Earlier today, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani sent out a plea to supporters with “12 commitments” that aren’t worth the paper its printed — er, pixels in cyberspace.
Giuliani does his usual “when I was mayor of New York” shtick and dives right into the deep end of rhetorical nonsense. For instance, take the second paragraph of the e-mail:
Many of the things I did as Mayor of New York City are transferable to what America needs now. That’s why today I announced my 12 commitments to you, the American people. These commitments are intended to lift our vision from the rear view mirror to the road ahead of us – the future.
BREAKING NEWS: RUDY GIULIANI TO ABANDON ENTIRE CAMPAIGN PLATFORM
For the life of me, I don’t know how we can “lift our vision from the rear view mirror” when Giuliani’s entire candidacy is built upon his role — albeit a revisionist version of it — in the September 11 attacks and openly exploits the tragedy. Hell, even the brief back story on his wife, Judy, explicitly cites 9/11.
1. I will keep America on offense in the Terrorists’ War on Us.
Rudy has been using the “Terrorists’ War on Us” phrase a lot in recent weeks but doesn’t that phrase imply that it is the terrorists that are on offense and we’re playing defense?
2. I will end illegal immigration, secure our borders, and identify every non-citizen in our nation.
Now that’s an ambitious plan completely lacking in substance. Hey look, I can throw around vague statements, too! “I will end global warming.”
Seriously, how do you plan on ending illegal immigration? Just curious. How do you propose securing our borders? With technology? National Guard? Minutemen? Rudy on horseback?
Also, how do you propose identifying every non-citizen in the U.S.? Surely you will get a few Mexican-Americans mixed in there by accident. Will those bar codes be branded on our necks or our foreheads? Again, just curious.
3. I will restore fiscal discipline and cut wasteful spending in Washington.
Yeah! He will show them just like he showed those spiteful bastard factinistas — the education system — in New York City!
4. I will cut taxes and reform the tax code.
“… but I won’t sign a tax pledge. Just trust me.”
5. I will impose accountability in Washington.
Rudy, with an iron fist, will make sure only his criminal buddies make out like bandits.
6. I will lead America toward energy independence.
By tapping his former client base in Saudi Arabia and lobbying for Venezuelan oil firm, Citgo?
7. I will give Americans more control over, and access to, healthcare with affordable and portable free-market solutions.
Last week at the Republican presidential debate in New Hampshire, Giuliani ‘lifted his rear view mirror vision’ on healthcare for the road ahead. Shorter Rudy: “If you loved the Bush healthcare plan in 2005, you will love Rudy in 2009.”
8. I will increase adoptions, decrease abortions, and protect the quality of life for our children.
When he says he will decrease the number of abortions, does this mean he would turn the country away from the failure that is abstinence-only sex education championed by the current administration?
9. I will reform the legal system and appoint strict constructionist judges.
Well, the next president will have to reform the legal system. Under the current administration, the entire judicial process has been corrupted to the core. (Yet right-wingers are only concerned with the “injustice” that is “Scooter” Libby’s pending incarceration. Free “Scooter”!)
And we all know Giuliani’s knack for federal appointees…
10. I will ensure that every community in America is prepared for terrorist attacks and natural disasters.
Second time’s the charm, ey Rudy?
11. I will provide access to a quality education to every child in America by giving real school choice to parents.
There ain’t many choices to choose from if you implode one of them.
12. I will expand America’s involvement in the global economy and strengthen our reputation around the world.
Rudy Giuliani: Strengthening America’s Image One Waterboarding at a Time.
7 Responses to “Giuliani’s 12 Points … for Failure”
“MR. GIULIANI: Absolutely the right thing to do. It’s unthinkable that you would leave Saddam Hussein in charge of Iraq and be able to fight the war on terror. And the problem is that we see Iraq in a vacuum. Iraq should not be seen in a vacuum. Iraq is part of the overall terrorist war against the United States.
