The Giuliani surprise

Steve Huntley:

Rudy Giuliani plows ahead as the most unlikely Republican presidential front-runner we've seen in a long time. Pro-choice, advocate of gun control, gay friendly and a thrice-married, twice-divorced former mayor of that decadent gotham New York City, Giuliani would seem to represent everything Republicans deplore.

Now, he's even refused to sign a no-tax-increase pledge pushed by the conservative Americans for Tax Reform. His aides reasonably make the case that his record proves Giuliani to be a reliable fiscal conservative. They assert that as New York mayor, Giuliani reduced taxes 23 times. Furthermore, the tax-cut-advocate Club for Growth noted, "Giuliani inherited a city crippled by high taxes, ballooning deficits, and stalled job growth. Despite these obstacles and an entrenched liberal City Council, Mayor Giuliani wasted no time in calling for $1 billion in tax cuts over the next four years. . . . Overall, Giuliani's record displays an intuitive appreciation for the vital role tax cuts play in growing the economy, as well as a deep-seated aversion to tax increases."

Giuliani's position seems rational. Though his aides did not explain it this way, in a time of war -- and Giuliani clearly believes the nation is at war -- a president might be compelled to look at a tax increase to fund it.

Giuliani's continued prominence in the polls particularly confounds liberal pundits and their cartoonish stereotypes of conservatives. Just wait, they keep saying, social conservatives and evangelicals will see the light when they learn about Giuliani's libertarian views on social issues. No doubt those views do turn off some conservatives -- his support has slipped in recent polls -- and maybe they will eventually turn the tide against Giuliani. But he remains in front of the pack.

The liberal pontificating class, like Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, harbors deep doubts about the war on terror, so they are handicapped in seeing how it trumps abortion as a priority issue with so many Red Staters. The latest polling from the Pew Research Center shows that 43 percent of GOP voters consider abortion very important, vs. 77 percent who think terrorism is.

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For a New Yorker, he comes across as very reasonable and caring. He is attacking Democrats like John Edwards in ways that they can not comprehend because of the echo chamber in which they live. His effectiveness in the debates improves with each one. I think he has a chance and I think he will likely defeat the Democrat nominee.