There's less than two weeks to go until Florida decides on their Republican of choice for the general election. Unfortunately for Rudy, his southern-most firewall state isn't too hot for him anymore. Now that everyone knows he's supposedly staking it out in the Sunshine State, Republicans all over the place are ruing the day he ever started this race and their own mental acuity for thinking about voting for him in the first place.
From The Gothamist:
People have been wondering about former mayor Rudy Giuliani's campaign for a long time (his presidential campaign plan notebook went missing last January! he pays more attention to his friends' advice versus that of election consultants). Now, with the Florida primary on the horizon, it seems his New York-based supporters are starting to worry.
The first few weeks of the new year have brought Giuliani embarrassing finishes in Iowa, New Hampshire, and Michigan as well as national polls - ones he used to lead with large margins - where he is now tied or in second or third place. The Times reports "supporters say they are confident that if Mr. Giuliani carries Florida or runs a very close second, he will remain the odds-on favorite" to take all delegates from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. But Cooper Union historian and Giuliani biographer Fred Siegel thinks Giuliani winning Florida requires "a miraculous comeback. I wouldn't bet on it."
Also, Giuliani's strategy to concentrate on Florida might be backfiring among voters. One Florida conservative told Newsday, "It concerns me that he really hasn't campaigned a lot, and he's placing everything on Florida," while another said, "He squandered his lead." And more damning, a Giuliani fan said, "I haven't seen him put out the effort yet." Ouch, but he does have 12 events scheduled for the Sunshine State this week.
I know that Republicans are having trouble making up their minds and placing their chips with any of the elephant candidates, but when it comes to this pachyderm things are looking pretty bleak.
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