Are there any Rudy supporters left at FR to attempt to refute this article?
Yes.
I think there are a couple, but not many.
Why is that such a hard concept to understand? If the numbers work out for Rudy, it will be Rudy. If they work out for Fred, it will be Fred. I hate the way we try and smear one candidate over the other.
Personally, I have trepidations on Freds health, and up to this point, he has not seemed, to me, that he really wants it. A lot of those perceptions could easily change when he starts campaigning, so I am not writing him off yet, but those are my reasons.
The trepidations I have for Rudy are also many. I am not 100% committed yet, but as of today he seems the strongest to me. These are my perceptions only, but I think 2008 will be a huge year for the War on Terror, and my gut tells me Rudy could handle it.
I am not trying to tell others how to vote. I respect everyones each individual reasons for supporting who they support, why can't you respect mine?
I am looking forward to a vigorous campaign season, and I think the strongest will survive. I don't have my crystal ball handy right now, so I don't know what will happen, but I do know that we have a strong selection, and out of the three leading candidates Rudy, Fred, and Mitt I will enthusiastically support them all. I also know Rudys liberal traits are a huge turnoff, so I don't need to be reminded of them, so there is still a chance that Mitt or Fred could seal my vote. But disparaging comments from others supporters don't help sway me.
I've been accused of being a Giuliani supporter because I don't hold him in total contempt and have stated that I would vote for him if he were the Republican nominee. I'm sure the Giuliani people are concerned about Thompson. In terms of the threat to Giuliani's winning the nomination, I think the Rudy people see it this way: Thompson >>> Romney > everyone else. I'm not sure there is anything to refute.