Hitting the S.O.B. in his supposed strong spot. Sweet!
As I've said before, as the rest of the country gets to know "America's Mayor" they're not gonna like what they see.
FIREFIGHTERS UNION ASSAILS GIULIANI
By Liz Sidoti
The Associated Press
March 9, 2007
WASHINGTON -- One of the nation's largest firefighters' unions has accused Republican presidential contender Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor, of committing "egregious acts" against firefighters who died in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
In a letter to its members Friday, the International Association of Fire Fighters, excoriated Giuliani for his November 2001 decision to cut back the number of firefighters searching the rubble of Ground Zero for the remains of some 300 fallen comrades.
The 280,000-member union accused him of carelessly expediting the cleanup process with a "scoop-and-dump" operation after the recovery of millions of dollars in gold, silver and other assets from the Bank of Nova Scotia that had been buried.
Giuliani's campaign insisted that he respects and supports first responders.
The former mayor and the union have feuded for years over his policies in the aftermath of the attacks, but the firefighters' latest criticism comes as several polls show Giuliani ahead by wide margins in the GOP nomination race.
Seeking to blunt the impact of the accusations, his campaign announced the support of nearly 100 South Carolina firefighters and countered with its own letter from Lee Ielpi, a retired New York firefighter.
"There is no one who respects firefighters and first responders more than Rudy Giuliani," Ielpi wrote. "Firefighters have no greater friend and supporter."
The union's latest broadside initially was included in a scathing letter dated Feb. 28. Union officials say that letter was drafted as leaders were weighing whether to invite Giuliani to a presidential candidate forum but never was distributed to members because the union ultimately invited Giuliani. Giuliani, however, declined the invitation to next week's forum, citing scheduling conflicts.
"We decided to fall on the side of taking the high road and extend an invitation to him," said Harold Schaitberger, the union's general president. "That letter was never intended to be released."
Nevertheless, the letter showed up on Web sites this week. After it surfaced, the union decided to send a revised letter with the same criticisms to its members on Friday and posted it on the union's Web site.
"Mayor Giuliani's actions meant that firefighters and citizens who perished would either remain buried at Ground Zero forever, with no closure for families, or be removed like so much garbage and deposited at the Fresh Kills landfill," the letter said, adding: "Hundreds remained entombed in Ground Zero when Giuliani gave up on them."
"What Giuliani showed is a disgraceful lack of respect for the fallen and those brothers still searching for them," it added.
The union said the purpose of the letter was "to make all our members aware of the egregious acts Mayor Giuliani committed against our members, our fallen on 9/11 and our New York City union officers following that horrific day."
Ielpi, for his part, said he was "deeply disappointed and disheartened" by the union's recent political activities and called the letter offensive and inaccurate.
Tim Brown, a former firefighter and the executive director of Firefighters for Rudy, added: "We are honored by the support of so many first responders from across the country and are appreciative of their continued enthusiasm for Mayor Giuliani's candidacy."
The union says it's bipartisan. It endorsed Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry in 2004.
At least 10 Republican and Democratic candidates plan to attend Wednesday's forum, including Democratic Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama, and former Sen. John Edwards. On the Republican side, the only top tier candidate who has committed is GOP Sen. John McCain of Arizona. Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, declined an invitation.
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And Daily Kos's take on it:
Firefighters invite all candidates to forum -- except Giuliani
by kos
Thu Mar 08, 2007 at 04:28:09 PM PST
No union is perhaps more infuriating than the Firefighters. Unlike most of the others, the IAFF is friendly with Republicans and often endorses them. When Lieberman won reelection, behind him at the podium during his victory speech was the president of the Firefighters union. They're that kind of outfit.
As such, they have scored a bi-partisan presidential forum, inviting "John Edwards, John McCain, Barack Obama, Chuck Hagel, Hillary Clinton, Chris Dodd, Joe Biden, Duncan Hunter and seven other candidates" to attend.
