GIULIANI???

Is he kidding? I mean you can tell from the photo that ole Rudy has a sense of humor. But is it a Republican sense of humor? (More on that below.) The big news is that Rudy Giuliani, former Mayor of NYC whose name would be known by no one outside NYC had it not been for the tragedy of 9/11, has filed papers setting up an official presidential exploratory committee. He's running for president. Or, he's running for the Republican Party nomination for president. Or is he? Yeah, he is but he's also a typical politician who can't even speak without lying-- about anything. Or getting someone else to lie for him. "Mayor Giuliani has not made a decision yet," said treasurer John H. Gross. Off to a good start-- refusing to be frank with the public.


But at least he is liked by some Republicans-- unlike his only two declared rivals, Duncan Hunter (who no one has heard of other than FBI agents investigating his relationships with crooked defense contractors) and John McCain, much-loathed by the Republican base. One wonders if the Republicans who like Rudy have seen any of the pictures of him dressed up as a woman. I'm sure his new aide, recently outed Ken Mehlman, can explain the whole thing; he's had lots of practice.


New Yorkers who remember him have mixed emotions. He was far more a leader at the time of 9/11 than the wimpy Bush who flew from base to base in Air Force One like a chicken without a head, once he stopped reading My Pet Goat. On the other hand some Republicans were offended that he moved out on his wife and settled in with a couple of gay domestic partners. Others were pissed that he was on TV marching in the religious St. Patrick's Day Parade-- "religious" so that they could bar gays from participating-- with his married mistress (while his own wife and 2 kids watched in horror at home). His divorce-- and revelations about his mistresses and the city payrolls they benefited from-- were so messy and public and wretched that he decided t retire from politics.


And then there's his relationship to Bernie Kerik, a relationship built around corruption and cronyism. That was even too much for Bush!


Republicans are known to look the other way when their politicians get caught with their fingers-- even whole bodies-- in the cookie jar. Rudy's potential problems with the base-- the ones who decide who gets the nomination-- go much deeper than some corruption and a messy divorce. He's been pretty consistent in his opposition to their most beloved values. Having first registered as a Democrat-- and even having served as a Democratic Party committeeman when he was a child 21, he got off to a bad start. For one thing he claims to be pro-choice-- far more so than reactionary Democrats like Bob Casey. For another he claims to be pro-gay-- far more so than reactionary Democrats like Harold Ford. He is a racist, so at least that won't count against him with the base.


But remember, the GOP isn't just about Hatred and Bigotry. Let's not forget the Greed and Selfishness wing. And Rudy committed a grave sin in their eyes too: he opposed Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy. (At least he redeemed himself a bit by coming out against an increase in the minimum wage-- and by suggesting that he would love it of poor people were to leave New York City.)