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Giuliani Says He'd Consider Adding Troops in Iraq for Success Catherine
Dodge and Peter Cook Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani said he would consider increasing U.S. troops in Iraq if the head of military operations there, U.S. Army General David Petraeus, requested them. ``If he said the strategy was working, and we needed more soldiers to make it work,'' Giuliani said in an interview today, ``of course I'd look at that and consider that.'' Giuliani, 63, said he knew such a decision would be unpopular. ``Leadership is about sometimes doing the things that you know are right'' and then educating the public, he said. In a speech yesterday in New Hampshire, Giuliani outlined 12 campaign promises that included protecting against terrorism, cutting taxes, ending illegal immigration and making health care more affordable. The former New York mayor plans to offer more detail as he travels the country this summer.
Giuliani said in the interview that he favors cutting taxes and simplifying the tax code. He would eliminate the estate tax and examine corporate tax rates ``to make sure we are competitive.'' On trade, Giuliani called globalization ``one of the best things for our future.'' Americans, he said, ``should be cheering globalization'' and need a Republican president who understands the free market. A Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll this month showed Giuliani, with support from 27 percent of respondents, leading his closest rivals, Arizona Senator John McCain and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, who run well behind. Former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson, who hasn't officially declared, was second with 21 percent. `The More the Merrier' Giuliani said he welcomes a Thompson candidacy. ``The more the merrier,'' he said. ``Each one of us has a unique message. The Republicans have to decide which one of us they like best.'' Giuliani, who derives much of his popularity from his image as a hero following the Sept. 11 attacks, is critical of a stalled plan in the U.S. Senate to overhaul immigration laws, saying it doesn't do enough to keep track of who is coming and going from the U.S. ``I would ensure we end illegal immigration by building a fence,'' he said. Giuliani favors issuing tamper-proof identification cards to those entering the country and requiring them to register in a database. Those who don't sign up should be searched for and ``thrown out,'' he said. He also has promised to put controls on government spending and called for across-the-board budget cuts of 5 percent to 20 percent. Giuliani said that as a former mayor of New York, he has the most executive experience of his rivals. ``People can judge me based on the experience I've had,'' he said.
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