I may not be thrilled with any of the candidates running for President but I have made it clear that I think there is one who is truly terrifying - Rudy Giuliani. Glenn Greenwald doesn't say anything that would make me feel differently in
Rudy Giuliani's messianic paranoia
But far more significant was Giuliani's expressed view of what he thinks his mission will be as President. After proclaiming that "America has a special, even a divinely inspired role in the world," Giuliani vowed:Greenwald goes on to point out that this good v. evil paranoid style of politics is nothing new but the fact that Rudy actually has a shot at the presidency is truly frightening. The other candidates may be bad but....It was this nation that saved the world from the two great tyrannies of the 20th century, Nazism and Communism. It's this country that's going to save civilization from Islamic terrorism.So Islamic Terrorism is no longer merely "a threat to our freedoms." It isn't even just an existential threat to our country any more. It's been upgraded rather severely in Giuliani's mind: it's now a threat to civilization itself. And Rudy Giuliani is running for President because he is "going to save civilization" -- his words -- from the Terrorists.
In one sense, this isn't surprising. After all, Giuliani -- with barely any attention from the press -- has assembled a foreign policy team led by someone who just wrote a book declaring "World War IV" and whose "prayers" consist of the deranged plea that bombs be dropped now on Iran.
Mitt Romney, Fred Thompson and John McCain are all horrific in their own right. But Giuliani is in a different league in terms of messianic extremism. There really hasn't been someone like Rudy Giuliani -- someone so drenched in plainly authoritarian impulses, merged with such wild-eyed militarism -- anywhere near the White House in modern American history, if ever. It's not some coincidence or political ploy that he chose the most bloodthirsty neoconservative militants to serve him; that is who Giuliani is and has been for a long time.I think you could add the names of many of the Democratic contenders to that list as well but Giuliani does stand out. He is the Bush/Cheney administration on steroids. Even crazier than Cheney.
