How’s this for strange bedfellows: Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani will co-chair Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo’s transition committee on public safety, the Daily News has learned.
Sources in the Cuomo transition say Giuliani, along with NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly and former U.S. Attorney Zach Carter, will “recruit, review and recommend candidates for top positions in agencies” related to keeping New York safe.
It’s a fascinating gambit on Cuomo’s part.
Giuliani’s profile went from lame duck to “America’s Mayor” after the 9/11 attacks. It catapulted him far enough into national hero status for him to make a bet-it-all-on-Florida run for President that ended up a near-total failure.
There was still enough shine left on the world’s biggest Yankees fan for news shows and aspiring Republican candidates alike to keep him on speed dial. Some in the GOP begged him to run for governor this year, seeing him as the only Republican with a chance at taking down the Cuomo juggernaut.