RKMBs Forums .::Important::. Politics and Current Events Rudy in '08

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March 22, 2007
Just as former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani puts his presidential campaign in full-gear, his wife reveals she has been married more than twice.

His wife Judith said Wednesday that Giuliani is actually her third husband.

She says Giuliani already knew about her first husband, whom she said she married when she was 20-years-old.She re-married the same year she divorced her first husband.

Judith is the former mayor's third wife.

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Giuliani sold himself Friday as the man who gets things done and one who is not afraid to criticize Congress for setting a timeline for a U.S. withdrawal in Iraq.

"You don't display weakness in front of terrorists, you don't give them a timeline as to what you are going to do withdraw, you don't tell your enemies what you are going to do, it makes no sense."

Tom Del Becarro is the vice chair for the California Republican Party. He says national security will be a hot issue among Republicans here.

In his 2000 bestselling book The Tipping Point: How Little Things can make a big Difference, Malcolm Gladwell explores the idea of 'the tipping point,' the moment or time period when an item, an idea, a strategy or a person (or anything for that matter) changes from being just a 'product' into a cultural phenomenon. For example, the crackdown on quality of life crimes in New York City under Giuliani led to an overall 'crime tipping point' in that city where the crime rate went from a high point to an extremely low point in a short period of time, an amazing feat by any measure.

In his book, Malcolm Gladwell writes about the dramatic crime rate change in New York City that happened under America's Mayor. This occurred, Gladwell argues, for several reasons but one of the main reasons behind it was Rudy Giuliani's focus and prosecution of quality of life crimes at the lowest level in the city. As mayor, Giuliani started aggressively going after those responsible for quality of life crimes, such as spraying graffiti and public drunkedness. After this crackdown began, the number of smaller crimes in the city began to decrease and the momentum began building up. With that momentum building, the number of larger crimes began to decrease and crime in the city tipped -- and suddenly, New York City had become much safer than it had been in years.

This was one of the strongest examples of Gladwell’s book (which I strongly recommend, by the way) and it shows how one small idea transformed an entire city.

As an example of this great momentum Giuliani has going for him, recent poll numbers have shown Giuliani rapidly expanding his lead. The latest poll from CNN conducted between March 9th and 11th has the former mayor of New York with the support of 34% of Republicans polled while McCain only has the support of 18% of the Republicans (and he’s in second place!). Meanwhile, the latest poll from the website Rasmussen Reports currently has 33% percent of Republican support behind Giuliani and only 15% of support behind McCain (poll conducted between March 12 and March 15th). Those two polls have Giuliani up by 16% and 18% respectively, an astounding gap with so many candidates in the field and a gap that seems to be expanding with every new poll between these two candidates.

Rudy Giuliani trails John McCain by only nine points in McCain's home state, according to the latest Behavior Research Center Rocky Mountain poll. John McCain leads in Arizona with 34%, followed by Giuliani with 25%, Romney with 11%, Gingrich with 5% and Hagel with 2%. In January, McCain led Giuliani, 40% to 13%.

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the G-man said:
From Rudy's speech to supporters in Oakland, CA:

Giuliani sold himself Friday as the man who gets things done and one who is not afraid to criticize Congress for setting a timeline for a U.S. withdrawal in Iraq.

"You don't display weakness in front of terrorists, you don't give them a timeline as to what you are going to do withdraw, you don't tell your enemies what you are going to do, it makes no sense."

Tom Del Becarro is the vice chair for the California Republican Party. He says national security will be a hot issue among Republicans here.

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Rudy has supporters in Oakland?

No wonder The Bitch™ is so eager to sling so much mud in Rudy's direction!

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Matter-eater Man said Sun Sep 11 2005 06:22 PM:
I'm sure there is many things I would dislike about a Rudy Presidency but I think he would at least be capable of doing a good job running the country.

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Its a bitch when people read a whole thread isn't it, Chris?

Now try and tell us again how your current hatred towards him is motivated by anything but the fear he can actually beat Hillary.

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the G-man said:

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Matter-eater Man said Sun Sep 11 2005 06:22 PM:
I'm sure there is many things I would dislike about a Rudy Presidency but I think he would at least be capable of doing a good job running the country.

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Its a bitch when people read a whole thread isn't it, Chris?

Now try and tell us again how your current hatred towards him is motivated by anything but the fear he can actually beat Hillary.

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BY CRAIG GORDON
WASHINGTON -- Rudolph Giuliani's own campaign once called it the "weirdness factor."

In 1993, aides fretted that voters would look askance at him for his 14-year marriage to his second cousin, later annulled.