The problem the Democrats make is they’re in denial. That’s why you hear things like you heard in the debate the other night, that, you know, Iran really isn’t dangerous; it’s 10 years away from nuclear weapons. Iran is not 10 years away from nuclear weapons, and the danger to us is not just missiles, the danger to us is a state like Iran handing nuclear weapons over to terrorists, so it has to be seen in that light, and we have to be successful in Iraq.”
There is no segue way from his last statement in the 1st paragraph and the first statement in the 2nd. This man is all talking points and no substance. C’mon, Rudy, say something substantive. I dare ya.
I don’t know how people don’t see through his thin veneer of empty rhetoric. Even when he was doling out a billion dollar in cuts to New York agencies, he didn’t say how he was going to do it. He just cut the agencies’ funding. Is there a worse presidential candidate? And if you say Hillary Clinton, I will retort with Brownback. And if someone says Obama, I will say Romney.
uh romney has a very successful resume that trumps obama’s in every way…..obama is a full blown media creation, he has accomplished nothing worthy of the white house…..he is a suit and a smile, nothing more. its really amazing when liberals say ‘he has about as much experience as bush’. well according to those liberals, bush was a disaster, so why now would we replace him with someone even less experienced then him. and dont say the rhtorical ‘but he’s smarter’. simply not true, bush has a higher IQ and higher SAT scores then kerry. he may not be a great public speaker, but you dont become the most powerful president of all time by being a dummy.
rudy giuliani governed a city of 8.5 million people, larger than 40 states, and took it from the most dangerous city in the country, to the safest. he took a defecit, and turned it into a surplus. he cleaned it up from top to bottom. even his harshest critics would be reluctant to go back to a pre-giuliani new york. compstat revolutionized how crime is fought, and the city’s prosperity is a testament to the success of globalization. giuliani pre-9/11 has a resume that overmatches the top three democrats combined, and his leadership that day was nearly universaly praised, and only liberal revisionist try to see it differently now.
see for yourself, list the accomplishments of giuliani as compared to obama, edwards, and clinton(remember marrying slick willy doesnt count, she has to stand on her own as president, he cant be in the situation room with her). its really not even close, or even fair, which is why liberals want to talk about rudy and abortion or rudy in drag or rudy and his kids, because his resume is something none of them can touch.
[...] was reportedly the main author of Giuliani’s “12 Commitments” speech. The speech itself, a laundry list of wild, unsupported conservative promises, gives little [...]
i am getting the feeling that this site is not really right wing.
Conservatives would not trash talk their own sides runner’s commitments.
We realize you are not right wing. now leave us alone and go bug the leftists.
I’m a national security hawk – some say an extreme hawk.
I appreciate Rudy’s comment that we need to look to the future, rather than in the rear-view mirror. That said, Rudy’s view of the past is extremely important in determining whether I want him to make the next foreign policy decision. His statement that invading Iraq was “absolutely the right thing to do” just boggles my mind.
Before we invaded, Al Qaeda was had zero presence in Iraq, Iraq”s army held Iran at bay, and Iraq was a secular state. Five years later, Al Qaeda kills our soldiers every day, Iran controls the largest block Parliament and the largest militia, and Sharia law has spread to much of the country. Our enemies are stronger – we batted 3 for 3 on this one.
Since when does handing Iraq to Al Qaeda, Iran and fundamentalist Islamists on a silver plate constitute strong national security credentials? If you are really a hawk, I just don’t understand how you can support him. Where are the candidates that are both hawks and realists?
And Neiya, I raise this now because I don’t want to have a candidate that will be ripped apart in the general election.
Something to say?
‘“when I was mayor of New York” shtick’
you know what orteeega, it sure beats the barrack obama “when i was doing nothing deserving of a presidential bid” shtick and the even better hillary “when i became frontrunner because of who i married” shtick.
yea rudy shouldnt talk about his resume, because it only makes the dems look worse. lets see, barrack resume is blank and hillary’s begins and ends with who she married. what a joke.
Left by matt
June 12, 2007 at 8:57pm