One is missing: Rudy Giuliani:
Early on, the IAFF made a decision to invite all serious candidates from both political parties — except one: former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
We made this decision after considerable soul-searching and close consultation with our two New York City affiliates, the Uniformed Firefighters Association Local 94 and the Uniformed Fire Officers Association Local 854, as well as our former Local 94 President and current IAFF 1st District Vice President covering New York.
The IAFF recognizes that Mayor Giuliani generally enjoys a favorable reputation as a result of his actions immediately after the tragedy of 9/11. As such, we want our affiliates and every one of our members to clearly understand the reason and rationale behind this very serious and sober decision.
Many people consider Rudy Giuliani "America's Mayor," and many of our members who don't yet know the real story, may also have a positive view of him. This letter is intended to make all of our members aware of the egregious acts Mayor Giuliani committed against our members, our fallen on 9/11, and our New York City union officers following that horrific day [...]
The disrespect that he exhibited to our 343 fallen FDNY brothers, their families and our New York City IAFF leadership in the wake of that tragic day has not been forgiven or forgotten.
In November 2001, our members were continuing the painful, but necessary, task of searching Ground Zero for the remains of our fallen brothers and the thousands of innocent citizens that were killed, because precious few of those who died in the terrorist attacks had been recovered at that point.
Prior to November 2001, 101 bodies or remains of fire fighters had been recovered. And those on the horrible pile at Ground Zero believed they had just found a spot in the rubble where they would find countless more that could be given proper burial.
Nevertheless, Giuliani, with the full support of his Fire Commissioner Thomas Von Essen, decided on November 2, 2001, to sharply reduce the number of those who could search for remains at any one time. There had been as many as 300 fire fighters at a time involved in search and recovery, but Giuliani cut that number to no more than 25 who could be there at once.
In conjunction with the cut in fire fighters allowed to search, Giuliani also made a conscious decision to institute a "scoop-and-dump" operation to expedite the clean-up of Ground Zero in lieu of the more time-consuming, but respectful, process of removing debris piece by piece in hope of uncovering more remains.
Mayor Giuliani's actions meant that fire fighters and citizens who perished would either remain buried at Ground Zero forever, with no closure for families, or be removed like garbage and deposited at the Fresh Kills Landfill.
=================
You can read in its entirety the letter that union leadership sent out to its members at http://www.firefightingnews.com/article-US.cfm?articleID=27125
President Giuliani 2008? Wake me when it's over! - why do you guys think?
Most people don't care what people do behind closed doors.
Actually, it seems like that's all Republicans care about these days.
The only problem ulra-conservatives have (and even Democrat-moderates) is when the image is of those stupid images of men clad in paint and makeup mocking religion or prancing around with muscled male dancers at dark clubs. This is not the majority of gays.
Anybody else want to field this one? My brain just shat itself thinking of forty-seven snippy comments at the same time.
"How's the despair?"
You guys have the silliest sense of humor!
First of all, Republicans (and others, too) should reject the idea of adultery in any form. A married or "attached" person should remain faithful to his beloved. Maybe I'm just a romantic, but that is my idea of what a relationship of love should be.
But seeing as this is just a joke floating around the tabloid circles, I'll leave you to your mocking conservatives.
On a side note, I think that having divorced his wife and re-married, Republicans can look past a messy separation. They will look at him, as most voters will, as a man known for fighting the mob, cleaning up NYC and leadership on 9/11. That is what people remember. And his stance on gays is hardly that controversial to most Americans. Most people don't care what people do behind closed doors. The only problem ulra-conservatives have (and even Democrat-moderates) is when the image is of those stupid images of men clad in paint and makeup mocking religion or prancing around with muscled male dancers at dark clubs. This is not the majority of gays, but it is an image that Middle America is afraid of. However, these are not the things that Guiliani seems to support anyway. He is a moderate in every sense of the word.
