First, let me be clear where I'm coming from. I am pro-life. I understand and respect why people find it hard to support the Rudy Giuliani candidacy because of the pro-choice positions of his past (although they have moderated). The other stuff- the marriages, the drag, the tolerant attitude towards gays, etc- is basically irrelevant.
For me, 9/11 changed everything. I wouldn't have DREAMED of becoming a blogger on sites like RS, TMR and HinzSight had the illusory peace of the Clinton years prevailed.
The New York electorate is overwhelmingly pro-choice. Had Rudy campaigned on a pro-life platform (impossible anyway because of the detestable legacy of Roe), he would not have been elected.
Had Rudy not been elected, the city's nosedive transformation into a cesspool of economic decline and crime would have continued. Thousands of people are alive today because of the law enforcement policies of Rudy Giuliani, and hundreds of thousands have gainful employment. Obviously, many other people share the credit - his political appointees, the police commissioners, Mayor Bloomberg, New Yorkers themselves. But Rudy started the ball rolling. And it wouldn't have rolled without his election.
We face a similar situation in 2008. All the gains on the GWOT and Iraq can go down the drain, with appalling consequences for our safety, if the left gets a stranglehold on national security policy. Now I don't know if Hillary will let them. But I'm not taking any chances.
That's why we need to make sure we pick a winner for 2008. I think Rudy is that guy. If the party determines Fred, or John McCain, or Mitt is that guy, I will enthusiastically support him for the same reason.
In 1976 I came as close as I ever have to voting for a Democrat, feeling betrayed by Nixon and uninspired by the demoralized remnant of the Republican party. I didn't. After 4 years of the pro-life Jimmy Carter, both our economy and our national security were in an appalling state, with consequences that are still with us. Thousands and thousands of people perished in Central America and the Middle East because of the disastrous policy decisions of the well-intentioned Carter presidency.
In her memoirs, Margaret Thatcher used the Kipling phrase "We've had no end of a lesson" in evaluating the legacy of the Labour government during the Winter of Disconent of the same period.
I believe we are facing a similar decision point, which if decided wrongly, will result in a rerun of the 1970's. I urge all Republicans to evaluate the murder and mayhem prospects of a leftist-run presidency before abandoning the Republican candidate, whomever that might be. Especially Rudy.
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