Rudy Giuliani's daughter is supporting Barack Obama

[klaasend]

Daddy Dearest
Rudy Giuliani's daughter is supporting Barack Obama.
By Lucy Morrow Caldwell
Posted Monday, Aug. 6, 2007, at 11:49 AM ET
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


There's one vote that Rudy Giuliani definitely can't count on in his 2008 presidential bid: his own daughter's. According to the 17-year-old Caroline Giuliani's Facebook profile, she's supporting Barack Obama.

On her profile, she designates her political views as "liberal" and—until this morning—proclaimed her membership in the Facebook group "Barack Obama (One Million Strong for Barack)." According to her profile, she withdrew from the Obama group at 6 a.m. Monday, after Slate sent her an inquiry about it.

In what may be an effort to avoid public connection to her famous father, the future Harvard freshman and recent graduate of Trinity School in Manhattan uses a slight variation of her name on the Facebook site. But she didn't lock her profile, allowing any Facebook user with access to the Harvard or Trinity School networks (more than 42,000 people) to view her detailed profile. (As a Harvard student, I was able to see it.)

It's not news that Rudy and his two children, Caroline and her 21-year-old brother Andrew, have a rocky relationship. Caroline and Andrew are the children of Donna Hanover, Rudy's second wife. In March, Andrew, who is a junior at Duke, told the New York Times that he and his father had been estranged for some time, and he has spoken candidly about his objections to Giuliani's marriage to Judith Nathan. And after the wedding, the Times reported, Giuliani also stopped attending Caroline's high-school events. Though he went to her high-school graduation, he left without speaking to her and did not join in the post-graduation family celebration, according to the New York Daily News.

Caroline's Facebook profile does not reveal why she doesn't want her father to win the White House. She has not responded to e-mail questions from Slate.

Lucy Morrow Caldwell is a student at Harvard College and a columnist for the Harvard Crimson.

Article URL: http://www.slate.com/id/2171730/

[blah]

Typical 17 year old rebellion???

[pdh3]

I like Rudy, but I have long been troubled by his marital infidelities. He was no more honest about his dalliances than Bill Clinton, and at least the Clintons managed to save their marriage. Rudy should have tried harder, since he did have kids at home. Obviously, they were very hurt by Rudy's behavior, and it really bothers me that as a father, his priorities were not with his family, but with his selfish desires. Politically, he is a strong leader, but at home he is a disappointment as a husband and father.
Can a man be both an effective leader and a good family man? It sure doesn't seem to be possible anymore, if it ever really was. Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Nixon, Reagan, Clinton, and Bush Two all had serious problems within their families related to their own immoral behavior. Ford, Bush One and Carter were strong family men, but not all that effective in office. I always suspected Johnson of having something/someone hidden away in Texas, but has anything ever been uncovered? I was a child when he was in office, but he always seemed kinda slick to me. I know that he was ruthless politically...
As voters, we say we want a man of character in office, but we all seem to keep voting for the men who are the weakest in matters of utmost importance....their families.
I'm torn between the gifts that Rudy has to bring to the office of the Presidency, and by the fact that he's a cheater who has a wife I can't admire either. We say it's wrong to cheat, and yet we consider electing men who do it casually and often. It's almost like this country has lowered it's standards to the point that short of murder, anyone can be a contender for the Presidency. And even Ted Kennedy made it all the way to the Senate after killing Miss Kopeckne in a drunk driving accident.
Where are our standards?

[LouiseVargas]

I don't know what's going on between Rudy and his children.

I feel if Rudy didn't get along with his wife Donna, the best thing to do is get a divorce. I don't think that is a selfish desire. Everyone deserves a right to be happy.

After the kids grow up, they are busy with their own lives.

I made a decision in 1967 to separate from my husband. I did not think a bad relationship between him and me would be good for the child. Better to cut my losses quickly and have her grow up without two antagonistic parents.

[Rammstein]

I think the democrats would be unwise to use this information in their campaigns (although underground rumoring on the internet will continue).

It is the person Giuiliani that is up for office, not the daughter of him. His daughters political views should have no bearing upon his worthiness as a candidate or president although in a recent Gallup Poll 5% of the respondents thought him to be too liberal/too moderate and not conservative enough for their liking.

[nonesuche]

I don't agree with Guiliani's marital infidelities either but he is imminently more qualified to handle the global challenges for our nation than many of the other candidates. Hillary and Bill are already building their magnificent escape to Costa Rica when all is said and done. Theirs is not a marriage but rather a union formed from like ambition, not romantic love. Their own staff has written reams about the particulars of this. Hillary is exceeding Barack in the polls as well, last thing we need as a country is more of liar liar pants on fire from the Clintons.

[pdh3]

With all due respect none...I don't think anyone knows what's really in the hearts of Bill and Hillary Clinton. I think she may really love him in her own way, and I think he has affection for her. They have managed to hold their family together, and overcome Bill's indescretions. Why do people criticize the Clintons for making it through those dark times, and yet give Rudy Giulianni a free pass? I admire Bill and Hillary for pulling together, even if their marriage is just a friendly one, and not a passionate one. Who has the right to say that what makes sense for them is wrong? The easy thing would have been for Hillary to leave. It's much harder to stay and try to forgive. Hillary has said it was painful, and she relied on her faith to get her through. Why is her decision, for whatever reason, being criticized? They are still married, and seem content, so I say...good for them.
Rudy, IMHO, was no better than Bill. He doesn't get that free pass from me. And his children must be very hurt, because that's what I see behind their behavior. They want to hurt him as much as he hurt them, and their Mother, by leaving them in the way that he did. He managed to create a very dysfunctional situation with his family. And I don't think wife #3 is in it just for love....she smelled money and power too.

