2008 Woodie Awards
Scandals affect Giuliani's popularity in Republican party
Rodrigo Diaz
Issue date: 4/30/07 Section: News
For Americans, very few events in recent decades ring with the intensity of the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center.
The attacks changed the social, economic and political dynamics of the country, and even resonated throughout the world economy.
Essentially, for the months following Sept. 11, everything seemed to be in flux.
Perhaps for his portrayal in the media following the attacks or for his bravery and integrity, Rudy Giuliani, then mayor of New York City, emerged as a national hero and a steadfast leader in a time of crisis.
He organized the response of the city's various law enforcement, fire and rescue departments. He was at Ground Zero during the immediate aftermath of the attacks, when most people were in a frantic rush to escape Manhattan. Oprah Winfrey even coined the term "America's Mayor" referring to Giuliani in the weeks following the attacks.
Naturally then, it would seem that Giuliani has a significant chance of winning the presidency in 2008, but things are not that simple.
Initially the clear favorite among GOP candidates early this year, Giuliani's poll numbers have been steadily decreasing in the past weeks.
He currently still leads the Republicans with 27 percent of those surveyed preferring him among the other conservative candidates, with the closest being John McCain with 16 percent.
The current fundraising frontrunner for Republicans, however, is Mitt Romney with an impressive $23 million raised for his campaign, which is still behind Democratic Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama's totals, at $26 million and $25 million, respectively.
Some analysts blame Giuliani's recent slide on information regarding his personal life becoming more widely available to GOP voters. He has been married three separate times and has had affairs and scandals that have damaged his reputation over the years.
He has also been known to hold grudges against those who speak poorly of him. He even went as far as to boycott the U.S. Open tennis tournament, held in New York, in protest of a fine levied against the city for airplanes flying over the stadium while the tournament was in progress.
The attacks changed the social, economic and political dynamics of the country, and even resonated throughout the world economy.
Essentially, for the months following Sept. 11, everything seemed to be in flux.
Perhaps for his portrayal in the media following the attacks or for his bravery and integrity, Rudy Giuliani, then mayor of New York City, emerged as a national hero and a steadfast leader in a time of crisis.
He organized the response of the city's various law enforcement, fire and rescue departments. He was at Ground Zero during the immediate aftermath of the attacks, when most people were in a frantic rush to escape Manhattan. Oprah Winfrey even coined the term "America's Mayor" referring to Giuliani in the weeks following the attacks.
Naturally then, it would seem that Giuliani has a significant chance of winning the presidency in 2008, but things are not that simple.
Initially the clear favorite among GOP candidates early this year, Giuliani's poll numbers have been steadily decreasing in the past weeks.
He currently still leads the Republicans with 27 percent of those surveyed preferring him among the other conservative candidates, with the closest being John McCain with 16 percent.
The current fundraising frontrunner for Republicans, however, is Mitt Romney with an impressive $23 million raised for his campaign, which is still behind Democratic Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama's totals, at $26 million and $25 million, respectively.
Some analysts blame Giuliani's recent slide on information regarding his personal life becoming more widely available to GOP voters. He has been married three separate times and has had affairs and scandals that have damaged his reputation over the years.
He has also been known to hold grudges against those who speak poorly of him. He even went as far as to boycott the U.S. Open tennis tournament, held in New York, in protest of a fine levied against the city for airplanes flying over the stadium while the tournament was in progress.
Be the first to comment on this story