He supports Civil Unions for gays, he supports other social programs, and he isn't a hardline conservative. That's fine, but he is also a conservative on other issues -- particularly homeland security and low taxes. This is about where most Americans are on these issues anyway. So if the hardline base of the Republican Party can get past his middle-stance on abortion and homosexuality, then they can keep the White House in 2008.
McCain didn't convince Republicans to nominate him in 2000, and I doubt he can do it now.
First of all, Republicans (and others, too) should reject the idea of adultery in any form. A married or "attached" person should remain faithful to his beloved. Maybe I'm just a romantic, but that is my idea of what a relationship of love should be.
But seeing as this is just a joke floating around the tabloid circles, I'll leave you to your mocking conservatives.
On a side note, I think that having divorced his wife and re-married, Republicans can look past a messy separation. They will look at him, as most voters will, as a man known for fighting the mob, cleaning up NYC and leadership on 9/11. That is what people remember. And his stance on gays is hardly that controversial to most Americans. Most people don't care what people do behind closed doors. The only problem ulra-conservatives have (and even Democrat-moderates) is when the image is of those stupid images of men clad in paint and makeup mocking religion or prancing around with muscled male dancers at dark clubs. This is not the majority of gays, but it is an image that Middle America is afraid of. However, these are not the things that Guiliani seems to support anyway. He is a moderate in every sense of the word.
He supports Civil Unions for gays, he supports other social programs, and he isn't a hardline conservative. That's fine, but he is also a conservative on other issues -- particularly homeland security and low taxes. This is about where most Americans are on these issues anyway. So if the hardline base of the Republican Party can get past his middle-stance on abortion and homosexuality, then they can keep the White House in 2008.
McCain didn't convince Republicans to nominate him in 2000, and I doubt he can do it now.
"Because here’s the thing about life: There’s no accounting for what fate will deal you. Some days when you need a hand. There are other days when we’re called to lend a hand." -- President Joe Biden, 01/20/2021
How about we throw BOTH at them: mixed race adultery with a lesbian! And they did it in a church and used the American flag as their bedsheet...hot cha cha!Damien wrote:One of the supermarket tabloids floated that one, too. I don't know what would upset the Republican base more: lesbianism or mixed-race adultery.
A lot of straight men think lesbians are just a loophole to threesomes anyway, so we could probably sell this to the Pub base.
One of the supermarket tabloids floated that one, too. I don't know what would upset the Republican base more: lesbianism or mixed-race adultery.Akash wrote:Damien wrote:With Condi, there's also the Elephant in the room: the Lesbian issue.
lol, I've heard these rumors too. Although I prefer the one that the European papers subtly try to propagate: that she and Bush are secetly lovers :p
"Y'know, that's one of the things I like about Mitt Romney. He's been consistent since he changed his mind." -- Christine O'Donnell
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Big Magilla
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Magilla, Condi will never be a frontrunner for the Pubs in the near future. Which is also why they wouldn't pick her as VP if Cheney died.
There has been a lot written on this and Bob Herbert had a wonderful article in the New York Times last year about it - but historically the Republicans have depended on a large racist voting block (especially in the South) that would turn on them if they ever nominated a black candidate. They're not stupid.
Oh here's the Herbert article. It's from 2005 actually.
http://www.truthout.org/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi/38/12734
There has been a lot written on this and Bob Herbert had a wonderful article in the New York Times last year about it - but historically the Republicans have depended on a large racist voting block (especially in the South) that would turn on them if they ever nominated a black candidate. They're not stupid.
Oh here's the Herbert article. It's from 2005 actually.
http://www.truthout.org/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi/38/12734
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Big Magilla
- Site Admin
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If only wishing made it so. In the end I do believe that whoever the Dems elect will win, but I keep hearing the supposedly liberal talking heads on TV talk about polls that put Obama, Clinton, Giuliani and McCain within a few points of one another.
What if Cheney dies or resigns in the near future and is replaced by Condaleeza Rice? Will she then becomes the Republican front-runner? It might prove interesting to have two women or two African-Americans to choose from.
