05 MAR 07 / "Giuliani Hitting Stride"

Rudy Giuliani took his time entering the presidential race, but since his campaign became more active in late January polls have shown him surging ahead of fellow prominent Republicans John McCain and Mitt Romney.

Giuliani's speech last week at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference was well received, and he finished only 4 percentage points behind Mitt Romney in the conference straw poll.

Republicans are often eager to get behind a particular presidential candidate early. This was the case in all of the recent primary seasons with the exception of 1976, when Ronald Reagan made a strong challenge against President Ford.

Politics being what it is, the Giuliani campaign is likely to suffer a few setbacks between now and the beginning of 2008 and his Republican opponents are strong candidates and admirable men, but I believe this campaign will further prove the mettle of a man that should be the next president for the following reasons:

Leadership - Giuliani had a vision of restoring New York City to greatness and he was successful in leading the people of New York City toward that vision. The results were transformational. On 11 SEP 01, Giuliani's leadership and courage helped hold the entire country together. The next president must be a leader who can keep the American people focused on the absolute necessity of winning the war on terror. Because it's hard to keep score in this war, many Americans are currently disillusioned with our progress.

Competence - Giuliani's achievement in turning around America's largest city that many had considered ungovernable is one of the greatest accomplishments in American political history.

Energy - Giuliani reportedly is capable of spending every waking moment at work. While others may find campaigning and governing arduous, the work actually seems to energize him.

Intelligence - Giuliani has demonstrated the ability on countless occasions to understand complex ideas and effectively communicate his positions.

Toughness - Liberals in the New York City bureaucracy opposed Giuliani at every turn, but Giuliani solved intractable problems by making tough decisions in the face of public opposition and a great deal of criticism. Conservatives should take solace in the fact that they will be backing a fighter in Rudy Giuliani.

The early favorable polling augurs well for the Giuliani campaign, especially because California is likely to move its primary up from June to early February. Strong showings in New Hampshire and California could put Giuliani on a path to the nomination

Although some conservatives are still looking for their ideal candidate, many are supporting Giuliani. It would have been extremely difficult to govern a city of millions of liberals without some concessions and compromises. There is no such thing as the perfect candidate. Gay marriage, abortion, gun control, are issues conservatives care about; but they are not as important as national security during the war on terror.