Rudolph Giuliani Will Not Be Part Of Trump Administration
First Chris Christie, now Rudolph Giuliani. New York City’s former mayor will not be part of President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.
Like Christie, Guiliani has been one of Trump’s staunchest supporters and loudest TV surrogates, and his newly announced absence from the upcoming administration no doubt will be much discussed on Sunday’s morning Beltway programs.
Both Trump and Giuliani say the ex-mayor removed himself from consideration; he had been widely assumed to be in the running for Secretary of State.
“Rudy Giuliani is an extraordinarily talented and patriotic American,” Trump said in a statement today. “I will always be appreciative of his 24/7 dedication to our campaign after I won the primaries and for his extremely wise counsel. He is and continues to be a close personal friend, and as appropriate, I will call upon him for advice and can see an important place for him in the administration at a later date.”
Said Giuliani: “From the vantage point of the private sector, I look forward to helping the President-elect in any way he deems necessary and appropriate.” The former mayor will continue as Vice Chairman of the Presidential Transition Team.
Though the announcement noted that Giuliani made his intentions known to Trump on November 29, his name had been mentioned since then by Trump’s TV surrogates including Kellyanne Conway.
Today, after Conway told MSNBC’s Chuck Todd that the decision was mutual, Todd suggested that meant Trump wasn’t completely sold on a future role for Giuliani. Conway rebuffed that suggestion, adding, “He accepted Mayor Giuliani’s decision to withdraw his name.” Giuliani will be an “informal adviser,” she said.
Christie, the New Jersey governor who ran against — and lost badly to — Trump in the GOP primary before backing his one-time rival, had been under consideration for the Republican National Committee chair or even a special prosecutor gig, but has returned to Jersey empty-handed and still under the Bridgegate cloud.
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