Will Rudy’s Get-Tough Image Backfire?

Filed under: 2008 elections — Michael van der Galien, Editor-in-Chief on June 24, 2007 @ 5:00 pm CEST

David von Drehle wrote a fascinating article for TIME about mayor Rudy Giuliani. David writes:

How many alleged criminals can a law-and-order candidate be associated with before it starts to hurt? That’s the question facing former New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, following the indictment Tuesday of Thomas Ravenel, his volunteer campaign chairman in South Carolina.

Giuliani entered the Presidential campaign early this year with one tarnished pal stuffed into his baggage: his former bodyguard, police commissioner and business partner Bernard Kerik. Kerik’s career began to unravel in 2004 after Giuliani urged President Bush to name him Secretary of Homeland Security — a nomination that was quickly withdrawn amid reports of Kerik’s questionable business and personal dealings. Kerik eventually pleaded guilty to ethics violations while on the city payroll and remains under investigation for tax evasion and other offenses, which Kerik’s attorney has said, “he didn’t do.”

Now Ravenel, the state treasurer of South Carolina, has been charged with cocaine possession and distribution — a felony punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison. Neither he nor his attorney has made any statement.

Giuliani’s campaign lost no time in announcing Ravenel’s resignation from his unpaid post, and let it be known that the indictment took them entirely by surprise. And Ravenel’s offense was alleged to have occurred in late 2005, before his official association with Giuliani.

Still, for a candidate promising to track the whereabouts and lawfulness of every non-citizen living in the United States, it can’t help his cause when he fails to spot possible crooks on his corporate and campaign letterhead. And Giuliani’s opponents wasted no time in circulating news of Ravenel’s indictment; one McCain staffer fired off a dispatch within minutes to reporters’ e-mail boxes. Anti-Giuliani bloggers swiftly added the Kerik angle.

Will Rudy’s aides become a major problem for him? They just might. American campaigns are the dirtiests in the world. There is not a secret you have, you will be able to hide during the campaigns. Not only will your opponents look at you, they will also look at your wife and, yes, your aides. Everyone involved has to be clean, especially when you want to portray yourself as the national security, terrorism and crime-fighter candidate.

David concludes:

No one survives a career in politics without crossing paths with a few rogues. But it’s also true that no candidate — not even one as strongly branded in the public mind as Giuliani — entirely controls his public image. Three years ago this summer, John Kerry watched in dismay as his Vietnam record was turned against him by the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Something similar could happen, if Giuliani isn’t more careful, to Hizzoner’s carefully crafted image as the scourge of wrongdoers the world over.

Quite right.

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1 Mikef

June 25, 2007 @ 1:46 am CEST

American campaigns are the dirtiests in the world.

Well, not really. You don’t read about political rivals being beaten by police, here (like in Zimbabwe) or being arrested (like in Egypt), or being assassinated by the government (like in Russia).

So far the worst we’ve seen in the presidential election have been accusations that Romney isn’t a real Christian and that Democrats will surrender to the terrorists.

Bad enough, but everyone is still standing.

2 You Can Run

July 16, 2007 @ 9:50 pm CEST

..but you can’t hide.

If Ravenel is convicted of distribution of cocaine, he can serve as much as 20 years in prison. I would say that it is more likely that he will cut a “plea deal” to serve a short amount of time behind bars along with probation.

If Ravenel cuts a “plea deal”, in other words, “pleads guilty” then the Feds should insist that he roll over on a “Bigger Fish” If he does not roll over, then he should do some serious jail time with the rest of the “Cocaine Distributors”.