Giuliani Plans to Publicly Embrace Abortion Rights

[AlCzervik]

Source: NYT

By ADAM NAGOURNEY and MARC SANTORA
After months of conflicting signals on abortion, Rudolph W. Giuliani is planning to offer a forthright affirmation of his support for abortion rights in public forums, television appearances and interviews in the coming days, despite the potential for bad consequences among some conservative voters already wary of his views, aides said yesterday.

At the same time, Mr. Giuliani’s campaign — seeking to accomplish the unusual task of persuading Republicans to nominate an abortion rights supporter — is eyeing a path to the nomination that would try to de-emphasize the early states in which abortion opponents wield a great deal of influence. Instead they would focus on the so-called mega-primary of Feb. 5, in which voters in states like California, New York and New Jersey are likely to be more receptive to Mr. Giuliani’s social views than voters in Iowa and South Carolina.

That approach, they said, became more appealing after the Legislature in Florida, another state they said would be receptive to Mr. Giuliani, voted last week to move the primary forward to the end of January.

The shift in emphasis comes as the Giuliani campaign has struggled to deal with the fallout from the first Republican presidential candidate debate, in which he gave halting and apparently contradictory responses to questions about his support for abortion rights.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/us/politics/10giuliani.html?_r=2&hp=&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print

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much more at link

[WindRavenX]

1. He's not getting the nomination

NT

[AlCzervik]

3. no, not anymore, i think this may be the final nail for him.

freepers are going mental, more mental than usual.

[slackmaster]

21. Don't bet on it

n/t

[Connie_Corleone]

2. So long, Rudy. It's been real. nt

[TankLV]

4. Too little - MUCH too late...

He sees the OVERWHELMING numbers supporting womens' choice.

It's all about the numbers...

He'll say ANYTHING at this point to get elected...

And what's to prevent him from changing his mind AGAIN if he should get elected...

Fucking duplicitous LIAR.

That's the only thing that we know for certain about him...

[truthisfreedom]

5. Well, if the conservatives were sane, you'd have a chance, Rudy...

But they're nuts, so you're totally screwn.

[Bake]

10. Well and truly screwn.

Well, indeed.

Bake

[TlalocW]

6. The only people coming out to the primaries will be *SOME* of the 28% faithful

They'll be dispirited and not feel like participating, but there's still no way in hell they're going to nominate an abortion-rights supporter.

TlalocW

[Jack_DeLeon]

7. Two bad he doesnt publicly embrace 2nd amendment rights...

althought even if he did I would suspect it insincere given his record.

[LibDemAlways]

8. It is imperative that any repuke serious about

getting nominated be strongly against abortion rights.

If Rudy somehow managed to get nominated anyway, the wingnuts would sit out the 08 election. No way in hell would they vote for Ghouliani. He's in a no-win situation.

[NastyRiffraff]

9. He's finally made up his mind?

Or does he still think it would be "okay" if Roe vs Wade is overturned? I'm confused! :shrug:

[calimary]

12. There were so many strings attached to this - yeah, maybe, MAYBE

he supports a woman's right to choose, and would employ a laissez-faire policy toward it - UNLESS AND UNTIL it came time to appoint a Supreme Court justice. THEN we'd see what he was really made of, and it'd be somebody anti-choice. I'd bet on that one. But it looks as though that won't be a possibility. The Bible-thumpers will never go for the so-called "America's Mayor" - Mr. 9/11 himself. Even if he personally finds and then drapes the remains of every last 9/11 victim around his shoulders and parades down every town square in the country handing out 100-dollar bills. They won't go for him if he cuts women any slack or in ANY way honors their own jurisdiction over their bodies. They're just lost souls in that regard. Beyond reach. Even if he's okay with them on everything else, they'll veto him on that alone. Even so, even with what he claims in this story here, I wouldn't trust him farther than I could throw the US Capitol building.

[Bake]

11. I actually respect him for this.

At least one Puke with at least one principle. But it will cost him the nomination.

Adieu, Rudy.

Bake

[Orangepeel]

13. I'd respect him for it a hell of a lot more IF he hadn't flip-flopped UNTIL

his Planned Parenthood donation came out. He had to know that was coming, but he still pandered to the anti-choice brigade until he couldn't anymore. Idiot.

