Rudy Giuliani
Name: Rudolph William Louis "Rudy" Giuliani
Date of Birth: May 28, 1944
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Marital Status: Married to Judith Giuliani
Religion: Roman Catholic
Education:
Giuliani attended New York University Law School and graduated cum laude.
Career:
After joining the office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Rudy rocketed through to higher ranks, quickly becoming the Chief of the Narcotics Unit when he was 29.
In 1975, Rudy was called to work in Washington, D.C., and he was appointed Associate Deputy Attorney General and the chief of staff to Deputy Attorney General. In 1977, Rudy returned to his home, New York, to practice of law.
In 1983, Rudy became United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and he successfully fought organized crime, drug dealers and twisted officials. Some of his best known cases include the groundbreaking mafia prosecutions.
Rudy decided to run for Mayor. And in 1993, Rudy became the first Republican elected Mayor of the City of New York since 1965.
Political Career:
Since being elected Mayor of New York in 1993, over 70 percent of the population approved of Guiliani’s efforts, and Rudy was re-elected Mayor in 1997.
Giuliani couldn’t get enough of helping the country. Since he couldn’t run for a third election for Mayor of New York, he decided to run for United States’ Senate in 2000, but withdrew because of health reasons.
Although since that time, he hadn’t served in an official office, he had spoken on various occasions, and endorsed George W. Bush for his re-election. Rudy continued to be a politically active voice up until he began running for 2008 President of the United States.
Major Events: 9/11 – September 11, 2001
Rudy Giuliani was mayor when New York was struck by one of the most heinous terrorist attacks of all time. He was a pivotal character in the regrouping and reforming of New York after chaos and confusion struck. But it marked a magnificent display of courage and strength in Giuliani.
Major Platform or Opinions on Major issues:
- Gun Control
Giuliani strongly supports the Second Amendment. He’s in complete agreement that it is guaranteed by the Constitution that a man can keep and bear arms.
However, it is believed that his personal beliefs may conflict with this amendment, as he has been a strong supporter of gun-control in urban areas or areas with higher crime rates. Some believe that this is a bad decision, because guns seem to be the best form of self-defense.
So as President, Giuliani believes that the Constitution allows for people to bear arms, but his personal convictions don’t always line up with that belief.
Abortion
While Giuliani’s personal convictions on abortions are clear: he disapproves, but he equally believes in the woman’s right to choose whether or not she can have the baby, or not, and thinks that it’s a personal decision, and shouldn’t be overthrown by the government.
He does, however, hope to ban partial-birth abortions unless the health of the mother is at stake. But he also is quoted saying that he wants to “increase adoptions, and decrease abortions.”
And he is in favor of abortions done with the notifications of parents, and is in favor of the ban on partial birth abortions.
National Security
Giuliani can be quoted saying that “I will keep America on offense in the Terrorists’ War on us.” He believes that remaining offensive to terrorist nations against the US will shorten the war on Terror, and will bring troops back faster.
He also says that “You face bullies, and tyrants, and terrorists with strength, not weakness.” He will strengthen the military, strengthen the intelligence, and will continue to be on the offensive on the war on Terror.
Giuliani is also in favor of “waterboarding” and strong interrogations. Waterboarding is a technique of coercion that simulates drowning in a controlled environment. Giuliani has said in the past that he "would tell the people who had to do the interrogation to use every method they could think of. It shouldn’t be torture, but every method they can think of."
Drugs
During Giuliani’s mayoralty, he was extremely harsh on cracking down on illegal drugs. He especially fought hard to imprison those in possession of marijuana. It is said that Giuliani will arrest, prosecute, and imprison those who use medicinal marijuana.
Health Care
In February of 2007, Giuliani said that he was against universal health care in America, and that it would mean a "socialization" of American medicine. He also stated that it is an appropriate role for the government to "find ways" to expand access to health insurance.
In an interview in 2006, Giuliani finally released his health care plan which proposed a tax deduction of up to $15,000 for families and up to $7,500 for individuals who purchase private individual health insurance policies
Taxes
Giuliani has cut taxes twenty three times in New York and turned what once was a $2 billion budget deficit to a multi-billion dollar surplus, all the while balancing the city’s budget.
New York City taxpayers reportedly saved more than $9 billion in taxes and had their lowest tax in many years, while the economy grew and city government saw its revenues increase from the lower tax rates. Rudy Giuliani believes in “supply-side economics,” because he saw it work.
Although, when questioned on social security, he said that he hated the idea to raise taxes, but did not rule out the possibility.
Education
Giuliani is extremely concerned about the quality of life that is there for the children of America. He was, at one time, extremely disappointed with the New York Board of Education.
He is extremely supportive of school choice, and wishes to revive the public schools of today, and not completely do away with them. He would like to provide education vouchers for poorer families to afford getting into private schools to seek better educations.