By Mark David Blum, Esq.

Ah yes, but the little emperor has finally shown himself to be nothing but the same old garbage wrapped in new trappings. While 49 States drool over the little bald former Mayor, we New Yorkers remember well a world well before 9/11 and America’s Mayor. Many folks remember such wonderful events such as Guliani Time or how the Mayor was evicted from the Mayor’s Mansion by a Judge. The world was not so great with the former federal prosecutor cum politician on the watch. Cleaning up Times Square is one thing. Turning it into Disneyland is another.

But now, our hapless ex Mayor sings the long ago songs of the shotgun wielding Vice President when he stood before the American People during the debate against John Edwards in the 2004 election and said that, “America is at risk if Democrats are elected. Terrorists will attack us again if they win.”

First of all, the best offense is always a good defense. Every American would willingly stand that wall in opposition to any attacker. Even a bomb that killed one million of us would still leave intact our government and 299 million survivors ready willing and able to retaliate. It is not necessary to be killing American soldiers every day on the premise that you might be preventing “them from following us back.” If Guliani does his job, terrorists would not be able to follow us back as they would die en route. Our supply lines are much better at home than in Iraq. The opposite is true right now.

But let’s do an assessment of what Guliani and his naked offensive looks like. September 11, 2001 was at the height of the Republican overthrow of the United States Government. Nine months into a Republican Presidency and seven years into a Republican controlled Congress, and while Rudy Guliani was on duty and George Bush and Donald Rumsfeld were on duty; that is when the planes crashed into the towers. To dare blame Democrats for enabling terrorists is chutzpah beyond belief. These hijackers were in the United States for more than five years. What was it about a Republican Administration that made the hijackers strike when they did?

Our enemies knew that if they struck during a Republican Administration, the world would ignite with “Guliani Time”. Al Qaeda knew the one thing Americans forgot and managed to manipulate that weakness to their advantage.

Al Qaeda knew Republicans are cowards and theirs is the party of fear. It is a deep rooted fear that Republicans have of the world. They fear everyone. Republicans want to slam shut our borders, stripsearch old ladies at airports, send the marines to pre-emptively attack nations who pose no threat, restrict our movement, gather us all in one giant database, search our financial records, tap and record our telephone calls, read our mail, intercept our emails, expand police powers, hold people without lawyer or trial, and pretty much do whatever it takes to have control over people to make sure “they” are safe.

Exponentially grow that concept, and then imagine how America will suffer under Guliani Time. It is bad enough that Guliani thinks he is the savior for the Republicans. Imagine how bad it can be with a smart paranoid Republican in the White House; unlike its current occupant.

Yes, America was attacked on 9/11. But be honest: Though tragic, that attack never posed a threat to our nation or our goverment. The number of people killed was less than 1/100 of 1 percent of the population of our nation. Our government remained intact and was never at risk.

Since that time, our own President and his crazed notions of magic carpet rides to democracy in a world where such concepts are foreign, has started a fight with the world. We lost Iraq. We are losing Iran. We barely have a hold on North Korea. Russia is backsliding toward totalitarianism. We are losing South America. The EU is no friend. NATO includes so many countries as to be meaningless. China is about to kick our collective butts on the open market.

But Rudy Guliani thinks that being offensive is going to cure the damage his own party caused at home and abroad. Talk about a little emperor flaunting naked whilst marching proudly.

Every time I hear a Republican speak, they invoke 9/11 as an example of "how vulnerable" we are. This nation is not vulnerable; not at all. If we were vulnerable on 9/11 or since, there is nobody to blame BUT the Republicans. They had the votes and the keys to the Treasury. They were ‘in charge’ and all this damage happened on their watch.

What will Guliani time look like at home? Imagine a nation even moreso divided. With the new interstate compact, there will no longer be Red or Blue States. Guliani’s time will be full of neighbor against neighbor, Christian against everybody, race against race, American against Mexican, man against woman, rich against poor. Americans are none of that. We are one nation, INDIVISIBLE. We are one people with one strong and resilient voice. Guliani time passed long ago.

Though we argue and vigorously debate politics and which of the candidates are the lesser or two evils, I respectfully submit that you consider an alternative theory. Namely, that the Republican theory of pre emptive “Guliani-tude” was already given a free ride over this nation for more than a decade.

Guliani drapes himself in the attitude of a Party that promised us a smaller government yet built the largest (and most ineffective) government agency in U.S. history; the Department of Homeland Security. There are at least 61,000 more federal employees in the service of the federal taxpayer than during the Clinton Administration. Though there is dispute, Republicans lay claim to having cut our taxes but in doing so, they drove up our State and local taxes beyond our ability to cope. Instead of creating an economy where pulling yourself up by your bootstraps is encouraged and supported, the Republican agenda has served a crushing blow to our labor force; throwing millions out of work and forcing millions more into menial labor just to survive.

