Alex Massie Alex Massie

Giuliani waves the bloody shirt of 9/11?

Glenn Reynolds suggests that the New York City firefighters’ attack on Rudy Giuliani are proof of, well, something:

Between this and the silly stuff about Fred Thompson, Democrats are looking more nervous about 2008 than you’d expect.

Sure. Right. Would Professor Reynolds argue that Republican attacks on, say, Hillary Clinton demonstrated “nervousness” or would they be a commonsense warning of horrors to come should America be so foolish as to elect her President?

As for the merits of the IAFF’s case against Giuliani, well, you can probably argue it both ways. Whether Giuliani could have done more for the FDNY isn’t really the point. But there is something exploitative and unseemly about Giuliani’s apparent belief that 9/11 and its memory is enough to gain him the nomination.

Consider this account of a recent Giuliani speech in Delaware:

Rudy Giuliani was just six seconds into his speech when he played his campaign trump card: the memory of the Sept.

Britain’s best politics newsletters

You get two free articles each week when you sign up to The Spectator’s emails.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Comments

Join the debate for just £1 a month

Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for £3.

Already a subscriber? Log in