McCain-Giuliani Race Heats Up
John McCain and Rudy Giuliani are fighting for the support of New Yorkers. (Getty Images.)
By Juliet Eilperin
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Rudy Giuliani began attacking each other in earnest today, just as two New York polls showed McCain has moved ahead of Giuliani in the former New York mayor's home state.
Giuliani's campaign e-mailed reporters today with a long list of instances where McCain backed higher taxes, including in 2001 when the senator opposed President Bush's tax cut plan and when he backed increasing taxes on cigarettes nearly a decade ago.
"Rudy Giuliani is the only fiscal conservative in the race and it's easy to see why," said Giuliani spokeswoman Katie Levinson in the press release. "John McCain not only voted with the Democrats against the Bush tax cuts twice, he's voted over 50 times for higher taxes. With a record like that, you can't tell if John McCain will stand up to the Democrats in Washington who want to raise taxes or stand with them."
McCain spokesman Brian Rogers shot back, suggesting in an e-mail that the former mayor was just bitter about his recent fall in the polls. Today the Siena College Research Institute released a poll showing McCain with a 12-point lead over Giuliani in New York, while a joint WNBC/Marist Poll gave McCain a 15 point edge among New Yorkers.
"It's not surprising to see the Giuliani campaign launch misleading attacks on a day when two new polls show John McCain beating Rudy Giuliani decisively in his home state of New York," Rogers said. "John McCain has a long record of fighting for tax cuts and controlling spending. In contrast, Rudy Giuliani has a record of opposing tax relief. He actually endorsed liberal Democrat Mario Cuomo for governor because he opposed George Pataki's tax cut plans, which Giuliani said at the time were too large. He also left Mayor Bloomberg with a fiscal mess, including a budget deficit of over $2 billion. That's not fiscal responsibility."
Steven Greenberg, the Siena New York Poll spokesman, said Giuliani' former domination of the state had evaporated over the past couple of months. "In a stunning turnaround, John McCain has turned a 33-point deficit with Republican voters in December into a 12-point lead over Rudy Giuliani today," Greenberg said. "While America's mayor still has strong support among New York City Republicans, he is getting beat by McCain in the suburbs and trounced upstate. Republican women give Rudy a small edge, however, Republican men are behind McCain nearly three-to-one."
The poll by WNBC and the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion gives McCain an even bigger advantage. That survey reports the senator enjoys the support of 34 percent of likely GOP voters, while Giuiliani and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney are tied at 19 percent, with former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee at 15 percent. McCain enjoys his strongest support upstate, which could prove to be an advantage since those areas are more solidly Republican than elsewhere in the state.
McCain's rivals still have a chance to woo New York voters, according to the Marist survey, since only 41 percent of those polled said they strongly support their current choice, and 30 percent said they may switch candidates by Feb. 5, the day of New York's primary. "This is a contest that is still in flux," according to the Marist press release. "Many Republican voters are not particularly enthusiastic about their choice "
McCain will make his pitch to New Yorkers tomorrow, on Giuliani's home turf, no less, by holding a fundraiser and press conference in Manhattan. According to the Marist Institute, he might want to make an appeal based on strength, since three in 10 Republicans polled said they are looking for a strong leader in their presidential nominee.
No word on who's winning the backing of New Yorkers enamored with the idea of a weak leader.
Posted at 3:53 PM ET on Jan 21, 2008
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Posted by: alextheblond | January 22, 2008 10:50 AM
Rudy is the guy to beat
He can take on all the heat
This video says it all...
Posted by: mikeelaoc | January 22, 2008 10:46 AM
No, Ron Paul is not racist. There was one terrible incident where others were using his name, yet he himself is not- it is not in his nature, which you learn when you study about him and what he is for.
BTW, he also predicted the stock crash that looks to be upon us today. See video in comments on this article about it:
http://ronpaul.myfeedportal.com/viewarticle.php?articleid=37
Posted by: davidmwe | January 22, 2008 8:59 AM
If you compare all candidates resume one candidate stands out from everyone else .Mitt Romney.He has more gold star successful venture experence than any other candidate.If you compare resumes of every other candidate republican or democrat Mitt Romney wins the job hands down.Vote for American success Vote for Mitt Romney
Posted by: Imarkex | January 21, 2008 11:07 PM
I like Rudy a lot and would have no problem voting for him for president. That said, I think McCain is clearly the better choice. The electability issue aside (which strongly favors McCain) I'm not particularly impressed with someone who says that he'd never raise taxes no matter what. Sometimes it's necessary. I just don't want it to the the first option like it is with so many Democrats. Budgets eventually have to be balanced. A city, state or a nation simply can't go on spending more than it takes in indefinitely. Sooner or later, the piper has to be paid. So, if tax increases are coupled with spending reductions for the purpose of closing a budget gap, I have no problem with tax increases as long as they aren't used to fund more spending programs in an effort to buy votes for the incumbents.
