Old Habits

In a normal season, losing all the early contests would almost certainly end a candidacy.

How the Giuliani method may defeat him.

Elizabeth Kolbert
The Political Scene
The New Yorker
January 7, 2008 issue

Though he is not especially funny, Rudy Giuliani likes to begin with a joke. “Did you know that I’m running for President of the United States?” he asked at a recent house party in Windham, New Hampshire. “Did I tell you that?” His hosts, Al and Patti Letizio, and their friends cheered. “I’m running because I believe that the country needs strong leadership for the future.”

Giuliani advised the Letizios and their neighbors to look at what he calls his Twelve Commitments. In June, also in New Hampshire, he had laid out these commitments, which range from “I will keep America on offense in the Terrorists’ War on Us” (No. 1) to “I will expand America’s involvement in the global economy and strengthen our reputation around the world” (No. 12). Giuliani carries the list on a laminated card the size of a driver’s license; he says that he will keep the card on his desk in the Oval Office. ... ( read more )

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