Opinion: More on Rudy’s deal with the devil

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Oh, c’mon, this was supposed to be a joke, a nice light little piece of political news in between somnolent healthcare and Latin American policy talk.

The New York newspapers have now officially gone crazy over that city’s former mayor, a lifelong Yankees fan, Rudy Giuliani, saying that he’s now rooting for the American League team, the Boston Red Sox, in the World Series that starts tonight in Boston against the upstart Colorado Rockies. You’d think Giuliani had gone to a South Carolina Rotary Club and announced some new liberal social policy like abortion for puppies.

To be sure, every campaign wants to dominate the day’s news, but maybe not with headlines like those in the New York tabloids. ‘Traitor!’ screamed the New York Daily News on Wednesday’s front page. ‘Red Coat’ cried the New York Post.

Giuliani has positioned himself as America’s No. 1 Yankee fan, despite widespread hatred of the team by most upstanding citizens with any intelligence everywhere west of the Hudson River. But just as he has blurred ideological lines in his Republican presidential race, Giuliani is now blurring his athletic affiliations. It’s as if a Washington Redskins fan suddenly started rooting for Dallas or a Cleveland Browns backer began cheering for the pittsberg steelers (typographical disrespect intended).

Giuliani’s campaign spokesman, Jarrod Agen, tried to dampen the controversy today by arguing that his boss was actually being consistent. He said, ‘The mayor has said he always roots for the American League team.’

So much for the Rocky Mountain vote.

Agen pointed to a lengthy quote from a Giuliani interview with author Carl Cannon earlier this month:

“The Red Sox had a better season than we had, and they both deserve to be there, and I will root for the winner of the American League in the World Series. So if you see me rooting for the Red Sox if they win the division, do not think that I’m pandering. I’m not. I’ve rooted for the Red Sox a couple of years ago when they were in the World Series, just like I rooted for the Indians when they were in the World Series. I root for the American League team. As a Yankee fan, I root for the American League. I actually was a coach on the 2002 American League All Star team. Did you know that?’

However, speaking of lengthy quotes, some of Giuliani’s earlier comments suggest a shifting, or dare we say flip-flopping, Giuliani position. In July, the Providence Journal asked him the following question: “If the devil said you can be president if you become a Sox fan, would you do it?’

Giuliani responded: “I’m a Yankee fan. My father made me a Yankee fan probably before I was born. I always believe it’s a sign of my being straight with people, about not wanting to fool them, that I was one of the first mayors to be willing to say I was a Yankee fan. Most mayors pretended they rooted for both sides. I have great respect for Mets fans, Red Sox fans. I have great respect for people who really are fans of the team they say they are fans of. But probably that’s a deal I could not make.”

Perhaps it is no surprise that a Yankee fan would prove to be a front-runner, in all senses of the term, at least this early in the political season. Right now, we suspect, the Yankees are out on the golf course where they belong in October.

Asked about the controversy Wednesday, Giuliani rival Mitt Romney, the target of Giuliani charges of flip-flopping, quipped: ‘’I’m looking forward to seeing him cheering for the Patriots soon.’

-- Andrew Malcolm with Joe Mathews