Giuliani further mentioned, "Obama's never had to lead people in crisis. This is not a personal attack; it's a statement of fact. Barack Obama has never led anything. Nothing. Nada. The choice in this election comes down to substance over style. John McCain has been tested. Barack Obama has not. Tough times require strong leadership, and this is no time for on-the-job training."

Huckabee, a current favourite among far-right, religious conservatives, attempted to portray Obama as weak on national security and as someone who will not put America first. "Maybe the most dangerous threat of an Obama presidency is that he would continue to give madmen the benefit of the doubt," he said. "If he's wrong just once, we will pay a heavy price."

In addition, he used Obama's recent trip to Europe and the Middle East to drum up concerns that Obama has too much a world focus and too little an American one. "Barack Obama's excellent adventure to Europe took his campaign for change to hundreds of thousands of people who don't even vote or pay taxes here. Let me hasten to say it's not what he took there that concerns me. It's what he brought back. Lots of ideas from Europe he'd like to see imported here," he said.

He also repeated the Republican talking point that the media is unfairly questioning Governor Palin's credentials. "I'd like to thank the elite media for doing something that, quite frankly, I wasn't sure it could be done, and that's unifying the Republican Party and all of America in support of Senator McCain and Governor Palin. The reporting of the past few days have proven tackier than a costume change at a Madonna concert."

Image: Former Governor of New York, Rudy Giuliani adressing the Republican National Convention
Photograph: Paresh Gandhi

Also read: Come and unite: Hillary

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