Giuliani's Speech: "Bold Leadership" "Optimism"

Ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani's closing argument kicks off in Tampa, FL today, and here are excerpts from his speech. The theme seems to be "bold leadership and optimism"... Here, finally, is an argument from a candidate whose message to date has been biographical and oriented principally around finding an acceptable niche in the party.

America needs a leader. I am running for President of the United States because I believe that I can lead America into a new era …with bold leadership, optimism, determination, and distinctly American solutions.

If you are looking for perfection, you are not going to find it. Not in me and not in any candidate. But if you are looking for a leader who has been tested in times of crisis. … A leader who is ready to lead right now. … A leader who has achieved results – results that some people thought were impossible – a leader who believes that there is no problem too serious for American solutions and a free, American spirit … I believe I am that leader.

Some people look at the challenges we face as a nation and they fear the future

I welcome it.

I welcome the opportunity to defeat the Islamic terrorists who are at war with us because of our freedoms.

I welcome the opportunity to restore fiscal discipline to Washington D.C. while we empower millions of people to move out of poverty and achieve the American dream

And I welcome the opportunity to win this election…leading a revitalized, 50-state Republican Party into the White House.

As I travel across our country, I’ve begun to hear a murmur that somehow America has lost its ability to achieve great goals

Some good people have come to believe that our country is on the wrong track. Middle Class families feel that the American Dream may be slipping away – they’re worried the future might not be as bright as the past.

It does not have to be that way. We can decide America’s direction. We determine America’s future. That’s what an election is all about.

We’re at war. The American people want to see victory in Iraq and Afghanistan – not humiliation and defeat. They want their children to live free from the fear of Islamic Terrorism. They’re telling us: Get it done. And we will.

Washington’s culture of wasteful spending is out of control. The American people want to see real fiscal discipline. They’re telling us: Get it done. And we will.

Americans have heard presidents talk about energy independence for three decades. Now they are paying more at the pump and seeing their money flow into the hands of our enemies. They’re telling us: Get it done. And we will.

The American people are angry that the federal government has failed to secure our border. They want to see legal immigration reconnected with Americanization. They’re telling us: Get it done. And we will.

What America needs in 2008 is a proven leader who will get things done.

I believe in the strength and wisdom of the American people.


Look at our history and you’ll see why.



Because no matter when or how your ancestors came to our country, we are all the proud descendants of pioneers and patriots.



Their optimistic American spirit…the defiant determination to do what some consider impossible – that is our greatest inheritance.