Then last week, the latest Mrs. Giuliani injected a twist into his White House campaign, with revelations of a "secret" third husband.

For longtime Giuliani-watchers, it was just a fresh chapter in the long-running Rudy drama -- the kind of made-for-tabloids story that left his aides scrambling and people scratching their heads about his would-be first lady Judith Nathan Giuliani. But the story pointed up a fear among some Republicans as Giuliani sits in the frontrunner's spot: that the ex-mayor's personal and political foibles, mostly shrugged off at home, won't wear well nationally, because voters want to see their candidate as commander-in-chief material and not tabloid fodder.

"There are people who if they support Rudy, they'll be keeping their fingers tightly crossed that there's no other embarrassing episode in the media. They've got a lot on the line here," said one Republican familiar with Giuliani's hunt for GOP endorsements.

Supporters say judge him on his accomplishments, not his personal life. They say his two splits and three marriages haven't dented his 9/11-forged persona, or his standing atop the polls.

"Six months ago, I would have thought that would be a problem," said Giuliani's New York co-chairman Guy Molinari. "But it's because of his position on terrorism. Everybody in this country is concerned."

As the campaign shifts from fundraising stops to retail campaigning and debates, Giuliani will face questions not only about social positions that are out of step with some Republicans but about his more personal issues.

He already has faced stories about his estrangement from his son Andrew, who has said he grew apart from his father after the bitter divorce with his mother, Donna Hanover.

And while calling for a decrease in U.S. dependence on foreign oil, Giuliani has defended his law firm's ties to Citgo Petroleum, controlled by anti-American Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez, and refused to release his million-dollar client list.

Back at home, the Giuliani files are replete with moments of unconventional political behavior -- and at times, a willingness to challenge the norms of what a politician can do.

It's not just his battles with the minority community, brusque style or strong-arm approach to problems. There are the off-key moments, like launching a court battle to stop something many a politician would have simply laughed off -- a mild joke at his expense in ads on city buses.

During his 2000 Senate race, he skipped events in upstate New York -- to attend a Yankees game. He later dropped out.

Perhaps his most famous there-goes-Rudy moments came in womens' clothing, such as a 1997 appearance as Rudia, where he sang "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" as Marilyn Monroe once did, complete with a pink gown, high heels and blonde wig. Those rather un-presidential-looking shots are making the rounds among conservatives in South Carolina.

But it was his very public split with Hanover in 2000 that created a string of difficult moments. He used a news conference to inform his second wife of their separation. He also publicly squired his "very good friend" Nathan while married to Hanover.

In 2001, Giuliani authorized his lawyer to reveal that prostate cancer treatment had left him impotent -- and therefore unable to have sexual relations with Nathan. In recent interviews, Nathan has spoken suggestively about their relationship, calling him the "Energizer Bunny" and posing in a deep kiss with him.
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Matter-eater Man said:

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BY CRAIG GORDON
WASHINGTON -- Rudolph Giuliani's own campaign once called it the "weirdness factor."

In 1993, aides fretted that voters would look askance at him for his 14-year marriage to his second cousin, later annulled.

Then last week, the latest Mrs. Giuliani injected a twist into his White House campaign, with revelations of a "secret" third husband.

For longtime Giuliani-watchers, it was just a fresh chapter in the long-running Rudy drama -- the kind of made-for-tabloids story that left his aides scrambling and people scratching their heads about his would-be first lady Judith Nathan Giuliani. But the story pointed up a fear among some Republicans as Giuliani sits in the frontrunner's spot: that the ex-mayor's personal and political foibles, mostly shrugged off at home, won't wear well nationally, because voters want to see their candidate as commander-in-chief material and not tabloid fodder.

"There are people who if they support Rudy, they'll be keeping their fingers tightly crossed that there's no other embarrassing episode in the media. They've got a lot on the line here," said one Republican familiar with Giuliani's hunt for GOP endorsements.

Supporters say judge him on his accomplishments, not his personal life. They say his two splits and three marriages haven't dented his 9/11-forged persona, or his standing atop the polls.

"Six months ago, I would have thought that would be a problem," said Giuliani's New York co-chairman Guy Molinari. "But it's because of his position on terrorism. Everybody in this country is concerned."

As the campaign shifts from fundraising stops to retail campaigning and debates, Giuliani will face questions not only about social positions that are out of step with some Republicans but about his more personal issues.

He already has faced stories about his estrangement from his son Andrew, who has said he grew apart from his father after the bitter divorce with his mother, Donna Hanover.