[LouiseVargas]

Excuse Me ...

Please tell me why the sex lives' of Presidents and candidates are important? Don't tell me it's an issue of morality. The hallmark of morality has nothing to do with how a person would approach politics. Are they not human? If they are in an unhappy marriage, why should they not get out of it?

Yoo hoo ... it's 2007 and even the constitution guarantees our right to the pursuit of happiness.

Have I run into the Puritans?

[pdh3]

I'm concerned about it because the Leader of the Free World cannot afford to be selfish. His or her behavior directly affects literally millions and millions of people. The decisions of a President can make life better or worse for the citizens not only of the US, but many other countries as well. If a President is so self-absorbed that he or she cannot see beyond his or her own ego, needs or desires, then it can be a very, very, disastrous thing. I think Bush 2 has that problem...his ego won't let him admit mistakes, so he keeps going even when it's obvious to everyone else that he's screwed up. It matters to me that a President have some sense of right and wrong, and some sense of a greater purpose. I don't want a President who wants to be elected strictly for power alone. I want a President who wants to contribute.
Rudy G has many fine leadership qualities, but if he is so selfish that he put his own desires above what is best for his family, then maybe he would do the same to the American people. We can't stand much more of that.
With all due respect Louise, I just think it's more complicated than personal happiness. Sometimes, that has to take a back seat to other, more important issues.

[SteveDinMD]

Though I consider Giuliani to have been the greatest mayor in the history of New York City, I'm not sure I would vote for him to be President.  That said, I'm certain I won't make ANY political decision on the strength of a teenager's endorsement.  To pretend that this girl's political opinion is worth anything is just silly. 

[Dugga]

Though I consider Giuliani to have been the greatest mayor in the history of New York City, I'm not sure I would vote for him to be President.  That said, I'm certain I won't make ANY political decision on the strength of a teenager's endorsement.  To pretend that this girl's political opinion is worth anything is just silly. 

Man you've got that right, Steve. It's true. People act as if ANY endorsement is somehow something to be considered.

Honestly, endorsements also help me decide who to stay away from! If I see any Hollywood "Film Actors Guild" types endorsing a particular candidate, that pretty much tells me to stay away from them.

I can't imagine that the opinion of a kid makes any difference in anyone's mind, regardless of who their father might be.

[pdh3]

Though I consider Giuliani to have been the greatest mayor in the history of New York City, I'm not sure I would vote for him to be President.  That said, I'm certain I won't make ANY political decision on the strength of a teenager's endorsement.  To pretend that this girl's political opinion is worth anything is just silly. 

I think it's very revealing that his children are estranged from their father. Even though we don't know the inner secrets of his family, it's not too big of a stretch to see that he doesn't have the respect of his children. There's a lot they know about Rudy, that we don't. I absolutely cannot stand his wife, so I think the kids have a point there too.

[sb]

Ronald Reagan faced these questions.

If I am not mistaken, this is Giuliani's third marriage. I remember vaguely that Donna Hanover (who was a TV news anchorwoman for a Miami TV station when I was growing up down there) was his 2nd wife and I am not sure THAT remarriage was a neat and tidy situation (IMO, they never are).

I am genuinely torn about who to support. My heart says Thompson, my head says Giuliani or Romney. There are no other options if we want this nation to survive.

[Tiger]

WOW

[Red]

On the eve of the 6th anniversary of 9-11, let's remember what Rudy did as the Mayor of NYC following that heinous terror act. Rudy became America's mayor. There was not a republican, Democrat or Independent that had a bad thing to say about him.

So what has changed now? Oh, you mean he is running for President and Democrats actually have to mean what they have said about praising Rudy in the past. Its really disingenuous to praise someone at the moment of crisis and then rail on him just because he is a Republican.

Rudy was and is the man. Nothing can change the great things he did in bringing the US back from the brink.

[pdh3]

I also mean this with all due respect Red, but I wasn't considering his political party. I was referring to the fact that he has been less than honorable in his personal life, and that would bother me about any candidate. Rudy does have great leadership abilities, but he seems a little weak in some areas, like morality and family values, which are supposed to be Republican ideals. I think it's only right to question each candidate's strong points as well as areas that leave a lot to be desired. It's as important to examine Rudy's failures as a husband and father as it was Bill Clinton's. It does say something about his make-up.
And I would ask the same questions if he was running on the Democratic ticket.
That doesn't mean I don't recognize his leadership during that terrrible time, and I think he handled the crisis very competently. I think he just might be the best candidate we have at this point. But that doesn't mean I respect the decision he made to commit adultry, and do harm his children. He is a very flawed man, just as all the candidates are flawed. It's up to us to decide which imperfections we can live with, or overlook. But I do think they should be discussed and examined. IMHO, that's part of the political debate.