Giuliani for governor of 9/11?

Rudy Giuliani won't rule out a run to become governor of New York -- or a second try for the presidency.

Published November 17, 2008 3:45PM (EST)

Good news: We may have Rudy Giuliani to kick around again.

The former mayor of New York City was asked, after a speech he gave in Dubai on Sunday, whether he'd consider running to become his state's governor, and he wouldn't rule the idea out. "I don't know if I'd be interested in it, but I'll think about it when the right time comes along," Giuliani said.

A recent poll conducted by Siena Research Institute, which is affiliated with a college in the state, showed Giuliani trailing current Gov. David Paterson, a Democrat, in a hypothetical matchup. Respondents preferred Paterson 49-43.

Giuliani also wouldn't rule out the possibility of making a second run for the presidency. "No one knows whether you'll do something again until you come to the point of: 'Is it possible to do it again? Would you have a chance of winning?'" he said. "I mean, those are just things you can't evaluate right now."

As you may remember -- it seems like ages ago now -- Giuliani got drubbed in the race for the Republican nomination. It's hard to imagine he'd do much better a second time around. His record on social issues is a gigantic hurdle in a Republican primary, and given the current political situation, that seems likely to be an even bigger problem for him in 2012 than it was in 2008.


By Alex Koppelman

Alex Koppelman is a staff writer for Salon.

MORE FROM Alex Koppelman


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