Giuliani Says He Wouldn't Run for President as an Independent

By Roger Simon

June 8 (Bloomberg) -- Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani ruled out running for president as an independent, blunting speculation that he would do better outside the Republican party.

``I'll run as a Republican if I run,'' Giuliani said at a press conference before a speech yesterday in Chicago to the World Business Forum, a gathering of 1,500 senior corporate executives.

Giuliani, who beats, ties or is a close second to Senator John McCain of Arizona in polls for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008, said he won't make a decision on running until well after the November congressional elections this year.

Because Giuliani is pro-choice, pro-gay rights, and pro-gun control, he may be considered out of step with the Republican activists who dominate the primary-election process and might achieve greater success as a third-party candidate, political analysts have said.

Giuliani, 62, rejected the notion, saying he was very proud of having served as a Republican mayor of New York and that he wouldn't forsake his party.

``Right now, all that I do is listen, talk to people and get advice,'' Giuliani said. He might not come to a decision about running until about a year from now, he said.

Praising Reagan

As if to establish his party credentials, Giuliani told the executives, who packed a ballroom at the end of Navy Pier a mile out into Lake Michigan, that Ronald Reagan was his hero.

``His greatest quality is that he knew what he believed,'' Giuliani said, adding that Reagan never worried about whether he was popular or not.

Giuliani's popularity rose dramatically after his handling of the Sept. 11 attacks on New York. ``Should we be afraid of another attack?'' he said. `Yes. I believe we will be attacked again.''

Giuliani said fear of being struck again shouldn't substantially affect the behavior of Americans because that's what terrorists want. Americans should ``acknowledge our fear and put it into relentless preparation,'' he said.

Bill Clinton, 59, and Colin Powell, 69, also spoke. Though all three had come to Chicago to deliver motivational speeches, politics was never far from the agenda.

Powell, who served as secretary of state under George W. Bush, criticized Bush on Tuesday for not committing enough troops to the Iraq invasion and occupation and for being somewhat naive about Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Iraq the Measure

``Iraq will be the measure of the success of this presidency,'' Powell said. ``The job is far from over. It seems to be getting more difficult.''

Powell also said Bush had once said to him of Putin, ``I have looked in his eyes and I have seen his soul.'' Powell added, ``I looked in his eyes and I still see the KGB,'' and the crowd laughed.

In response to a question, Powell defended the retired generals who have criticized Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and his handling of the Iraq war. Saying the retired generals had ``the same right to speak out'' as any other American, Powell added, ``I do not condemn these generals. I do not criticize them.''

Clinton, who alone among the three received a standing ovation when introduced, quoted Winston Churchill as saying during World War II, ``The United States always does the right thing - - after exhausting every other alternative.''

Taxes and Deficits

The former president said, `` We can't keep running these deficits so I can get a tax cut each year. The deficit means every single day our government goes to China, Japan, South Korea, and Saudi Arabia and says, will you please'' lend us money ``so we can finance our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan?''

Clinton heaped praise on his vice president, Al Gore, who hasn't ruled out running for president in 2008 but appears to be leaning against it. Clinton said he didn't pick Gore as a running mate for political reasons, but because in certain areas Gore might actually have been brighter than he.

``I had as long a record as he did on the environment, but he knew more about global warming, weapons systems, military issues, and high technology issues,'' Clinton said. ''And he had sponsored legislation - - contrary to what his attackers say - - that led to the commercialization of what we know as the Internet. He knew things I did not know and I thought that would be helpful.''

`` This century won't be boring,'' Clinton said. ``This is either going to be time of enormous terror and anarchy or the most fascinating, peaceful time in all human history. I am betting it will be the latter.''

To contact the reporter on this story, Roger Simon in Washington at rogersimon@bloomberg.net .

Last Updated: June 8, 2006 06:47 EDT

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