A social conservative comes out for Rudy

I would jump on the Giuliani for president bandwagon in a heartbeat, as I am not a social conservative. So I support the idea of Rudy's running for a different set of reasons. However, I agree with the author in this criticism of the Bush Administration:

THE REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP VACUUM has many conservatives, many Republicans, and many mainstream Americans longing for authority, for someone to step in and run things. Someone to take charge visibly of the day-to-day conduct of the country's affairs. Somebody who will butt heads willingly, even joyously, with obstreperous backstabbers, obstructionists, foot-draggers, and whiners, whether in the opposition party or his own. Someone who will joyfully champion a public fight against waste and inefficiency. Somebody who may be at times conspicuously wrong, but who will, nonetheless, be conspicuous.

Spot on. Proud as I am of Bush's prosecution of the War on Terror, it astounds me that he cedes authority to his critics to sell his accomplishments as failures to the American people! President Bush is terrible salesman and that may be what cements his legacy into a slot in the fair-to-middlin' range instead of as one of the great wartime presidents. Compare the reclusive Bush to his predecessor, Clinton. As distastful as I found Bill's practice of rushing out to give a statement every time CNN cut live to a celebrity car crash, George would do well to schedule more face time with the public, most of whom like and respect him.

(via: Ace)