins. I know there has to be film of that somewhere.

But none of that will matter to a host of rethugs. Go to T-bogg's and read the love poem the female crittenden wrote to rudy.

Interesting, Kevin. Well, folks like Chris Matthews made this man by calling him America's Mayor, and they will be the ones who turn against him. Popcorn time coming!

He may implode, but I doubt it. If he fails to get the nomination, it probably won't be because he acts like a jerk but rather because his positions are just too far to the left, on too many issues, for likely primary voters to support him.

plasmastate on February 15, 2007

I agree. Mike Huckabee is easily the best candidate the Republicans could nominate this year. Don't let him get any traction and the election is the Democrats to lose.

Let's not forget the police riot he led against david dinkins. I know there has to be film of that somewhere.

It's the film of him in drag that will tank his candidacy.

Plasmastate,

That is exactly what I would prefer. Both Rudy and McCain have demonstrated support from a large swath of independents and some Democrats. While I think that no matter which Republican is up in 2008 he will have a tough time, I still would prefer the weakest candidate. Huckabee and Brownback are easily the weaker candidates. They do not have national appeal, proven financial system to support them and their social positions make them less appealing to moderates.

Giuliani's presence near both the WTC site and the London bombing site are more than fishy to me, to say the least.

He's your next president, folks.

American Hawk- I take back everything I ever said about you.Thinking you were about 12 years old is an insult to twelve year olds. I find it difficult to fathom how you or your ilk comes up with this neverending line of bull shit.

Every time you open your mouth another inane or outright lying statement pops out. If you want to support Giulani more power to you. But is it always required that you spout this neverending vitriol without adding anything positive to the discussion.

Noah

Have you ever seen Huckabee in an extended interview or on the campaign trail? I am hoping the conventional wisdon (such as yours) holds because if he ever gets traction, I can see a lot of moderates swinging to him. Think Bill Clinton as a social conservative.

I agree, however, that Brownback is simply too shrill to move beyond his base.

Because Giuliani is nasty, vicious, racist, and amoral, that's somehow going to lose him popuarity with Republican primary voters and the press? Lots of people (see: American Hawk) feel so incredibly inadequate that they can only stand to listen to demagogues like this. Anything less and they'd have to start taking responsibility for their own lives.

Giuliani has a real chance.

Ron,

He is talented. He is a good speaker and has a great story with the losing weight and being a Baptist Minister. Yet, his term as Governor has been lacking in many accomplishments (partially because of the tax issue).

Moreover, I have the feeling that the 2008 election is going to be motivated by two themes "Iraq" and "Change." On these two themes, we see Huckabee runs into a wall. On Iraq, he backs Bush (against the tide of the majority) and lacks any experience on issues of military or foreign policy.

On the issue of "change," Huckabee seems to be trying to stake a claim. He is saying that he represents a new type of conservative. One that is understanding of the importance of immigration and improving education (music & art in school) and health care. Yet the language that he uses is the same as George W. Bush ("compassionate conservative"). If Frank Luntz has taught us anything, it's that language is extremely important to politics. Huckabee using the same language as Bush makes me think that he will easily be able to pegged as another Bush in the General Election and thus be a weaker candidate.

Giuliani has never in his life done anything heroic. Standing at a podium and asking citizens to go shopping is not heroic. Using coerced confessions to convict innocent people is not heroic. Cheating on one's spouse is not heroic. Encouraging the police to shoot unarmed African-Americans/African immigrants is not heroic. Most of these behaviors are considered cowardly.

Most of these behaviors are considered cowardly.

Then rudy has a shot. Cowardice on the part of a candidates never stopped the rethugs from voting for them.

Maybe Rudy is good for the religious crowd.Rudy and AM Hawk have alot in common,They both had relations with there cousins.(So if I divorce my wife will she still be my sister).Good grief!

Remember, if Rudy gets the nomination, he isn't going to be running against Franklin Roosevelt. The Democratic candidates are pretty much pegging the "jerk" meter themselves.

Go easy on Hawk,When your Mom and Dad are also your Dad and your Sister you tend to have mental issues.

The Democratic candidates are pretty much pegging the "jerk" meter themselves.

Examples of Obama, Edwards, Clark, Kucinich, Clinton pegging the "jerk" meter please. One each.

Pat Buchanan on Romney, McCain, Giuliani ....

Chris Matthews:..... How can you dump from your past your entire ideological rap sheet and just say that doesn't matter, never mind ?
How do you do that ?

Pat Buchanan: Very simple. These are not conviction politicians. They are politicians trying for the nomination of a party which is conservative and traditionalist which is against a lot of what they believe, argued and said, so they are accommodating themselves to the party. Is it sincere? I don't know but everybody knows what's going on.

Driftglass said it best:

Republicans have become the political equivalent of the Soviets of the 21st century: a decadent and failed anti-democratic ideology clinging to power by the drastic magnification and manipulation of fear of external and internal enemies, brute force and lies. And whose increasingly unhinged ravings only make “sense� to fellow Kool Aid chugging inhabitants of their hermetically sealed ideological Bell Jar.

http://driftglass.blogspot.com/2007/02/meanwhile-in-local-treachery.html

Huckabee is nothing more than the cat's-paw of Tyson Foods. Like many an Arkansaw politican, he's the tool of a banker, a rich family or a big company. In this case, Huckabee looks the other way when Tyson breaks the law and imports their work force and then calls this ecomonic bit of social engineering and exploitation "compassionate conservatism."

