Giuliani: GOP Rivals in Cabinet a "Great Idea"
CHICAGO -- If elected, would Rudy Giuliani give some of his rival Republicans candidates top jobs in his administration?
"Sure, I would think of doing that."
Taking questions at a town hall event in Chicago, a man asked Giuliani if he would consider following Abraham Lincoln by putting his rival Republican candidates in his cabinet. Giuliani said it was a "great idea," but did not agree to follow the suggested roles that the questioner posed, such as choosing Mike Huckabee as his running mate or Ron Paul as head of the IRS.
"You left out my good friend John McCain," who Giuliani called an "American hero".
Giuliani said he finds all of the rival Republicans accomplished men, "with maybe an exception". He would not say who the exception was.
Giuliani warned about the "presumptuousness" of naming anyone he would consider for top office, which he has vowed not to do unless he receives the Republican Party's nomination.
The uniqueness of Lincoln's cabinet, which was comprised of several contenders that challenged him for the White House, was recently highlighted in the book "Team of Rivals" by historical author Doris Kearns Goodwin -- a book the former mayor has read.