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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
January 28, 2008
21 Shevat 5768
Rudy Giuliani couldn't overcome his pro-choice stance — and GOP losing out
By
Michael Goodwin
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Rudy Giuliani stood firm with his pro-choice stance, and paid for it.
His front-runner status is a memory. Now he trails in his home state. If he wins Florida on Tuesday, it would be the shocker of the season. If he doesn't, the fat lady of his beloved operas will be singing.
The collapse of Rudy Giuliani's presidential campaign would mark a sour finale after a head-turning start. Hard though it is to remember, less than a year ago he had a commanding 25-point lead over the GOP field. That he has finished no better than fourth in the first primaries and won more votes than Ron Paul only once demonstrates how far America's Mayor has fallen.
Yet defeat would be more than just a personal rejection of Giuliani. It would be a stinging rebuke to the brazen idea he represented — that a pro-choice candidate can win the Republican Party's nomination for President. In an election year when "change" is the coin of the realm, a pro-choice Republican nominee would have been dramatic.
It is no accident that since Roe vs. Wade in 1973, only Gerald Ford, in 1976, supported abortion rights when he won party backing. The circumstances around which Ford got the spot — replacing the disgraced Richard Nixon and trying to repair a shattered party — are so exceptional that they prove the rule that the GOP is the pro-life party, just as the Democratic Party is rigidly pro-choice.
The amazing thing is that the bid by Giuliani, the only pro-choice candidate among the Republicans, to upset that dynamic looked as though it might succeed. The combination of his accomplishments in New York, his iconic status from 9/11, big Republican losses in 2006 and the prospect of a Hillary Clinton presidency added up to a rare opportunity to break GOP orthodoxy and reshape the political landscape.
If Giuliani had pulled it off, the Republican Party would have changed in one of two fundamental ways.
First, and more likely, it would have expanded its base to include new voters, especially many younger women who trust it on fiscal and security issues but shun it because abortion is their litmus test. Democratic turnout in the primaries has been about 56% female and hit 59% in Nevada, owing in part to Hillary Clinton's historic candidacy but also reflecting the party's female-heavy, pro-choice base.
Consider, for example, that there is no woman in the GOP with a status comparable to Clinton's or House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's. On gender, the GOP stands in perfect contrast to Democrats. Republican turnout this year has been 57% male.
The gap is not immutable. If Republicans featured a pro-choice nominee, they could start to make inroads in blue and swing states by attracting white suburban women who increasingly decide close elections.
The other possible scenario under a Giuliani nominee is far less rosy for the GOP. The party might have fractured, with a faction of pro-life groups making good on its promise to back a third-party candidate.
That could have meant a generational realignment with immediate consequences. Democrats would win the White House this year, no matter who they nominate, and would score big majorities in Congress. There would be no counterweight to liberal tax and social policies and Democratic judges would change the federal courts. Among other results, even the modest restrictions on abortion rights would likely be jettisoned.
Giuliani was hardly the perfect messenger to challenge the pro-life lock on the GOP. He has been married three times, the last coming after a public affair and a brutal divorce. He is apparently estranged from his children. He bunked with a gay couple when his former wife kicked him out of the mayoral home. He sided with former President Bill Clinton in the battle with Republicans over gun control. He once endorsed Mario Cuomo, the Democratic antichrist of his time. The long list of negatives includes his close association with the now-disgraced Bernard Kerik.
Then there is abortion itself. Giuliani's path to the pro-choice barricades was tortured, but there is zero chance he would have been elected mayor of New York had he been on the other side. He proclaimed his support for abortion rights so many times during his mayoralty that his brief attempt to fudge in the presidential race made him look conniving and weak.
Now comes the final verdict. Assuming Florida finishes him off, he will have few prospects in his party. More significantly, his party will have fewer chances to redraw the political map.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and the media consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Michael Goodwin is a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the New York Daily News. Comment by clicking here.
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