Rudy – the iron doesn’t get much hotter

A new poll is out showing that Unelected Governor David Paterson could pretty much lose the 2010 election to anybody with a pulse.  And, perhaps, even some without.  In general, I don’t give polls much weight as far as a measure of reality, which is why I’m not going to get into a numbers analysis here.  But you don’t need an official poll to see that New York is, shall we say, nonplussed by the job Paterson has done as acting governor.

Paterson’s is an administration marked by an amateur draft budget, rookie mistakes giving way to complete about-faces on policy and a tax program that is sending at least some of the wealthiest taxpayers out of the state.

New York’s string of liberal policies has driven businesses out of the state.  Unemployment keeps going up.  The state is trying to come back from a massive budget deficit.  So far the response in Albany has been to cut some spending, often in areas where that spending shouldn’t be cut, and to raise the taxes and fees on an already deeply overtaxed population.

Can this all be reversed?  Can New York State get back onto the road to prosperity?  With the right leadership, I believe we can.

Studies are showing that while high-tax states like California and New York are facing enormous budget deficits, low-tax states are managing to get by very well.  In short, those states which are weathering the current economic storm are doing so by governing exactly the opposite of how Paterson is.  There is a path to prosperity in New York; we simply need a leader with a proven executive track record to take us down it.

I think that leader could well be Rudy Giuliani.  Giuliani’s fiscal discipline, tax cutting and real-world reforms made him a successful — if not always popular — mayor, even before the events of 9-11.

It’s true, Rudy is flawed.  He’s made mistakes.  He’s not as Conservative as many of us would like him to be (But then, this is New York; who is?).  He’s raised some eyebrows with both political and personal decisions.  Of course, those mistakes and decisions happened mostly nine years ago or more, but they exist, and it would be naive to think they won’t be exploited.  But in the meantime, he has also proven himself to have exactly the skill set of which New York now finds itself desperately in need.  The ability to make the necessary cuts to the budget, the ability to make sound decisions on tax policy that will pay for necessary services without overburdening the population.  The strength of will to get it done.

At this stage in the game, this is as close as you’ll get from me to a full-blown endorsement.  I haven’t found a better overall potential candidate, and New York could certainly do a hell of a lot worse.  I join with those at DraftRudy.com in telling the former mayor it is time for somebody to take the reigns of this out-of-control government in Albany.  Join the race, Rudy.  The iron is hot; the time to strike is now.