Rudy Giuliani: Bill de Blasio Should Apologize To NYPD For "Libelous" Racial Profiling Accusations
Rudy Giuliani eviscerated Bill de Blasio during a rare campaign appearance with Joe Lhota Thursday, demanding that the Democrat apologize to the NYPD for accusing cops of racial profiling.
Our Mara Gay and photographer Mark Bonifacio were on the South Shore today when Giuliani and Lhota stumped at a senior center. Together, we report:
Giuliani said de Blasio owes it to city cops to make amends for a misguided -- if politically beneficial -- opposition to the NYPD's stop and frisk policies.
"This man has foisted on the city of New York a totally phony claim, and he's maligned a great police department with his claim of racial profiling," he said, calling de Blasio's argument that stop and frisk systematically overtargets minorities "outrageous."
De Blasio has said he would drop the city's appeal of Judge Shira Scheindlin's ruling on NYPD reforms if he becomes mayor -- but Giuliani suggested Friday that the case could continue even against the Democrat's wishes.
"You don't know this, but I'm a party in the case. Myself and former Attorney General [Michael] Mukasey filed friend of the court briefs," Giuliani said. "There are also police officers who are plaintiffs in the case. I believe that if Mr. de Blasio were to pull the case, on behalf of the police officers the case could go forward."
In that stunning Thursday decision, the Second Circuit not only stayed Scheindlin's decision, but booted her from the case on the grounds that she ran afoul of impartiality rules by speaking to the press.
Giuliani said cops are "vindicated" by the appeals court's ruling "from the false, libelous claims of someone like Mr. de Blasio."
Stumping for Republican Lhota, his former deputy and onetime head of the MTA, Giuliani didn't trash the frontrunner personally -- "he seems like a very nice man. He has a really fine family" -- but said his advancement of the NYPD matter is "a cruel phony issue, because it divides people based on race when they don't have to be divided based on race."
Update: Per our Jennifer Fermino on the trail in Brooklyn, de Blasio scoffed of Giuliani, "I'm not looking to him for advice on police-community relations."
And the former mayor made it sound like he wouldn't mind a personal apology for all the times de Blasio has trashed the Giuliani Administration as divisive -- including when the mayoral candidates sparred over it during Wednesday night's debate.
"I have people come up to me on the street saying, 'I wouldn't have sent my child to Columbia University before you we're mayor.' 'I wouldn't have out my business in New York before you were mayor.' The change was astounding," Giuliani told reporters, going after David Dinkins, the man he defeated in a 1993 rematch (and de Blasio's old boss).
"I can understand why Mr. de Blasio will falsely make accusations about that: He was part of the prior administration that left the city a disaster," Giuliani continued. "He gave me a city with a $2.3 billion deficit. With 1,900 murders. With 75% of the city wanting to leave. With Staten Island voting to secede. With 1.1 million people on welfare...
"I turned over a city that was totally turned around. So I can understand why [de Blasio is] defensive about the horrible record of the administration he came from."
Lhota and Giuliani grabbed a slice of pizza at the senior center, where Giuliani got mobbed by elderly fans -- most of them women -- who wanted snapshots.
The visit interrupted a Bingo game, but the women said they did not mind.
With Lhota staring down a massive deficit in the polls, Giuliani was trying to keep the faith.
"I believe he's going to win," he said of his party's nominee. "If he loses, we'll all hope it works out. But what I say to people is, don't come to me six months from now like they did in 1990 when a different mayor was elected and say, 'Oh my God, what a mistake we made. We wish we had Ed Koch back.'"
Asked why he wasn't on the trail with Lhota more often, said he's done "everything the campaign wants me to do."
"There are ways in which you can be helpful and ways that you can't," he said, riffing on comments he made to the Daily News the day of the final Republican mayoral primary debate.
"It's quite obvious to me as a political amateur, that I'm much more popular among Republicans and independents than I am Democrats. He needs Democratic votes. And so, I mean you utilize the people who can help you in different ways."