Posted by: danram | January 21, 2008 9:57 PM
New York has paid more then anyone so far in this War !
New York must not lose this great investment in Freedom!
New Yorkers Must Vote for the only choice they have to Win This War, McCain !
Posted by: nicklan | January 21, 2008 9:39 PM
Ron Paul is a racist.
No one cares how many neo-nazis visited his site last month or about his imaginary superhighway.
Take off your tinfoil hats and return to your parents' basements.
Posted by: info | January 21, 2008 9:13 PM
Mr. Giuliani; Just to remind you!!! Dr. Ron Paul IS ONLY FISCAL CONSERVATIVE we know and see in this election. Your histerycal smile at him on every single debate will not pursuede people to laugh at Dr. Paul, it can only make them vote for him at the end, and that is the end you will not reach. After Florida, goodbye Mr. Giuliani, you gotta be kidding me if you think you can become our president. What a joke, a mayor, president? Gimme a break.
Posted by: BOBSTERII | January 21, 2008 8:29 PM
Watching Republicans argue about who more fully embraces the unsustainable ideology of no taxes, mega-defense, no government is a riot! America has turned its back on this nonsense and will turn in droves to anyone who can deliver good government and rational foreign policy. It will take decades for Americans to forgive the Republican Party for its blind, uncritical support of the Bush Crime Family.
Posted by: thebobbob | January 21, 2008 7:52 PM
gig---
Can I have some of what you're smoking? It must be pretty good stuff. The NAU is a something from a fevered isolationist dream. Please cite for me ANYTHING that has appeared on the floor of the U.S. Senate (which has to approve all treaties).
Your understanding of Euro politics is similarly flawed. The EU constitution, to which you obliquely referred, NEVER appeared on the ballot in the U.K. Amongst other reasons, it was voted down in referendums in other EU states. The U.K. has never adopted the Euro, let alone the Schengen agreement. [I'll give you points if you even know what that is.]
BB
Posted by: FairlingtonBlade | January 21, 2008 7:47 PM
John McCain is not perfect, and if these criticisms of Giuliani are unfair, they should be retracted.
Overall, both of these candidates are Republican and interested in controlling spending. Both work with Democrats on occasion for issues they consider important.
Honestly, the real question is, what kind of leadership will they provide? This country is really BADLY in need of leadership. I used to like Giuliani in his New York days. He has a lot to recommend him. But the more I learn about him, (oddly) the less I like him. The reverse is true with McCain. I think, with McCain, pretty much what you see is what you get. He's the only candidate who said, we need to increase the troop presence in Iraq if we want to finish this mission honorably. No one wanted to hear it. He's the only one who said to the people in Michigan, no, you probably won't get those jobs back the way they were. We need a leader who will tell us the truth, not just what we want to hear.
We have gotten ourselves into the middle of a very badly managed war, and we need a leader with military experience who can lead us out of it. We also need a leader who can generate respect and loyalty from our armed forces, whom we have sent over there in harm's way without really believing in what we're doing. Please don't focus on the minutiae of these economic issues. Consider them, but also consider the big picture.
Posted by: abeille | January 21, 2008 7:45 PM
Since when has "fiscal conservatism" equalled "cutting taxes?"
Fiscal conservatism is about low taxes but it's also about balancing the budge and living within your means. That's not just good government, that's good sense. Say what you want about McCain, he's been a consistent fiscal hawk for 25 years. The only reason he opposed the Bush tax cuts is because there were no spending cuts to go with them. He was afraid that the surplus, which he fought for for 15 years, would go "poof." He was right.
Giuliani sounds like the only thing worse than a tax-and-spend Democrat -- a borrow-and-spend Republican.
Posted by: anon99 | January 21, 2008 7:35 PM
JUST TO CLARIFY MR. GIULIANI'S DEFICIT HE LEFT WHEN HE LEFT THE MAYORAL OFFICE ON DECEMBER 31, 2001.
IT JUST SO HAPPENS THAT THE FISCAL YEAR FOR THE MAYORAL OFFICE IN NEW YORK CITY ENDS ON JUNE 30. EVERY YEAR THE MAYORAL OFFICE IN NEW YORK CITY IS IN DEBT ON NEW YEARS EVE. IN FACT ALMOST ALL YEAR THE OFFICE IS IN DEBT. IT IS NOT UNTIL THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR IS WHEN EVERYTHING IS CHECKED.
MR. BLOOMBERG WAS ABLE TO MAINTAIN THE BUDGET FOR THE MAYORAL OFFICE FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE FISCAL YEAR IN 2002 AND PROVIDE A SURPLUS.
THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS THAT MR. GIULIANI BALANCED THE BUDGET ALL EIGHT YEARS. HE DID HOWEVER INHERIT A $2.3 BILLION DOLLAR DEBT AT THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR IN 1994. HE BALANCED THE BUDGET IN THE FISCAL YEAR OF 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, AND SET FOR THE COURSE IN 2002.
THE ATTACK THAT HE LEFT A $2.8 BILLION DEFICIT IN THE NEW YORK CITY MAYORAL OFFICE IS BLATANTLY WRONG AND IGNORANT, BECAUSE THAT MEANS YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT FISCAL YEARS.
Posted by: ncholasdp | January 21, 2008 6:30 PM
LOL! I only see McPain the Amnesty RINO warmly Embrace Democrat Senators!
Don't they put Old Horses out to Pasture?
I am sure McCain can handle the Senate at 75, But, can he handle Trading agreements with Columbia, Mexico, China, European Union, Soviet Union, Japan, Phillipines, South America, including Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Chile, and a possibly rising Peru, along with the Pacific Basin, Canada, India, The Oil Markets, The Farming Issues, the Construction Issues, The Fed, The Banking Industry, the Insurance, and Medical Crises, The Democracy Crises in Pakistan, and a couple of other minor sort of concerns the President of the United States has to juggle-
Along with the Military issues McCain wants to focus on, while granting Amnesty to make 15 Million Invaders of our sovereignty(No Security issue there!) go away as an issue to actually DEAL with!
Reality Check for a 70+ Year Old-Trying to commit suicide, or just not coming close to actually handling things?
John McCain, just being Secretary of Defense, is more than a Challenge for YOU! :~{
Posted by: rat-the | January 21, 2008 6:02 PM
If you don't know what the North American Union (NAU) is, it translates to loss of Constitutional sovereignty. Lou Dobb's explains:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T74VA3xU0EA&feature=related
England's citizens struck down a supreme EU power grab in 2005 only to have it return in a measure their leaders refuse to put to a vote.
Six senators and 49 house members are bipartisn advisors (chaired by Senator Bob Bennett of Utah) for a group working toward the Trans Atlantic Common Market, which will combine the North American Union and European Union by 2015.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59713
Hillary, Obama, Edwards, McCain, Romney, Giuliani, and Huckabee all have strong ties to groups pushing for it.
If we had a Constitutionally limited federal government as Ron Paul proposes, we wouldn't have to worry about the NAU or the Trans Atlantic Union.
Posted by: gigplanet | January 21, 2008 5:46 PM
Did that guy forgot that 9/11 happened right before Giuliani's term endede and that all the money spent to clean and all the things we can't even imagine cost money and it was not free! 9/11 was unexpected unles you are a Ron Paul supporter that thinks otherwise! Go Rudy 2008
Posted by: irizarryrafael | January 21, 2008 5:31 PM
McCAin spokesman Brian Rogers said "[Giuliani] also left Mayor Bloomberg with a fiscal mess, including a budget deficit of over $2 billion. That's not fiscal responsibility."
It would be nice to see the GOP return to fiscal responsibility rather than perpetual tax cuts coupled with spending increases.
Posted by: bsimon | January 21, 2008 5:18 PM
Giuliani has his work cut out for him, at least his web site stats do:
Monthly Web Site Visitors
johnmccain.com 130,519
mittromney.com 253,036
ronpaul2008.com 618,846
mikehuckabee.com 467,889
joinrudy2008.com 91,943
SOURCE:
http://ronpaul.myfeedportal.com/viewarticle.php?articleid=39
Posted by: davidmwe | January 21, 2008 4:24 PM
The comments to this entry are closed.
Any 5 year old child could have predicted that there would be difficulties in the market... Ron Paul may be that smart, but that's about it.
As for Rudy and McCain, the attacks had to come sometime. These two have been extremely cordial towards each other up to this point because they have yet to compete for the same electorate. This is even more important because Florida is quite literally do or die for Giuliani. If he loses Florida, Giuliani will be out of the race. On the other hand, if Giuliani can pull out a win in Florida because of the amount of time he has spent there, which will hopefully translate into the most solid constituent base.
If he does win Florida, the results of the New York and California polls will almost certainly instantly reverse. The polls both suggest that the state is still very fluid and since Giuliani had the support there prior to the first primary states, the support will return when Giuliani is the one with the momentum coming out of Florida. Once again, this is contingent on him winning Florida.
As for the suggestion that Giuliani left Bloomberg a massive deficit is just obnoxious. Did anyone really expect the budget to be completely balanced when: Federal and State money promised for the cleanup and removal of the largest tragedy to hit New York City (possibly the United States on Continental soil) was late in being delivered to the city; the loss of tourism for a period following 9/11 was an unexpected event; the city had just suffered the most heinous attack on US soil on civilians; many large business were forced to move and had to be offered large tax incentives to stay in the city; etc.