[slackmaster]

26. He was the only GOP candidate in the debate who did not affirmatively answer

That repealing Roe v Wade would be good for the country. He tried to take a "states' rights" stance.

Chris Matthews asked the question.

...All except Giuliani answered in the affirmative.

Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas said, “It would be a glorious day of human liberty and freedom.”

“It’d be OK,” said Giuliani, conveying a kind of nonchalance about what some Republican conservatives see as a defining moral issue of the age.

“It would be OK to repeal it. It would be OK also if a strict constructionist judge viewed it as precedent, and I think a judge has to make that decision…. The court has to make that decision, and then the country can deal with it,” Giuliani said. “We’re a federalist system of government, and states can make their own decisions.”...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18486103/

[Hepburn]

14. So....that leaves....

...Mittens and McCant. Well, and maybe Fred T in the wings. LOL

[MissMillie]

15. How many states allow for people to declare a party on primary day?

I could actually see a bunch of unenrolled voters choosing a GOP ballot and voting for Giuliani... but there'd have to be a lot of states that allow this for it to work fo him.

In my state you can declare a party on primary day. I have actually used this ability to vote strategically. When Tsongas was running, I knew he'd take his home state, so I declared GOP and voted against GHW Bush. It was a long-shot to deter Bush I from taking the nomination... but hey... why not?

[tanyev]

16. Oh, Rudy. We hardly knew ye.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

17. Now I REALLY hope he gets the Nomination

because a Giuliani Campaign would almost certainly cause the Fundies to field a third-party candidate and that could lead to a fatal fracturing of the Republican Party. For all of his faults (and he's got plenty of 'em), Giuliani is pretty much what passes for a moderate Republican in today's world. His nomination might be the final blow to the Republican coalition.

[slackmaster]

25. That would depend on how much the fundies hate the Democratic nominee

If we nominate someone they think is satan incarnate, they will be willing to hold their noses and vote for a Giuliani or a McCain rather than risk handing it over.

I think they are more likely to simply not vote.

[MilesColtrane]

18. Goodbye Rudy....Hello Fred Thompson. eom

[Nikki Stone1]

19. Pukes must be really desperate to win this one with the general public by alienating their base

Of course, it's easy to say you support abortion rights now that the goddamned court has started the slippery slope towards taking them away.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

20. Iow, he won't be trusted by either side.

So long, Rudy.

[MaineDem]

22. What about the GOP Platform?

Doesn't this buck the Platform and won't Republicans object to Giuliani doing that?

Or don't most care?

[slackmaster]

23. Link to the 2004 GOP platform

http://www.gop.com/media/2004platform.pdf

I think most Republicans don't care, beyond opposition to use of public funds to pay for abortions.

[slackmaster]

24. I think most responses here have failed to identify his underlying strategy

IMO this move is aimed specifically at the California GOP, which has been moved up to February.

Compared to Republicans nationwide, California GOPers tend to be moderate. While we do have a large percentage of voters who are conservative on social issues like abortion and gay rights, they actually tend to be Democrats - they are Catholics (and largely hispanic) rather than southern or midwestern evangelicals.

Like people in much of the country, California voters of all stripes are reluctant to vote for New York "suits". Giuliani is in big trouble with gun owners across the board, but that's a wash because so is Arizonan John McCain, who is the more natural choice for Western moderate Republicans. Giuliani has a decent track record of fiscal competence, and he will try to take credit for New York's low crime rates.

Shedding the anti-abortion albatross will put Giuliani on a more even footing with McCain. When California Republicans make their choice, it will be based on the perception of who stands the best chance of beating whoever is the Democratic front-runner at the time. He'll play the 9/11 card if things are tight.

[AlCzervik]

27. well then he's blowing off Iowa and New hampshire and putting all his eggs in California

what about SC? I can't imagine thats going to play too well there.

[slackmaster]

28. SC sure as hell isn't going to go for a Yankee

They may vote for Brownback. People despise New Yorkers there.

No matter what happens in IA, NH, or SC, I believe a win in California would put him in the lead in terms of potential electoral votes.