It’s inevitable that presidential candidates will experience a certain ebb and flow as the process unfolds, but can we all agree that Rudy Giuliani has seen the worst week of any candidate in recent memory?
On Monday, Bloomberg News reported that Giuliani, despite railing against congressional earmarks on the campaign stump, and pledging to “get rid of” lawmakers’ pet projects if elected, actually “sought federal earmarks for 14 companies this year, 11 of which hired [Bracewell & Giuliani] after Giuliani joined in March 2005.” Republican consultant Eddie Mahe responded, “It’s a bit hypocritical.”
On Tuesday, Giuliani attended a campaign fundraiser hosted by a “man convicted in a notorious corruption case.” An embarrassed Giuliani “came and went from last night’s fundraiser without comment, ducking down in his car as ABC News cameras attempted to photograph him arriving.”
On Wednesday morning, a new batch of polls show Giuliani’s support fading in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina.
On Wednesday afternoon, the Shag Fund scandal broke.
On Thursday, while the Shag Fund scandal gathers steam, we learn that Giuliani’s private security firm provided security consulting and advice in Qatar through contracts overseen by Sheik Abdullah Bin Khalid al-Thani, who is suspected of close ties to Khalid Sheik Mohammed and Osama bin Laden.
On Friday, the New York Times’ Michael Cooper reported that Giuliani cites a series of statistics in his stump speech, most of which “are incomplete, exaggerated or just plain wrong.”
On Saturday, the Washington Post’s conservative editorial board noted that Giuliani’s new TV ad is patently ridiculous, premised on tax policy assumptions that even the Bush White House rejects as foolish.
All the while, Giuliani and his aides try one defense after another for the Shag Fund scandal, none of which makes any sense.
Don’t worry, Rudy, there’s always next week.