Former N.Y. Mayor Rudy Giuliani didn’t endorse one of the dozen Republican candidates in his interview with Fox News’ Megyn Kelly Monday night, but he did answer who he prefers between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz.
“Cruz is too rigid, he’s too right-wing, he’ll give away the northeast,” Giuliani said.
The former 2008 GOP candidate said he prefers Trump because the Manhattan billionaire has a proven record of creating jobs and could gain more support from African-Americans and Latinos than Cruz. Giuliani backed up his comment, adding that Norman Seabrook, president of the New York City Correction Officer’s Benevolent Association, had told him that he would endorse Trump.
But Giuliani stopped short of giving his friend a full endorsement. He criticized Trump for bailing from Thursday’s seventh Republican debate.
“I believe he’s making a mistake in not showing up in the debate,” Giuliani said. “If I were Donald and I’m not, and he makes up his own mind, I would participate in the debate because I think he’d win.”
Although the two have known each other for 25 years, Giuliani said he has other friends in the race that he is torn between endorsing: N.J. Gov. Chris Christie, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.