And while calling for a decrease in U.S. dependence on foreign oil, Giuliani has defended his law firm's ties to Citgo Petroleum, controlled by anti-American Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez, and refused to release his million-dollar client list.

Back at home, the Giuliani files are replete with moments of unconventional political behavior -- and at times, a willingness to challenge the norms of what a politician can do.

It's not just his battles with the minority community, brusque style or strong-arm approach to problems. There are the off-key moments, like launching a court battle to stop something many a politician would have simply laughed off -- a mild joke at his expense in ads on city buses.

During his 2000 Senate race, he skipped events in upstate New York -- to attend a Yankees game. He later dropped out.

Perhaps his most famous there-goes-Rudy moments came in womens' clothing, such as a 1997 appearance as Rudia, where he sang "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" as Marilyn Monroe once did, complete with a pink gown, high heels and blonde wig. Those rather un-presidential-looking shots are making the rounds among conservatives in South Carolina.

But it was his very public split with Hanover in 2000 that created a string of difficult moments. He used a news conference to inform his second wife of their separation. He also publicly squired his "very good friend" Nathan while married to Hanover.

In 2001, Giuliani authorized his lawyer to reveal that prostate cancer treatment had left him impotent -- and therefore unable to have sexual relations with Nathan. In recent interviews, Nathan has spoken suggestively about their relationship, calling him the "Energizer Bunny" and posing in a deep kiss with him.
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am New York
What type of person would use a news conference to inform his wife that their getting seperated? A very icky & unstable one IMHO.

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Newt Gingrich presented his wife with divorce papers when she was in the hospital recovering from surgery to deal with cancer.
Yet somehow Clinton getting a blowjob and then working it out with his wife to get her forgiveness so they could stay married makes him unethical.

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the G-man said:
C'mon, Chris. Rudy's "bizarre tabloid life" was common knowledge for years. The idea that you, a person who reads as many political blogs as you do, was unaware of his personal life until recently is absurd.

It wasn't until polls show him soundly beating Hillary that you suddenly turned into the RKMBs resident Cotton Mather.

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You just stated that you were aware of his "tabloid" life while he was NYC mayor.

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Furthermore when he was Mayor of New York & his personal life was making the tabloids, it wasn't really something I thought about much or payed attention to.

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Captain Sammitch said:
Since when does character mean anything to you?

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Matter-eater Man said:
G-man's bs:

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You just stated that you were aware of his "tabloid" life while he was NYC mayor.

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My statement:

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Furthermore when he was Mayor of New York & his personal life was making the tabloids, it wasn't really something I thought about much or payed attention to.

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Hmmn, guess I don't really care how you want to mischaracterize my posts G-man at this point. This is obviously going to be a problem for you with a candidate like Rudy who has lots of baggage & not much going in the character department. I bring it up & all you can do is attack little ol me & I'm not on the ballot. Your still left with a "man" who didn't even go to his own son's graduation.

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You stated, as noted above, that you didn't think about his personal life "much".

That indicates you thought about it to at least some extent.

That indicates that you were at least somewhat aware of it.

Despite that, and despite the fact that his "tabloid lifestyle" was well reported as far back 2000, you had no quarrel with him as a potential president until recently.

What changed recently?

Concededly, as you note, news about him being estranged from his grown son came out recently. However, that was, in many ways, simply a continuation of previous stories about his personal life. So the fact that suddenly made you change your mind is questionable. Indeed, the spin you put on that story (constantly referring to his adult children as "kids" and "children", as if he abandoned minors) tends to support the idea that you're simply playing this drum because it suits a partisan purpose.

Further, and perhaps more importantly, as Sammitch notes, it is odd that you, a left wing homosexual who's supported candidates with questionable personal lives in the past, has suddenly turned into "Mr. Family Values," against this one candidate.

Now, I suppose its possible that its entirely coincidental that your newfound conservatism in this area manifested itself at approximately the same time as reports surfaced that the Clinton campaign decided to make Giuliani's personal life an issue because they worry he could beat Hillary. I suppose that could be the case.

I mean, anything's possible...

But...if character and family values are what you're going to start basing your choice of candidates to support upon..well, then I'm sure that George W. Bush has been to every one of HIS kids' graduations.

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the G-man said:
Further, and perhaps more importantly, as Sammitch notes, it is odd that you, a left wing homosexual who's supported candidates with questionable personal lives in the past, has suddenly turned into "Mr. Family Values," against this one candidate.

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Hey hey hey hey heyyyyyy I didn't put it in those words!

But I was somewhat mystified by it all the same.

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Matter-eater Man said:
I don't say to much about a candidate's character (Dems only). Rudy however is different because he's an electable republican

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