The Party of fiscal responsibility inherited a $3 Trillion surplus and in less than 3 years, gave us nearly $9 Trillion in national debt. Interest rates and adjustable rate mortgages are slowly rising, bankruptcies and gas prices are at record highs, and the stock market is barely 1,000 points ahead where it was the day before Bush took office; six years ago.

The Party of a strong military and defense cut veterans benefits and provided insufficient materials and manpower to execute a war. It was on the Republican’s watch that 9/11 happened. They were asleep at the helm. Our current foreign policy has isolated us from our allies, made us the scorn of world opinion, and has recruited more terrorists who hate America than in all of history. Instead of reducing threats against the United States, the current Republican policy has resulted in the highest ever-recorded number of worldwide terrorist attacks in 2003. This is not a safer world for Americans.

At least Rudy Guliani is being honest when he calls his Republican theory “offensive”. I know few people who are not offended.

It is in our history and in our blood as a nation to NOT play offense in the international arena. From George Washington on, our Founders strongly insisted that America be a friend to everybody, stay out of European conflicts, and just do business. Winning two world wars does not permit us to assume the role of running around to spread freedom like Parkay. The entire concept behind the Cold War was to play defense. Vietnam was the lesson learned when American plays offense outside Her borders.

Take a better look at what will be Guliani time on offense:

Our nation will have sealed its borders using militia, military, walls, and technology. There will be a national identification card and we will be required to show it to enter the country, to vote, to drive, to buy a home or rent an apartment. Proof of citizenship will be required to receive any services.

The police already have powers to stop, detain, and imprison you without trial, lawyer, witnesses, evidence, or even charge for an indefinite period of time. Trials can now be held in secret and you are subject to a death penalty without civilian review. You can be interrogated and tortured and if unsuccessful, be rendered to a nation that will be far more persuasive. Anything said in such situations will be used against you and admitted at your trial. Times Square would have taken less an hour to clean up under these rules. How will Guliani time look with the entire United States Military and 93 U.S. Attorneys serving at his “pleasure”?

Remember, there are already secret courts hearing applications for secret warrants where there is neither public scrutiny nor review. Police can enter your home, invade all your personal records and information, and leave without having to tell you. This is what is so offensive about Guliani appointing judges to the Bench.

America, we have camps. There are places where human beings are being tortured and abused in our name for the “good of the country.” Other camps are being built or are built around the nation under FEMA control. About half the people in my country either condone what is happening at Guatanamo and elsewhere or remain ambivalent. Is this what Guliani sanctions as offensive behavior? To me, it is indeed offensive.

How will Guliani go on the offense with the internet. Already under constant surveillance, the Internet is full of traps and logging programs and webcrawlers monitoring traffic and content. Programs scan all emails at ISPs. AOL actually maintains a log of every transaction of every member. Without hesitation, this information is routinely provided to police agencies.

Guliani’s offensive behavior will no doubt enhance America’s #1 growing industry: Prisons. Our prison population is exploding and is larger than any nation in the history of the world. More and more of citizens are being imprisoned for longer and longer periods of time. Some segments are society claim nearly 50% criminal histories of some type. Employers, the government, public office, public services, travel, and public amusement parks are all being closed off to people with a criminal history. We are doing drug testing, criminal background checks, and credit checks for janitors and other common everyday workers.

Where does Guliani stand on the issue of States’ Rights? Laws passed in a State granting its citizens more rights than enumerated in the Constitution are being vetoed by the Federal government and state citizens are being arrested, prosecuted, and imprisoned for long periods of time for doing what is legal in that State. I once heard a United States Republican Senator proclaim proudly in the Well of the Senate that he deliberately and willfully gave up his right of the filibuster “forever” for the good of the nation … and he encouraged 11 other Senators to do the same. Former Senator Rick Santorum admitted he voted to put judges into office despite feeling they were totally unqualified but that he did so ‘for the good of the compromise’. This is the Party this will protect America and Her values?

I can think of nothing more offensive than Rudy Guliani as President. If you call that being defensive, then so be it. Guliani is a greater threat than any known enemy.

Abraham Lincoln said it best: "Shall we expect some transatlantic military giant, to step over the ocean, and crush us at a blow? Never! -- All the armies of Europe, Asia and Africa combined, with all the treasure of the earth (our own excepted) in their military chest; with a Bonaparte for a commander, could not by force, take a drink from the Ohio, or make a track on the Blue Ridge, in a trial of a Thousand years. At what point, then, is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide."