WASHINGTON – Whether he likes it or not, there’s now an official committee pushing Rudy Giuliani to run for president.
A “draft committee,” which operates independently of a potential candidate, has just filed papers with the Federal Election Committee.
Giuliani spokeswoman Sunny Mindel offered a firm “no comment.”
Giuliani has said he’d like to run for office again, but aides say he won’t decide whether to make a 2008 White House run until after the 2006 congressional midterm election.
“America’s Mayor” currently tops all Republican presidential polls and also leads Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) in a head-to-head general election matchup.
Federal law restricts Giuliani or his staff from having contact with a draft-Rudy effort, even to tell them to stop, because it could be seen as illegal coordination.
The group’s Web site, draftrudygiuliani.com, offers a chance to sign a petition urging him to run and includes its own poll among Rudy fans about whether he will run. As of yesterday, 74.6 percent had said yes.
Among Republicans, Giuliani had the support of 26 percent nationwide, followed by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, 24, and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), 21, in a RasmussenReports.com poll released earlier this week.