What if Cheney dies or resigns in the near future and is replaced by Condaleeza Rice? Will she then becomes the Republican front-runner? It might prove interesting to have two women or two African-Americans to choose from.
From Firedoglake:
The Republican bigwigs aren't afraid of the 2008 elections. No, not at all.
They're terrified of them.
And they have good reason to be.
How terrified are they? Follow me over the hill and through the dale to find out.
First off, the Republicans hitched their wagons to George W. Bush's star, and it's far, far too late for them to try to distance themselves from him, even if their base would allow it. They're spot-welded to him and he's this gigantic 20-ton kryptonite boat anchor that is sending them rapidly to the bottom of the Marianas Trench, and they can't do a thing to stop it, so they're screeching all the way down — and polls like this one aren't helping their mood any.
We're talking fear-and-loathing-in-the-bunker time, kiddies. If you've noticed that they seem even more unhinged than usual , that's because they are. They're so scared, they're even attacking Al Gore — even though Gore's not running for elective office and probably never will again.
Second off, it's becoming ever-more-obvious that the Republican presidential bench is, to put it kindly, not particularly deep – especially when compared to that of the Democrats.
How bad off are they? The GOP's best candidate is Chuck Hagel — and not coincidentally, he's the only one with so much as a smidgen of credibility and independence with regard to Iraq — and he will never make it to the first set of primaries, precisely because of his relative independence compared to the rest of the we-stand-behind-Bush field. (See, the idiocy that's endemic to Republican presidential and vice-presidential candidates such as Reagan, both Bushes and Quayle is not a bug, but a feature — because they're not supposed to lead, but to meekly follow the dictates of their corporate patrons. But I digress.)
Having dispensed of the one man who could actually win for the GOP in 2008, let's look at the non-Hagels on the GOP side.
Rudy Giuliani? Mr. Three-Wives-And-Counting? Heh. As a recently-unearthed document from Mitt Romney's campaign states, the Republicans will be hard put to use the Hillary's-an-eeevul-librul scare tactic if Rudy's the nominee as they're both from New York and his stances on certain social issues, such as gays, may even be more liberal than hers. And remember how the Republicans used the "he can't win his own home state!" dig against Al Gore in 2000? Well, that will be even more true of Giuliani in 2008, especially in New York City, where to know him is most definitely NOT to love him. (Just ask Donna Hanover.) Already, New Yorkers are working overtime to introduce Americans to the REAL Rudy. And he's not a pretty sight.
John McCain? Mr. Straight-Talker holed himself below the waterline with his backing of Bush's Iraq stance. He's been dropping in the polls ever since. Plus, he's seventy-one (71) years old right now , which would make him 73 on Inauguration Day 2009 – and when people find that out, they're not happy about that.
As for the rest — Huckabee, Romney, Brownback — they're not even worth laughing about. Forget it: Whoever wins the Democratic nomination is going to be our next president. Period. And whoever it is, he or she will have a lot of new allies in Congress, too, as Democrats will build on the 2006 gains.
No wonder the Republicans are pressing the panic button these days.
The Republican bigwigs aren't afraid of the 2008 elections. No, not at all.
They're terrified of them.
And they have good reason to be.
How terrified are they? Follow me over the hill and through the dale to find out.
First off, the Republicans hitched their wagons to George W. Bush's star, and it's far, far too late for them to try to distance themselves from him, even if their base would allow it. They're spot-welded to him and he's this gigantic 20-ton kryptonite boat anchor that is sending them rapidly to the bottom of the Marianas Trench, and they can't do a thing to stop it, so they're screeching all the way down — and polls like this one aren't helping their mood any.
We're talking fear-and-loathing-in-the-bunker time, kiddies. If you've noticed that they seem even more unhinged than usual , that's because they are. They're so scared, they're even attacking Al Gore — even though Gore's not running for elective office and probably never will again.
