Giuliani Can't Connect in Fla.

Rudy isn't shaking hands, kissing babies, or leading in the polls
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 26, 2008 6:26 PM CST
Giuliani Can't Connect in Fla.
Republican presidential hopeful, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, speaks to reporters at a campaign rally in Sarasota, Fla. Saturday, Jan. 26, 2008. To the left if Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)   (Associated Press)

Rudy Giuliani isn't the type to kiss babies in Florida—or even shake hands. The former mayor has run a detached, tightly controlled campaign, eschewing personal contact, avoiding questions, and rushing past crowds after events, the Washington Post reports. His brusque style is leaving uninspired voters in his wake. “There was just no energy, you know?” said one.

Some of Giuliani’s friends are desperate to see the free-wheeling Rudy who once enchanted New York. “He talked to people, took hard questions, didn’t mind controversy,” one reminisced. “He’s been so careful this campaign.” Now, even as he falls in the polls, Giuliani is sticking with stiff stump speeches, focusing on cutting taxes, and keeping a questionable motto: “Florida is Rudy Country.” (More Rudy Giuliani stories.)

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