And Lhota insisted he's going all the way to City Hall.
Our Mara Gay and photographer Mark Bonifacio were on the South Shore today when Giuliani and Lhota stumped at a senior center. Together, we report:
Giuliani said de Blasio owes it to city cops to make amends for a misguided -- if politically beneficial -- opposition to the NYPD's stop and frisk policies.
"This man has foisted on the city of New York a totally phony claim, and he's maligned a great police department with his claim of racial profiling," he said, calling de Blasio's argument that stop and frisk systematically overtargets minorities "outrageous."
De Blasio has said he would drop the city's appeal of Judge Shira Scheindlin's ruling on NYPD reforms if he becomes mayor -- but Giuliani suggested Friday that the case could continue even against the Democrat's wishes.
"You don't know this, but I'm a party in the case. Myself and former Attorney General [Michael] Mukasey filed friend of the court briefs," Giuliani said. "There are also police officers who are plaintiffs in the case. I believe that if Mr. de Blasio were to pull the case, on behalf of the police officers the case could go forward."
In that stunning Thursday decision, the Second Circuit not only stayed Scheindlin's decision, but booted her from the case on the grounds that she ran afoul of impartiality rules by speaking to the press.
Giuliani said cops are "vindicated" by the appeals court's ruling "from the false, libelous claims of someone like Mr. de Blasio."
Stumping for Republican Lhota, his former deputy and onetime head of the MTA, Giuliani didn't trash the frontrunner personally -- "he seems like a very nice man. He has a really fine family" -- but said his advancement of the NYPD matter is "a cruel phony issue, because it divides people based on race when they don't have to be divided based on race."
Update: Per our Jennifer Fermino on the trail in Brooklyn, de Blasio scoffed of Giuliani, "I'm not looking to him for advice on police-community relations."
And the former mayor made it sound like he wouldn't mind a personal apology for all the times de Blasio has trashed the Giuliani Administration as divisive -- including when the mayoral candidates sparred over it during Wednesday night's debate.
"I have people come up to me on the street saying, 'I wouldn't have sent my child to Columbia University before you we're mayor.' 'I wouldn't have out my business in New York before you were mayor.' The change was astounding," Giuliani told reporters, going after David Dinkins, the man he defeated in a 1993 rematch (and de Blasio's old boss).
"I can understand why Mr. de Blasio will falsely make accusations about that: He was part of the prior administration that left the city a disaster," Giuliani continued. "He gave me a city with a $2.3 billion deficit. With 1,900 murders. With 75% of the city wanting to leave. With Staten Island voting to secede. With 1.1 million people on welfare...
"I turned over a city that was totally turned around. So I can understand why [de Blasio is] defensive about the horrible record of the administration he came from."
Lhota and Giuliani grabbed a slice of pizza at the senior center, where Giuliani got mobbed by elderly fans -- most of them women -- who wanted snapshots.
The visit interrupted a Bingo game, but the women said they did not mind.
With Lhota staring down a massive deficit in the polls, Giuliani was trying to keep the faith.
"I believe he's going to win," he said of his party's nominee. "If he loses, we'll all hope it works out. But what I say to people is, don't come to me six months from now like they did in 1990 when a different mayor was elected and say, 'Oh my God, what a mistake we made. We wish we had Ed Koch back.'"
Asked why he wasn't on the trail with Lhota more often, said he's done "everything the campaign wants me to do."
"There are ways in which you can be helpful and ways that you can't," he said, riffing on comments he made to the Daily News the day of the final Republican mayoral primary debate.
"It's quite obvious to me as a political amateur, that I'm much more popular among Republicans and independents than I am Democrats. He needs Democratic votes. And so, I mean you utilize the people who can help you in different ways."
And Lhota insisted he's going all the way to City Hall.
No comments:
Post a Comment