Second off, it's becoming ever-more-obvious that the Republican presidential bench is, to put it kindly, not particularly deep – especially when compared to that of the Democrats.
How bad off are they? The GOP's best candidate is Chuck Hagel — and not coincidentally, he's the only one with so much as a smidgen of credibility and independence with regard to Iraq — and he will never make it to the first set of primaries, precisely because of his relative independence compared to the rest of the we-stand-behind-Bush field. (See, the idiocy that's endemic to Republican presidential and vice-presidential candidates such as Reagan, both Bushes and Quayle is not a bug, but a feature — because they're not supposed to lead, but to meekly follow the dictates of their corporate patrons. But I digress.)
Having dispensed of the one man who could actually win for the GOP in 2008, let's look at the non-Hagels on the GOP side.
Rudy Giuliani? Mr. Three-Wives-And-Counting? Heh. As a recently-unearthed document from Mitt Romney's campaign states, the Republicans will be hard put to use the Hillary's-an-eeevul-librul scare tactic if Rudy's the nominee as they're both from New York and his stances on certain social issues, such as gays, may even be more liberal than hers. And remember how the Republicans used the "he can't win his own home state!" dig against Al Gore in 2000? Well, that will be even more true of Giuliani in 2008, especially in New York City, where to know him is most definitely NOT to love him. (Just ask Donna Hanover.) Already, New Yorkers are working overtime to introduce Americans to the REAL Rudy. And he's not a pretty sight.
John McCain? Mr. Straight-Talker holed himself below the waterline with his backing of Bush's Iraq stance. He's been dropping in the polls ever since. Plus, he's seventy-one (71) years old right now , which would make him 73 on Inauguration Day 2009 – and when people find that out, they're not happy about that.
As for the rest — Huckabee, Romney, Brownback — they're not even worth laughing about. Forget it: Whoever wins the Democratic nomination is going to be our next president. Period. And whoever it is, he or she will have a lot of new allies in Congress, too, as Democrats will build on the 2006 gains.
No wonder the Republicans are pressing the panic button these days.
"Y'know, that's one of the things I like about Mitt Romney. He's been consistent since he changed his mind." -- Christine O'Donnell
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Sonic Youth
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I have a link and a question down below.
Rudy's Diva Demands
BY DAVID SALTONSTALL
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS SENIOR CORRESPONDENT
Saturday, February 17th, 2007
Move over, J.Lo. There's a new diva on the scene - and his name is Rudy Giuliani.
At least that's the impression given by a copy of the basic contract the former mayor and now presidential hopeful requires before giving a speech, a copy of which was posted yesterday on the SmokingGun.com Web site.
In addition to his $100,000 speaking fee, the former mayor insists that he be shuttled to and from any event by a private plane - and not just any plane, mind you!
"Please note that the private aircraft MUST BE a Gulfstream IV or bigger," notes the contract, referring to a $30 million jet that can clock 600 mph.
Once there, Hizzoner demands that he be met by "one sedan and one large SUV," and booked into a hotel room "with a king-size bed, on an upper floor, with a balcony and view," plus four more rooms on the same floor for his entourage.
And, oh, yeah, America's Mayor doesn't like "candid photo opportunities," but he will stand for posed pictures provided they are taken in a room "with sufficient light" and "without direct, on-camera flash bulbs."
Aides to the former mayor declined to comment yesterday on his list of demands. But it comes as Giuliani has asked the Federal Elections Commission for advice on how best to handle his private speech-giving.
Presidential hopefuls who are private citizens are allowed to take money for speeches, as long as they are not raising campaign cash at the event, distributing campaign material or urging audience members to vote for them.
Giuliani's contract notes that he "reserves the right" to hold political events in the same city, but otherwise it is focused mostly on minutiae - right down to who sits next to him at a dinner (his wife, Judith, or a staffer), and how his fans will be kept at a safe distance.
