Culture Warrior (Don't write off Giuliani's appeal to social conservatives)

Wall Street Journal ^ | Februrary 13, 2007 | BRENDAN MINITER

[RWR8189]

The book on Rudy Giuliani is that he is too liberal on social issues to win the Republican presidential nomination. Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council, put it succinctly: "I don't see anyone getting the Republican nomination who is not pro-life and a staunch defender of traditional marriage."

But Mr. Giuliani is running strong in Iowa and New Hampshire polls and leading most national surveys of Republicans. He's charming crowds of conservatives everywhere he goes. So it's worth wondering if Mr. Perkins is missing an undercurrent coursing through conservative politics.

Republicans have just experienced a bruising midterm election defeat. The president is suffering dismal approval ratings, and its erstwhile front-runner for the presidential nomination, Sen. John McCain, made his national reputation as a "maverick." The Giuliani rise evident now may be more than name recognition and residual support from his stalwart leadership following the Sept. 11 attacks. Mr. Giuliani's support may also arise from his having successfully moved an entrenched political culture in New York City, something national Republicans have not been able to do in Washington.

[mylife]

The Heck with Rudy as POTUS
Let him run for Hillarys seat

[Carry_Okie]

The book on Rudy Giuliani is that he is too liberal on social issues to win the Republican presidential nomination.

As if liberal social policy doesn't come at a fiscal cost. As just one example: Single parentage resulting from the sexual revolution cost us a bundle in AFDC claims.

When the facts come out, Republicans will realize that Rudy's too liberal on fiscal policy to win it either.

[inkling]

My dream ticket right now is Giuliani/Kyl.

[Antoninus]

Sorry. Rudy sucks. Next candidate, please.

[JCEccles]

The latest poll suggests that Rudy can't even carry his home state.

[Tim Long]

However well he'll do, he won't get my vote.

[familyop]

We're writing "off Giuliani's appeal to social conservatives." And he's not "charming crowds of conservatives" despite the bandwagon propaganda approach being used by Democrats in our discussions and the media. For those of you unfamiliar with that propaganda method, try the following keywords in your search.

propaganda bandwagon

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

The fact that Rudy drove the porn merchants out of Times Square, spoke out against fatherless children and out-of-wedlock births, and spoke out against taxpayer funded "art" that mocked Christianity is lost on the rabid social-issue conservatives.

Their candidates didn't do zilch to advance social conservatism while keeping a chair warm in Congress for years, even decades, so they have to trash the front-runner, the guy with the solid record, in out-and-out naked desperation.

[zbigreddogz]

Yah? So what. Evan Bahy couldn't have carried his home state, but he still was one of the scarier D nominee possibilities.

[familyop]

"We're writing "off Giuliani's appeal to social conservatives." And he's not "charming crowds of conservatives" despite the bandwagon propaganda approach being used by Democrats in our discussions and the media. For those of you unfamiliar with that propaganda method, try the following keywords in your search.

propaganda bandwagon

And BTW, some Giuliani fans were recently joking and gloating about using exactly that approach in a recent FR thread. Other commenters were unaware of what they were referring to while patting each other on their backs for using that word ("bandwagon").

[My2Cents]

Giuliani made a trip to the state and struck a chord by speaking to a burning issue in South Carolina--a fight over school choice. This probably won't make the national evening news, but today some 5,000 people--many of whom are black and live in poorly performing rural school districts--are expected to descend on the state capitol in Columbia to rally for school choice....One woman who attended told me she wonders whether electing a president who successfully took on the mob in New York is what it will take to finally break through the entrenched education political culture. Christian conservatives make up the core of the school-choice movement in the state. If they come to the conclusion that Mr. Giuliani is on their side and has the leadership qualities to achieve lasting and meaningful change, he may prove a surprisingly strong contender.

There's something larger going on in this election that the traditional political labels and conventional thinking can discern and describe. Giuliani's candidacy has the promise to change...maybe even radically...the dynamics of American politics, for the better, for all of us.

[SoCalPol]

RG running strong in Iowa.
Since they have a democrat senator, democrat gov. and mod repo sen. not exactly a bastion of Republicanism

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Abortion, homosexuality, and gun control laws are still around after 12 years of a Republican Congress.

[Tim Long]

Abortion, homosexuality, and gun control laws are still around after 12 years of a Republican Congress.

And people like this don't help.

[My2Cents]

***Ping***

[babygene]

"Let him run for Hillarys seat"

Didn't he run against her and loose?

[Carry_Okie]

Didn't he run against her and loose?

No, he ran against her and bailed, right on cue.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

And people like this don't help.

So it's better to blame Giuliani than to hold Congressional Republicans responsible?

[onyx]

Nope.