With all apologies to Joe Strummer and the Clash, Rudy Giuliani may have a large lead in the polls, but he certainly doesn't have the nomination wrapped up yet.
This week, his victory train has been derailed as he had to answer for his estrangement from his idiot son, Andrew. You can catch a few accounts here and here. Basically, a grown-up Andrew's dissatisfaction with his dad's parenting skills and Rudy's divorce from Andrew's mother (Donna Hanover) doesn't amount to a hill of beans. Reagan's daughter couldn't stand him and it didn't stop his presidential ambitions.
What Andrew's pronouncements do, however, is to pop the bubble of invinceability surrounding the former mayor of New York. It gives his critics a chance to point out the obvious: Giuliani is a moderate Republican, a death sentence in the highly conservative world of Republican primary politics. He's relatively pro-choice and is not violently opposed to some level of gay rights, unlike the majority of the GOP.
So, can Rudy keep his 20 point lead over the aging John McCain, who even some local Republicans have mentioned to me looks like his health is going fast?
This article appears in Feb 28 – Mar 6, 2007.