The New York Times “Week in Review” section today runs an article quoting various worthies giving advice to Rudy Giuliani on how to run his campaign, if he runs.
Some of it is good; I hope he reads it. Here’s mine, which is at least as good if not better than what the NYT gathered:
Boldly declare that now, not 25 years from now, is the time to end special preferences based on race or ethnicity or gender. President Clinton said we should mend affirmative action, not end it, but he did neither, and it’s still broken, now beyond repair.
If Giuliani took this position, he would actually be catching up with voters, not getting in front of them. He would appeal to the part of the electorate with whom he is the weakest and whom he needs most, and first: conservative Republicans. He could do this and at the same time strengthen his appeal to independents, and even to a not insignificant slice of Democrats.
It’s such a good idea that even some politician will think of it sooner or later. Why not Giuliani, who needs it?
UPDATE [20 Nov.]
Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, brings RealClearPolitics readers up to date on what DISCRIMINATIONS readers already know re the dimensions of the MCRI victory and asks:
Faced with these numbers, Republicans nationally may be reconsidering whether and how strongly to raise the issue in other states. After all, Michigan is among the more liberal states in the country, as are California and Washington. Given the vote there, one wonders how similar measures would play, for instance, in swing states during a presidential year like 2008….
The political question is whether the Republicans have the stomach for reaching out to this broad constituency at the price of being called various unflattering names by the opposition.
If they don’t, they risk (it’s actually a sure thing) being called at least two things by many of their would-be supporters: dumb and gutless.
