The New York Times reports that Rudy Giuliani has ruled out a bid to run for Governor of NY, confirming speculation that's trended that way recently.
It was not clear what prompted the decision, but the prospect of potentially facing Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo, who is quietly planning his own run for governor on the Democratic ticket, may not have appealed to Mr. Giuliani....Maria Comella, a spokeswoman for Mr. Giuliani, said Wednesday that it was “premature” to say any decisions had been made, and cited the former mayor’s statements on television last weekend.
But ABC says a senior Republican source claims the Senate remains a possibility, which is intriguing because it seems Rudy actually might be reading polls.
Last month, he seemed to nix the idea of a Senate run. That struck people as strange, considering a) polls showed he had a much better chance of knocking off Democratic incumbent Senator Kirsten Gillibrand than Cuomo and b) it would provide a better venue for launching a Presidential run or a long-term political career.
Plus, there was this revealing comment Rudy made on October 25:
“It is a valid question. Can a governor make a difference, and how much of a difference?"
Still the idea of parlaying a Senate seat into a 2012 run seems a bit strange.
In fact, on November 3, Rudy talked to Hugh Hewitt like a man more interested in a long career as a Senator from New York than a Presidential candidate who was seen as too moderate in 2008.
"I mean, I’m a moderate. I know a moderate."
Still, Rudy's Rudy, and on September 23, he was asked if he might make a go of 2012.
"I'm keeping my options open is how I put it – meaning who knows? Things outside yourself determine whether you can run for president and then whether you can win in running for president. Before I would decide to run for president again, I'd have to see those things outside myself lined up correctly."
UPDATE: Ben Smith on the Senate rumors.
Rudy Giuliani's spokeswoman is denying a report that he's decided to run for Senate.
"It's not true," spokeswoman Maria Comella emailed just now.
If he does decide to run, it will come as a surprise to the members of his circle I've spoken to today
