Closing time for Giuliani
Posted: Friday, December 14, 2007 3:24 PM by Domenico Montanaro
From NBC/NJ's Matthew Berger
TAMPA, Fla. -- Don’t expect to hear any new policy ideas from Giuliani Saturday, when he delivers what the campaign is billing as a major address. Instead, Giuliani will be kicking off the final phase of his campaign with a rousing message of what he would bring to the job and what he would do if elected.
Giuliani never had a formal announcement event and did not roll out big policy positions in the fall like some of his colleagues. He stuck to amassing a strong war chest and holding small town halls and retail events. So Saturday’s speech will be a rare, scripted event for him.
The other times that all eyes have been on Giuliani at a lectern -- the NRA speech and the Values Voters Summit -- Giuliani was in the unenviable position of proving a negative about his positions on gun control and abortion. This will be the first big speech in months where Giuliani can craft the topic and control the message. Campaign manager Mike DuHaime and speechwriter John Avlon were on the trail with Giuliani in recent days, undoubtedly finalizing the remarks.
Campaign aides said Giuliani will be making the argument that his experience and leadership makes him the most qualified for president. The slogan will be “Tested. Ready. Now.” Many of the campaign themes will be familiar, aides said, and his plans to counter terrorism and illegal immigration will likely be center stage.
Giuliani has been laying low in recent weeks, holding fewer events than his brethren and fundraising in states that do not have early primaries. The speech is supposed to transition Giuliani to a more active campaign mode, although there will not be a “get-out-the-vote” element. The implicit goal is also to focus his message away from the defense he has played in recent weeks, being asked about his relationship with Bernard Kerik, his businesses and the security detail for Judith Nathan, before she became Mrs. Giuliani.
Certainly, the campaign has seen the benefits of a big speech, after Romney drew the nation’s attention with his religious address last week. And many analysts have noticed that Giuliani has faded into the background in recent weeks, as he has focused on fundraising while Huckabee and Romney attacked each other in New Hampshire and Iowa. This address is likely to bring Giuliani back up to the main stage.
The location is not surprising. Holding the speech in Florida minimizes suggestions that Giuliani is trying to re-exert himself into the New Hampshire, or less likely, the Iowa contest. He continues to hold a strong lead in the Sunshine State, and by launching the new message here, he will be viewed as sticking to the game plan. The campaign will take the message to New Hampshire on Monday, Missouri on Wednesday and back to the Granite State at the end of the week.
What is surprising, though, is the choice to hold the big event on Saturday, where it will undoubtedly get less media attention. Campaign staffers played down that concern, saying the message would be repeated throughout the week and up until the voting starts.
