Tuesday, June 12, 2007
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Rudy's Agenda
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Posted by:
Patrick Ruffini at
2:56 PM
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I continue to be a friend to the Giuliani folks, but I thought the campaign was getting too much into the pre-9/11 New York City weeds in recent weeks. Q. Do Republican primary voters care about CompStat? A. Only insofar as you apply it to the challenges of the future. Elections are contests about the future, not the past. And, arguably, the problem with Rudy's resume is that he did such a good job on some of these problems (like crime and welfare) they no longer seem like big challenges worthy of a President's time and attention.
Today, Rudy filled out some of his broad strokes for the future -- his "12 commitments to the American people": 1. I will keep America on offense in the Terrorists’ War on Us.
2. I will end illegal immigration, secure our borders, and identify every non-citizen in our nation.
3. I will restore fiscal discipline and cut wasteful Washington spending.
4. I will cut taxes and reform the tax code.
5. I will impose accountability on Washington.
6. I will lead America towards energy independence.
7. I will give Americans more control over, and access to, healthcare with affordable and portable free-market solutions.
8. I will increase adoptions, decrease abortions, and protect the quality of life for our children.
9. I will reform the legal system and appoint strict constructionist judges.
10. I will ensure that every community in America is prepared for terrorist attacks and natural disasters.
11. I will provide access to a quality education to every child in America by giving real school choice to parents.
12. I will expand America’s involvement in the global economy and strengthen our reputation around the world. The critics will blast this for lacking in specifics. But I find this pretty refreshing for being clear and succinct. This is something that can fit on a palm-card, something your backers can easily refer back to when answering the question, "What does he believe?" The voters need to know how each of these candidates will offer a different brand of Republican leadership. Stuff like this, and not long policy papers, is what makes the argument. The details can be fleshed out over time. Rudy effectively has his schedule set for the next twelve weeks; he can devote a week to rolling out each of these components with speeches, policy white papers, web site features, and more.
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It sounded like Newt's '94 Contract for America. It is at least an agenda which makes the strain of the Dems look silly. Except for investigations, blame Bush, hate the military in Iraq, the Dems do not have an agenda. Rudy, Fred and Mitt are actually starting to field a group of issue-ideas for the likely voter to peruse. Today, McCain went to SF and said Global Warming should please the N. Cal. voters. Ugh. Well, that implosion is perhaps as close as Dean and Patrick aver. Rudy-Fred. Fred-Mitt. I could easily support those tickets over anything the Dems put up. |
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Somebody has to pick the nits:
#3 and #4 are consistent only if major entitlements and entire Cabinet departments are eliminated. I can name some plausible candidates. Will Rudy?
(If he does, and if he gets the nomination, I'll enthusiastically support him on the basis of that alone.)
#6 happens to be an area I have some expertise in. When he makes himself say the word "nuclear" I'll buy it.
#8: The only way to increase adoptions is to increase the number of children put up for adoption. This is not something I want to do, though it's certainly better to put them up for adoption than abort them. How about reducing the incidence of unwanted pregnancy in the first place?
#9: If he means it, then his pro-choice, anti-gun stance becomes largely irrelevant. I expect he's counting on people seeing it this way.
Not a bad starting place, though. But *only* a starting place.
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Rudy needs to address one other issue, civil liberties. Your greatest strength can often be your greatest weakness. Rudy is strong on a woman's right to choose (ignoring the civil rights of the fetus) and also way too quick for government nanny statism (his weasel ban, gun control, etc.). His current stance addresses the "choice v. life issue" but not those other civil liberties (the right to bear weasels and arms, for example).
I do not believe Rudy is a fascist, but he might want to address civil liberties now. |
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jessicalange equates Rudy's list with the "bumper sticker" comment of Edwards. How pathetic.
My criticism (as an advertising guy) would be that the list is too wordy--it should be pared down, similar to HH's list of the "fifteen words".
Political junkies as we all are, we can disect and discuss... but the average Joe Bagadonuts is far more likely to connect with a clear, concise message.
John Edwards' "bumper sticker" comment on the other hand, will go down in history as a Neville Chamberlain "Peace in our time!" moment. Be prepared to see it run ad nauseum anytime there's an attack on America in the future. Forever. |
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Good idea. And as Mr. Prager would say I won't throw away the good in pursuit of the perfect.
If Rudy wins the nomination I will enthusiastically support him. From a positivist position, not merely one from being just scared of the nutter that the D's will put up.
But for now my money is with another. Go Fred! |
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I notice that he says nothing about supporting Second Amendment rights for law abiding citizens. Which we know he doesn't. That will be a deal killer for a lot of people across the country, especially the south.
Gary |
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By declaring them all legal! |
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Parochial schools have been doing it forever, often setting up much better schools in the worst places. Imagine if the people they served actually could pay.
