One of my favorite vegetable dishes is an American-Chinese concoction known as chop suey. It is essentially a stir-fried blend of bean sprouts, cabbage and celery laced in a starch-like sauce and oftentimes supplemented with either beef, chicken, pork or shrimps. What makes this highly relishing meal interesting is how the rather unorthodox mixture of various staple food items sumptuously caters to the heart (and appetite) of one's content.
Its not often that we see the appeal of such unconventional craftsmanship but so far former New York City Mayor Rodolph Guiliani has been successful in manuevering himself through the course of his political life, most of the time following a unique blend of his conservative and liberal beliefs. Yet the question remains whether this can be carried on past the Republican Party primaries, or beyond that, the 2008 Presidential Elections.
Concededly, Giuliani's success in battling the criminal elements of the Big Apple reflect his conservative side; "government exists above all to keep people safe in their homes and in the streets". The same can be said with his view of government's role as well as that of the private sector; "The private economy, not government, creates opportunity, government should just deliver basic services well and then get out of the private sector’s way." However, these circumstances constitute a sharp and stark contrast to his "liberal" views on gay marriages, abortion rights and gun-control. In maverick-like fashion, Guiliani has defied several positions comprising basic Republican conservative ideologies.
Without being explicit so as to actually mention and eventually tolerate the ideal of "gay marriages", Giuliani goes on record to support the notion of giving the same legal status of married couples to unions of the same sex. Such "civil unions" or "domestic partnerships" clearly don't fit well in the conservative Republican's blueprint of government. Neither will it make him more appealable to the Christian and social conservatives that traditionally take up the cudgels of the GOP (as if the numerous marriages and divorces weren't enough reason to stay away from him).
On the matter of abortion, its no secret that Rudy Giuliani supports what he calls, "women's right of choice" and would even go as far as to "fund abortion so that a poor woman is not deprived of a right that others can exercise". As with his position on gay marriages, Giuliani's abortion stance is no less bad news for his conservative colleagues at the Republican party.
As for gun-control, its been suggested that his advocacy was brought about by the compelling need to deal with New York's crime menace. But for whatever reasons there were, the fact remains that he now finds himself yet again at the opposite side of the field, awkwardly polarized from his party, which stands as the proud bullwark of the Second Amendment.
Now a tough decision has to be made. Rudy Giuliani has all but officially declared his intention to seek the presidential nomination of the Republican party. And why not? After all, he has so far proven to be one of the most charismatic leaders in the GOP, or one, who some surmise, is capable of matching the "rock star" status of Barack Obama. Furthermore, his fatherly assuring image amongst New Yorkers during the dark hours of September 11, 2001, still resonates deep in the heart of a nation in search of alternative leadership. Along with this, his record of investigating and prosecuting cases against terrorist as well as his eviction of Yasser Arafat from New York in 1995 (for being a perceived terrorist) strike a positive chord among the citizens of a world power leading the War on Terror. Taken into consideration with his record of reducing and/or eliminating taxes during his stint at city hall, Giuliani's handlers hope to bring forth the image of an affable, or at least, a tolerable conservative. But the question is whether this would be sufficient to off-set indifference and growing hostility among the social and religious right and brewed by his seemingly unrelenting positions taken on gay marriages, abortion and gun-control. It would be noteworthy to consider that unlike Governor Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani has not taken any concrete steps towards reconsidering his said views on those issues. And it doesn't seem that the hard-line party conservatives, with their strong and sacred respect to life and the essence of marriage, will be ready to part with their ideals..., or their guns.
Like chop suey, Giuliani's mixture of conservative and liberal views may appeal to the political appetite of some of the voters out there. But whether or not this would as healthy to a hungry and consuming public remains to be seen.
Its not often that we see the appeal of such unconventional craftsmanship but so far former New York City Mayor Rodolph Guiliani has been successful in manuevering himself through the course of his political life, most of the time following a unique blend of his conservative and liberal beliefs. Yet the question remains whether this can be carried on past the Republican Party primaries, or beyond that, the 2008 Presidential Elections.
Concededly, Giuliani's success in battling the criminal elements of the Big Apple reflect his conservative side; "government exists above all to keep people safe in their homes and in the streets". The same can be said with his view of government's role as well as that of the private sector; "The private economy, not government, creates opportunity, government should just deliver basic services well and then get out of the private sector’s way." However, these circumstances constitute a sharp and stark contrast to his "liberal" views on gay marriages, abortion rights and gun-control. In maverick-like fashion, Guiliani has defied several positions comprising basic Republican conservative ideologies.
Without being explicit so as to actually mention and eventually tolerate the ideal of "gay marriages", Giuliani goes on record to support the notion of giving the same legal status of married couples to unions of the same sex. Such "civil unions" or "domestic partnerships" clearly don't fit well in the conservative Republican's blueprint of government. Neither will it make him more appealable to the Christian and social conservatives that traditionally take up the cudgels of the GOP (as if the numerous marriages and divorces weren't enough reason to stay away from him).
On the matter of abortion, its no secret that Rudy Giuliani supports what he calls, "women's right of choice" and would even go as far as to "fund abortion so that a poor woman is not deprived of a right that others can exercise". As with his position on gay marriages, Giuliani's abortion stance is no less bad news for his conservative colleagues at the Republican party.
As for gun-control, its been suggested that his advocacy was brought about by the compelling need to deal with New York's crime menace. But for whatever reasons there were, the fact remains that he now finds himself yet again at the opposite side of the field, awkwardly polarized from his party, which stands as the proud bullwark of the Second Amendment.
Now a tough decision has to be made. Rudy Giuliani has all but officially declared his intention to seek the presidential nomination of the Republican party. And why not? After all, he has so far proven to be one of the most charismatic leaders in the GOP, or one, who some surmise, is capable of matching the "rock star" status of Barack Obama. Furthermore, his fatherly assuring image amongst New Yorkers during the dark hours of September 11, 2001, still resonates deep in the heart of a nation in search of alternative leadership. Along with this, his record of investigating and prosecuting cases against terrorist as well as his eviction of Yasser Arafat from New York in 1995 (for being a perceived terrorist) strike a positive chord among the citizens of a world power leading the War on Terror. Taken into consideration with his record of reducing and/or eliminating taxes during his stint at city hall, Giuliani's handlers hope to bring forth the image of an affable, or at least, a tolerable conservative. But the question is whether this would be sufficient to off-set indifference and growing hostility among the social and religious right and brewed by his seemingly unrelenting positions taken on gay marriages, abortion and gun-control. It would be noteworthy to consider that unlike Governor Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani has not taken any concrete steps towards reconsidering his said views on those issues. And it doesn't seem that the hard-line party conservatives, with their strong and sacred respect to life and the essence of marriage, will be ready to part with their ideals..., or their guns.
Like chop suey, Giuliani's mixture of conservative and liberal views may appeal to the political appetite of some of the voters out there. But whether or not this would as healthy to a hungry and consuming public remains to be seen.
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