I Wonder What Kind of Foot Wear Rudy Wears to the Beach?
Apparently the flip-flopping and pandering isn't just reserved to people from Massachusetts. Rudy has been trying to play up his steadfastness and resolve by emphasizing the resoluteness of his views.
However, Rudy's in a bit of box with the conservative base because of his liberal views on some social issues like abortion and gay rights. So watch what he said to Sean Hannity recently about partial birth abortion:
HANNITY: Partial birth?
GIULIANI: Partial birth abortion? I think that's going to be upheld. I
think that ban's gonna be upheld. I think it should be. I think as long as
there's a provision for the life of the mother then that's something that should
be done.
HANNITY: There's a misconception that you support a partial birth
abortion.
GIULIANI: Well, if it doesn't have provision for the mother then I wouldn't
support the legislation. If it has provision for the life of the mother then I
would support. And I do.
Hmm. So Rudy says, his position has been that he would support a ban on partial birth abortion so long as there is a provision for the life of the mother in the ban. Rewind to 1999 and 2000:
Here's what Rudy said about the issue on CNN on December 2, 1999, when
he was preparing a Senate run against Hillary Clinton (via Nexis):
[GARY] TUCHMAN: Giuliani was then asked whether he supports a ban on what
critics call partial-birth abortions, something Bush strongly supports.
GIULIANI: No, I have not supported that, and I don't see my position on
that changing.
Here's what Rudy said on CNN on February 6, 2000 (via
Nexis):
BLITZER: If you were in the Senate and [President Clinton] vetoed, once
again, the [ban on the] so-called partial-birth abortion procedure, you would
vote against sustaining that against the -- in favor of the veto in other words,
you would support the president on that.
GIULIANI: Yes. I said then that I support him, so I have no reason to
change my mind about it.
BLITZER: All right. So the bottom line is that on a lot of these very
sensitive issues whether on guns, abortion, patients' bill of rights, taxes, you
are more in line with the president and by association, with Mrs. Clinton, than
you are against them.
And here's what Rudy said on ABC News on February 6, 2000:
[GEORGE] WILL: Is your support of partial birth abortion firm?
Mayor GIULIANI: All of my positions are firm. I have strong viewpoints. I
express them. And I--I do not think that it makes sense to be changing your position....
Oh, and the ban that Rudy was questioned about in 1999 and 2000 had a provision that allow the procedure when the life of the mother was in question.
It's amazing what running for President can do for a "firm" position.