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Danny,
With all due respect, your attitude towards Rudy's candidacy is reflective of political ignorance. No candidate that promised to immediately end all abortions in the US would ever get elected, nor would they be able to enfore that agenda even were they to be elected. We need to continue the incremental approach we have adopted for the past twenty years, not abandon it when it seems we are finally getting close to our goals... |
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There are people who want to put schools in those areas and who have succeeded on a limited basis. Check out the success rates for KIPP (www.kipp.org). They've succeeded in some of the worst neighborhoods in this country.
The first step is ending the monopoly, once that is done and once people have the right to spend their school funding in other ways, people will figure out how to deliver a quality education in exchange for that money. |
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reminds me of Newts list in the 90's. this is a smart move |
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What exactly does "identify every non-citizen" mean? Does he mean identify them and then "regularize" them or deport them or something else?
How will you end illegal immigration -- by providing legal avenues for a tidal wave of immigrants? How will you secure the borders -- with a real fence and real employer sanctions or with virtual fences?
Mr. Giuliani I want to believe that you've had an epiphany, but it was only a few short months ago when you were advocating amnesty on Hannity & Colmes. I know that the purpose of this list is to provide a broad agenda with details to be provided later, but #2 is very circumspect with your past history and statments. The burden is on you to prove that you've changed your stripes. |
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More than saying what he believes, it says what he will do. It is an impressive list of goals. |
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"12. I will expand America’s involvement in the global economy and strengthen our reputation around the world." Strengthening our reputation can only mean making people who don't like us because we have this really bad habit of taking the moral high ground and, in the case of Iraq for instance, taking away the french and german oil benefits notwithstanding the very real threat that Saddam was long term. There are a lot of folks who don't give a fig for doing what's right but for what benefits them and we can never do what's right AND make those cretins happy with us. Not well thought out.
"10. I will ensure that every community in America is prepared for terrorist attacks and natural disasters." As we learned in New Orleans where a plan existed and was on file with proper federal agencies, a plan is only as good as the folks executing on it. The dirt bag mayor and the ineffectual governor made all that good planning irrelevant. Rudy can't take that responsibility-it implies one central federal agency can assure not only planning but execution at the local leval and that's nuts.
"11. I will provide access to a quality education to every child in America by giving real school choice to parents." I've investigated the issue of school choice and two things get evident pretty fast-1. The choices have to be available OTHER than those currently in place-those currently in place largely don't work. Where do those come from and who assures they have any chance of being better than the current schools? 2. In California money goes to schools based on attendance-public at least. In the inner city particularly there are single parents with scads of kids and no way to get them any education but to have them attend the local public institution-which will, with the advent of universal choice, fall on very hard times to to attrition by those parents than can or will move their kids to better options. And don't kid yourself-NO-ONE is going to be putting up quality choice schools in the crime and violence ridden inner cities. I don't know the good solution but choice is going to make the current situation much worse in the inner city.
Neatly packaged to make most folks happy with some key issue they have an interest in but not possible in reality and not good in long run.
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I am a Pro Life conservative who will enthusiastically support the Mayor. In this entire field of canndiates (both D and R) who has shown greater leadership and flat out managerial excellence in good times and bad. I don't think you realize just how hard it is to reduce NY city government by 20% as Rudy did. This is an accomplishment of astronomical proportions. Other canddiates may say to be against abortions but I look at results. Rudy reduced abortions substantially while mayor. Show me another canddidate who has been successful at it. You should all know this: the greatest threat to the American family and social order is the growrth of Government. It becomes easier for us to advance our agenda of life when government is out of the way. No one can create this paradigm better then Rudolf Guiliani.
copiousdissent.blogspot.com |
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Exactly what made the Contract With America work. It's a good idea. I'm a Fred guy, but Rudy might make a good running mate with which to peel New York off from the Dems and guarantee a win for the Fredster. |
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I've been a die-hard Mitt supporter, but I think Rudy nailed it with this. Even the priorities are right. |
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13. I will wear wear women's clothing on the second Tuesday of each month. |
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In regard to the comments from SC 937-0176 CEC (and hey, no offense, but what were your parents thinking with that name?): So? The same could be said about presidents like Jackson, Grant, and Eisenhower (i.e., that people only supported them because of the emotions they felt about their military experience). I don't see how that is necessarily a bad thing. How someone behaves and performs in difficult circumstances seems like a perfectly good basis on which to form a judgment about that person's abilities. |
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Giuliani says, "8.I will increase adoptions, decrease abortions, and protect the quality of life for our children."
Why decrease abortions? If what they abort is nothing more than cells no different than the somatic cells on your hand why decrease them? I have no emotional attachment to the skin cells that fall off everyday.
But this clearly isn't the case. Aborting, and thus unjustly taking the life, a human shouldn't be decreased...it should be STOPPED! This isn't "protect[ing] the life of our children!" This is the approval of mass genocide at the embryonic level.
It's like saying, "I think taking innocent life is wrong, but I am allowing it because of choice." How appalling
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Hence why Giuliani will NEVER get my vote for President. |
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if Rudy had not been "America's Mayor" re 911, would he still be running for Pres. and would he have so many supporters ? Many who support him base thier support on a the emotions they feel for him as the 911 mayor and nothing else. |
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