HuffPost's G.W.B (Giuliani Watch Blog)

Rudolph Giuliani knew me as a face in the gaggle of reporters posing questions at his frequently bellicose City Hall news conferences, and as a byline pointing out his pronouncements, pitched battles and contradictions in Newsday. But my four years-plus of covering Giuliani, including his diffuse second term, turned me into a skeptic. So, after he left office -- many will remember he tried to extend his stay beyond the two-term limit after September 11, 2001 -- I edited the book America's Mayor: The Hidden History of Rudy Giuliani's New York. A collection of essays by New York writers, it was published in August of 2005 by Soft Skull Press. I knew when I began assigning the pieces that at some point in the future, Americans of all persuasions and states, whether red or blue, would be curious enough to look closely at not only Giuliani's performance on September 11th, but also at the way he handled his power and responsibilities. Now, as then, he speaks of his City Hall years in the most glowing terms. I and others have a less than soaring remembrance of the same set of circumstances, and are disinclined to give him credit for all good things on his watch, or skip past the bad parts. Just water under the proverbial bridge? Well, yes -- and no. These days, Giuliani polls well in the early presidential surveys of Republican voters; he has a post-9/11 brand with extraordinary resonance nationally. While he may have an inflated view of his own chances in the GOP primaries, it's also true that the Republican field remains open and fluid, and for that reason alone, his potential candidacy shouldn't be underestimated or discounted. In the weeks to come, I'll share my observations about his comings and goings here, beginning with a few postings below.

Rudolph, the Red State Reindeer

Rudolph Giuliani's attempts to burnish his Republican credentials out West echo his former travels in advance of the 2000 Senate race in New York State, a potentially epic contest he chose not to enter amid his health and marriage problems at the time.

That race, of course, was won handily by his once and possibly future rival, Hillary Rodham Clinton.

This time out, the lawyer/consultant doesn't hold public office -- "America's Mayor" is but an unofficial title, after all-- so he's able to pocket his reported $100,000 per out-of-town speech. It just goes to show you: It never hurts to toy with the idea of running for the highest office in the land, and build up some suspense.

What's strange to behold, at least from the standpoint of a New Yorker like myself, is how Rudolph goes West and promptly becomes known as a "moderate Republican" whose "poltiical liability" among the party's socially conservative base is that he is for gay rights, abortion rights, all sorts of rights.

When he was mayor of New York City, if anyone in the national press corps needs reminding, he was known for trampling over individual rights with a glint and glee. The pre-9/11 Giluiani engaged in scores of court fights through the city's law department to contest constitutional rights of assembly and expression, in realms ranging from arts and advertising to public records access and employee whistleblowing. If Iowans only knew.

Anyway, like his run-up to the 2000 Senate race in New York, Rudolph Giuliani's appetite for contesting the civil rights of critics and others proved to be headline-grabbing and largely fruitless.