Giuliani’s policies did him in

Re “Where Rudy went wrong,” Opinion, Feb. 3

Frank Luntz claims that there was nothing wrong with Rudy Giuliani’s campaign message; his failure all had to do with style. I disagree. Giuliani’s message was ripped from the George Bush playbook: “Vote for me or die in a terrorist attack.”

I think even die-hard Republicans are sick of this tactic.

Giuliani may see it as appealing to those who want a strong leader, but most of the country has realized it means exactly the opposite.

Bush’s policies were irrational and have made this country weaker by degrading our military capabilities, strengthening Iran, providing a forum for terrorists to learn our military weaknesses and driving allies away. He won reelection, however, by equating the act of disagreeing with his thoughtless policies with treason.

Giuliani held himself out as the candidate who was willing to start wars with less forethought than Bush. There may be a sector of the GOP base that appreciates this sentiment, but even many Republicans realize we are going to be cleaning up the mess in Iraq for decades to come, and we need to be sure that war is necessary if we are going to start another one.

Branden Frankel

Los Angeles