Sorry, that rhetoric isn't going to fly this time after eight years has exposed its meaninglesnes.

Ron Paul for President, real rhetoric with real meaning.

Maybe this will finally serve to remind everyone that the two most unpopular things in New York City on September 10, 2001, were the World Trade Center and Rudy Giuliani, whose popularity at that point makes Chimpy look like FDR.

So who's filming Giuliani's campaign stops? I hope he's got a tan.

Giuliani is no George Allen. He's not gonna call some brown guy a "mohlie" in front of the camera. He'll send an off duty cop to do his dirty work for him.

Sean you are probably right. But the same could have been said about Bill Clinton. He too was a catspaw of a big company, a banker, a rich person, or maybe all three.

I do have to agree that foreign policy experience will be more important this year than in 1992

"We need five people from your firm to raise $100,000 for Rudy. Get back to us."
The caller then hangs up, satisfied the instructions were clear and will be followed.

And all the while I've been thinking that no one-- ABSOLUTELY NO ONE--could fuck up Iraq faster than Bush.

Rudy...
Go back to first grade,
Here's $200 dollars for a whore,
And pay attention this time... will ya?

Anybody suspect the calls were being made by one of Terry McAuliff's pals at the DNC? Any two-bit moron can place phone call and claim he is from the Guliani campaign.

I agree with FK's assumption that Republicans are too stupid to recognize such an obvious scam.

The Republicans really don't have a credible candidate for the Presidency. They lack their favorite sort so far -- the sort typified by a mediocre and none too bright Texas governor who just happens to be the son of a former president.

The Democrats, on the other hand, have a candidate now who not only is capable of winning the Presidency but of carrying the Congress as well. Just one, and she's proving her mettle and doing quite well as every day progresses.

Any two-bit moron can place phone call and claim he is from the Guliani campaign.

So we should see a formal response/denial from the Guiliani campaign any minute, right?

Rudy's administration in NYC had a reputation for corruption. I'd go so far as to say that Rudy's NYC made New Orleans' city government look clean.

If Rudy is elected, everything will be for sale, openly.

Giuliani? He's always been a bit of a two-bit thug. He could get away with that in New York because, well, we do have a history of tolerating that, but it's not going to play so well in a church basement in Iowa or a convention center in California. The pressures of a national campaign will get him to snap, and snap big.

"We need five people from your firm to raise $100,000 for Rudy. Get back to us."

"And if you mention extortion again, I'll have your legs broken."

Since Rudy Giuliani is out polling McCain, than that's pretty much how the fat lady sings it for the GOP = RIP in 08.

The corporate world will have to bank on Hillary for all the things they wanted from Bushie EXCEPT, of course, that I bet Hillary can't win either, so this leaves Obama as the man to bank on in 08.

Here area a few words about Giuliani[scroll up]. More will come out because he is the very model of a right-wing thug.

...Any two-bit moron can place phone call ... F K at 3:35 PM

Hillary has a history of worse behavior!

ALSO, JERK OR NO, RUDY GETS RESULTS; PEOPLE RESPECT THAT IN A MANAGER. AND, GIVEN HIS PUBLIC PERFORMANCES HE'S SHOWN HE CAN ACT DIPLOMATICALLY PUBLICLY WHEN APPROPRIATE, WHICH IS ALL THAT IS IMPORTANT. WHY WOULD ANYONE CARE HOW HE TREATS THE CABINET OR HIS WHITE HOUSE STAFF.

You guys are so silly. I'm ready to virtually guarantee a Guiliani or McCain victory in '08 because the Repbulicans will nominate whichever one can win rather than risk a President/House/Senate Democratic trifecta. And either will clean Hillary's clock.

The bell tolls for you, regressive-democrats!

TOH

Guliani may be efficiently blunt (also something people respect), but Guiliani has never sold pardons for campaign funds; I'd say the USA people will find that more repugnant when they are reminded that that was the de facto obviously what transpired with Hilary's Senate campaign in '00. The Rs are probably saving that cannon shot for closer to the election itself.

TOH

The more Mr. Giuliani pushes his presidential campaign, the more his disagreeable reputation emerges to eclipse his 9.11 moments of glory. "He can run..."

Hillary has a history of worse behavior!

"I know, because I made it up! That's why I call myself a historian! Learn the meaning of the word, moonbats!"

Nancy Pelosi must be absolutely annihilating up there in Washington if this is the best the trolls can come up with.

Is that what it is? Excusing an obvious jerk who doesn't even have the political skills to hide it well, against a laundry list of conspiracy theories about the Clintons?

Whatever happened to the Right? Do you need to have your power taken away even more in the next election before you get it?

I am waiting for the day when he sells out the gays. Then Andrew Sullivan will have to let go of this fantasy.

We New Yorkers know what Rudy is.
The rest of the country will soon see.

but Guiliani has never sold pardons for campaign funds… The Objective Historian at 12:34 AM