Rudy Giuliani appears to be distancing himself from pro-gay past  | News | Advocate.com

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April 20, 2006
Rudy Giuliani appears to be distancing himself from pro-gay past
Rudy Giuliani appears to be distancing himself from pro-gay past

There are signs that former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani may be trying to distance himself from his reputation for supporting abortion rights and gay equality as he eyes a possible run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008. In a 1999 Interview with CNN's Inside Politics, then-mayor Giuliani said, “I’m pro-choice. I’m pro–gay rights”

But as the midterm election draws near and Giuliani gets closer to what many believe will be a shot at the presidency, the former mayor is campaigning for some very antichoice, anti–gay rights GOP candidates. Some political experts say he's "mending fences."

On Tuesday, Giuliani appeared at a rally for U.S. senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, a vocal opponent of gay rights, who has said that states should regulate homosexuality "the same as they regulate human sexual contact with animals." Giuliani said of Santorum, "In any age you don't have many leaders. Senator Santorum is one of them."

The New York Times reports that Giuliani will head to Iowa later this month to campaign for U.S. representative and gubernatorial candidate Jim Nussle. Nussle is also an opponent of gay rights, having voted for the federal constitutional ban on same-sex marriage in 2004 and a ban on adoptions by gays in Washington, D.C., in 1999. Iowa is also home of the first national presidential caucus—and one of the first stops for most presidential candidates.

And earlier this week former Christian Coalition leader Ralph Reed announced that Giuliani would headline a fund-raiser in May for Reed's campaign for lieutenant governor of Georgia. (Sirius OutQ News)

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