"There must be rope and stanchions to assist with attendee control," the contract states, "as well as staff appointed to push and pull."
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And here's the link to his demands on The Smoking Gun.
So, tell me. Why the #### did a story about Nancy Pelosi demanding an unreasonably large luxury jet - which she DID NOT DO; the story was a complete fabrication - get so much attention in the media, making her look like a prima dona bitch?
While at the same time, Rudy makes his own diva demands (which, I'll be the first to admit, isn't much different from most celebrities' demands) gets almost NO ATTENTION, other than this Daily News piece? Anyone hear about this story anywhere else?
Damn liberal media, I guess.
Rudy's Diva Demands
BY DAVID SALTONSTALL
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS SENIOR CORRESPONDENT
Saturday, February 17th, 2007
Move over, J.Lo. There's a new diva on the scene - and his name is Rudy Giuliani.
At least that's the impression given by a copy of the basic contract the former mayor and now presidential hopeful requires before giving a speech, a copy of which was posted yesterday on the SmokingGun.com Web site.
In addition to his $100,000 speaking fee, the former mayor insists that he be shuttled to and from any event by a private plane - and not just any plane, mind you!
"Please note that the private aircraft MUST BE a Gulfstream IV or bigger," notes the contract, referring to a $30 million jet that can clock 600 mph.
Once there, Hizzoner demands that he be met by "one sedan and one large SUV," and booked into a hotel room "with a king-size bed, on an upper floor, with a balcony and view," plus four more rooms on the same floor for his entourage.
And, oh, yeah, America's Mayor doesn't like "candid photo opportunities," but he will stand for posed pictures provided they are taken in a room "with sufficient light" and "without direct, on-camera flash bulbs."
Aides to the former mayor declined to comment yesterday on his list of demands. But it comes as Giuliani has asked the Federal Elections Commission for advice on how best to handle his private speech-giving.
Presidential hopefuls who are private citizens are allowed to take money for speeches, as long as they are not raising campaign cash at the event, distributing campaign material or urging audience members to vote for them.
Giuliani's contract notes that he "reserves the right" to hold political events in the same city, but otherwise it is focused mostly on minutiae - right down to who sits next to him at a dinner (his wife, Judith, or a staffer), and how his fans will be kept at a safe distance.
"There must be rope and stanchions to assist with attendee control," the contract states, "as well as staff appointed to push and pull."
------------------------------------------------
And here's the link to his demands on The Smoking Gun.
So, tell me. Why the #### did a story about Nancy Pelosi demanding an unreasonably large luxury jet - which she DID NOT DO; the story was a complete fabrication - get so much attention in the media, making her look like a prima dona bitch?
While at the same time, Rudy makes his own diva demands (which, I'll be the first to admit, isn't much different from most celebrities' demands) gets almost NO ATTENTION, other than this Daily News piece? Anyone hear about this story anywhere else?
Damn liberal media, I guess.
"What the hell?"
Win Butler
Win Butler
Criddic, I may not agree with you on almost ANY political topic, but we do agree on this. Yes, I believe if Hilary Clinton was the Democrat opposition, Giuliani would win easily. A plurality of sentimental, myopic American voters fooled into the Giuliani is a hero media hype after 9-11, would quickly gravitate towards a faux moderate man than well...Hilary.
Giuliani is just as much a product of the media as say Obama.
Giuliani is just as much a product of the media as say Obama.
How's that? By even-handed, I mean that the film showed both strengths and weaknesses. It dealt a bit with his marital problems as well as his famous clean-up-the-city effort before getting to 9/11. This man has as many admirers as he does enemies. That's just the nature of politics. The way to be elected is when your fans/followers outnumber your foes on election day. This is why I don't think Hilary would win against Guiliani. Her fans have softened their support for her in the last couple of years.
"Because here’s the thing about life: There’s no accounting for what fate will deal you. Some days when you need a hand. There are other days when we’re called to lend a hand." -- President Joe Biden, 01/20/2021