America's Mayor: The Hidden History of Rudy Giuliani's New York [Paperback]

Robert Polner (Editor), Jimmy Breslin (Preface)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 4, 2005

Rudy Giuliani's admirably steely response to the horrifying events of 9/11 made him a national hero, positioning him for a renewed political life as governor, senator, or, his ultimate quest, president. But the outpouring of post-9/11 praise obscured many uncomfortable facts about Giuliani, one of the most polarizing figures in the Big Apple's history. Edited by Robert Polner, who covered city hall for Newsday during much of Giuliani's administration, America's Mayor collects the original essays and reporting of some of New York's best writers, including Pulitzer Prize winner Jim Dwyer, Tom Robbins, Ann Roiphe, Joe Jackson, Luc Sante, Terry Quinn, and others. These writers have uncover the dark realities behind the myth of Rudy Giuliani, offering an informative and entertaining corrective to the simplistic celebration of Giuliani as "America's Mayor." Giuliani's McCarthy-like penchant for smearing; his attempts to defang the city's vibrant alternative cultures; his exploitation of 9/11 for personal aggrandizement; his disastrous fiscal policies - these are among the many subjects addressed.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"America's Mayor is a book wherein the plain truth savages a petty capricious poseur one Rudy Giuliani..." -- Malachy McCourt, author of the international best-seller A Monk’s Swimming

"In a vibrant democracy, no politician deserves a free ride, and America's Mayor provides a highly valuable service: telling the whole story of Rudy Giuliani. This book is a crucial and convincing reminder that both before 9/11 and after the dust settled, Giuliani was hardly a hero. America's Mayor serves up a powerful indictment of a flawed political leader, casting a bright-as-the-sun spotlight on Giuliani's arrogance, his crass ambitions, his ethical lapses, his politics of division, and his policy failures (including those that caused NYC to be less prepared for 9/11). It chronicles the high costs that others have had to pay for his failures. No one should ponder Giuliani's future without reading this collection." -- David Corn, Washington editor of The Nation

"When it comes time for voters to judge Giuliani's fitness for national office, this book will be the essential dossier." -- John R. MacArthur, Publisher of Harper's Magazine

"[A] welcome antidote to the encomiums heaped upon America's mayor after Sept. 11th, 2001, by so many people who forgot or never bothered to find out where Mr. Giuliani stood on Sept 10." -- The New York Times

"[S]erves up a powerful indictment of a flawed political leader, casting a bright-as-the-sun spotlight on Giuliani..." -- David Corn, Washington editor of The Nation

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Soft Skull Press (August 4, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932360581
• ISBN-13: 978-1932360585
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,776,281 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Take it from a New Yorker, April 27, 2006

By 

Edwin C. Pauzer (New York City) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: America's Mayor: The Hidden History of Rudy Giuliani's New York (Paperback)

This book is a group of essays by New Yorkers who have lived through or dealt with a mayor who is popular everywhere except where he governed, New York City. These authors catalogue Rudy Giulianni's vindictiveness, pettiness, totalitarian approach to governing, and his tight control of information and the press.

Claiming to change government, remove patronage, and bring honesty and openness, Rudy Giulianni did the opposite. He hired incompetent patrons, made slanderous accusations, and dealt with anyone who challenged him with unusual cruelty and ruthlessness. When a judge ruled that he could not deny a parade permit to those whose theme he did not approve of, he moved in with helicopters and police in riot gear to end the gathering at the precise time limit of the parade--4:30 p.m. This was a measure of a man who had to get his way.

The authors faithfully record his double standard of morality with his open affair while he was still married. He made sure that the reporters said hello to his "friend" Judy. At the same token, he bristled at the "anti-Catholic," immorality of a reverent display of the madonna because it was sculpted in part with elephant dung. When the museum refused to remove the display, he threatened to cut off its funding. His wife, an actor and broadcaster eventually got even though. When he refused to accept blame for the divorce, she was all set to take him through the divorce court cleaners. He reneged, and she took him through the divorce agreement cleaners.

Purporting to have been a mob-busting district attorney who was the first to use the RICO statutes to put mobsters away, he built his myth on this lie and others. Some of his convictions were overturned because he withheld evidence. His legal skill was again challenged as mayor when he was sued left, right and center for abrogating the constitutional rights of others. He even broke the law by denying federally-mandated food stamps to the poor. He lost almost all of the lawsuits filed against him as mayor.

His temporary redemption came in the form of 9/11 where he displayed a brief, shining moment of steadiness. But New Yorkers found him intolerable when he asked the mayoral candidates to suspend taking office because he felt he needed an additional three months to get things right. The lord mayor felt that he was even bigger than the democratic process.

The writers have scribed these revelations because they believe that Rudolph Giulliani still has political aspirations for governor or president, where he can be in complete control. This would not include being a mere congressional back-bencher. Their essays are a siren song, a warning, that Rudy is not worthy of the public trust.

There are too many accounts of Giulianni's indiscretions, invective and authoritarianism to mention here. If you think Bush is imperial, this one is downright dictatorial. Remember, this is the man who told an enthralled Republican Convention in New York City "I turned to my police commissioner, Bernard Kerik and said, 'Thank God, George Bush is our president'." He supposedly made that comment after the twin towers came down. Can anyone really believe something like that without getting the chills?

This book should not be passed up by anyone concerned with our political future.

Take it from a New Yorker.