Rudy's Dress a Drag on the Campaign?

A New York Post article seems to suggest that conservatives at the CPAC meeting in Washington were less concerned about Rudy Giuliani's moderate social views than they were about him wearing a dress for a fundraising appearance several years ago:

Rudy Giuliani's liberal stance on abortion, guns and gays wasn't his biggest problem yesterday as he addressed a conference of conservative activists - it was his having dressed in drag.

A whisper campaign targeting the front-running GOP White House contender's cross-dressing stunts at gala political dinners in New York and on "Saturday Night Live" was the hot topic among right-leaning activists.

"A lot of people are talking about it. It's not respectable. They use it as a way to highlight all of his other shortcomings," Las Vegas conservative Bruce Feher told The Post.

Giuliani, who addressed the key gathering yesterday, may top national GOP presidential polls, but conservatives already uneasy with Giuliani's positions on social issues were latching on to his gags as a drag queen.

"Can you think of any president - even Clinton - or another candidate wearing a dress on several occasions? It's unpresidential. It's not a secret, but a lot of people don't know about it, and it's only going to get more attention," said Florida GOPer Gregg Shore.

"It lends credence to the belief that he's not conservative."

Oh c'mon. Rudy dresses up for a fundraising event and an appearance on Saturday Night Live, and suddenly he's unacceptable as a candidate? It's not like he was playing J. Edgar Hoover and dressing up that way because he had some sort of predilection toward woman's clothes. If anything, it shows Hizzoner has a sense of humor and is willing to have some fun at his own expense if it's for a good cause.

One of the things that endeared Reagan to Americans from both political pursuasions was his optimism. Most of the time he was in pretty good humor and laughed easily and often. Rudy seems much the same way. He's serious about the important stuff, but doesn't take himself too seriously. That can be a positive attribute in a president.

My guess is the guys the article's author spoke with were already committed to other candidates, and therefore used this opportunity to ding Giuliani. There were a lot of very partisan activists at CPAC who are actively working for specific candidates, and given the chance to offer a zinger toward an opponent, would eagerly do so.

Rudy's future as a GOP presidential candidate will not turn on whether he wore a dress in comedy routines on a couple of occassions.