At a press conference in Milwaukee Thursday afternoon, Republican presidential candidate and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani said his conservative stance on other key issues should satisfy voters, despite recent questions surrounding his belief on abortion rights.

Giuliani spoke at a short press conference after his $1,000 a plate luncheon fundraiser at the University Club of Milwaukee, 924 E. Wells St. He addressed his conservatism, his plan for dealing with Islamic terrorism and the economy. While there wasn't a visible showing of Marquette University students at the Giuliani luncheon, some students expressed interest in his viewpoints, particularly his view on abortion and the war in Iraq.

Conservative views and abortion rights

Giuliani's atypical support of abortion rights, as a conservative, does not alienate conservative voters like Tyler Kristopeit, a University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee junior and a member of the UWM College Republicans.

Giuliani said that while he is not conservative on every issue, his core philosophy of individual responsibility and social contract, law enforcement, national security and dealing with Islamic terrorism should satisfy conservative voters.

"My thought is, who is (a typical republican)? I don't think there is a way, as a person, that you can agree with everything a particular candidate has on his platform," said Kristopeit.

Kristopeit said that he doesn't agree with Giuliani on every issue but respects the difference of opinion when it comes to abortion rights. Eileen Penkwitz, a Marquette University senior, said that Giuliani's pro-abortion rights stance is not that important to her in the grand scheme because she feels there are other more important issues at stake, like the war in Iraq and education. Penkwitz said that she likes that Giuliani does not share all the same beliefs of a conservative republican.

"I think its good that he's honest about how he feels because that shows that he's not going to just be a lapdog or finger puppet for the Republican Party," said Penkwitz.

Giuliani's luncheon speech

Giuliani said that he talked to his supporters at the luncheon about the two main issues that will come up in the 2008 election, Islamic terrorism and the economy. He said that he thinks America should be on the offense against Islamic terrorism, and he thinks the democrats want to be on the defense.

"I think you can see that reflected in [.] their desire to pull out of Iraq without real consideration of the consequences, what that will do with Iran and Islamic terrorism in general," Giuliani said.

Giuliani also said that he is committed to a fiscally conservative approach to the economy, which "ultimately releases people's energies and spirits, and it allows them to reach for the sky rather than have a lid put on their development."

The war in Iraq

According to Giuliani's campaign website, he believes setting a timetable for withdrawing troops right now would be a mistake that would only embolden the enemies of the United States. He said that Iraq is one of the fronts on the war on terror. Daniel Pesch, a University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee student and a member of the UWM College Republicans, agrees that withdrawing troops from Iraq now would be a mistake.

"Whether or not you agree with why we are there, we are there. We have a job to do, and for us to pull out now would leave their country in shambles because there are three parties there who hate each other. If we left, it would be the strongest survives and we can't let that happen," Pesch said.

Giuliani and Democratic candidates

John Tate, a Marquette University junior, said that he thinks Giuliani is a stronger presidential candidate than the Democratic candidates.

"I think he's a great candidate. I think he blows Obama and Hillary out of the water," Tate said.

That sentiment seemed to be a key point in Giuliani's comments after the University Club luncheon as well.

"We also have to win this election. Otherwise, we end up with Hillary Clinton in the White House, and I think every conservative would be much more comfortable with me selecting federal judges as opposed to Hillary Clinton," Giuliani said.

Appealing to the younger vote

Penkwitz thinks that candidates need to appeal to and listen to the younger vote. Kristopeit said that any politician who doesn't listen to the younger vote is foolish, and Giuliani is not foolish. He said that Giuliani treated the College Republicans who worked at the event with the utmost respect, which they appreciated.

Tate thinks Giuliani has the interests of young voters at heart.

"Just considering him being mayor during 9/11 and how he handled the issue. I think people our age really look up to him because of how he handled that, and that's going to be a major help to his campaign," Tate said.

Pesch agreed with Tate and said that if Giuliani was able to lead New York at a time like 9/11, he would be a good leader of the United States.

Not all students looked so favorably on Giuliani's actions after 9/11. Penkwitz said that Giuliani did not do enough to help the firemen and others who responded after 9/11 and that he is trying to skate by on his reputation as America's mayor.

"Any chance he gets to bring it up, doesn't matter the topic, he's talking about 9/11," Penkwitz said.

Giuliani said he plans on campaigning in all 50 states, which will give him more hope and a better chance at winning the presidency in 2008. Tate hopes that he spends more time appealing to the younger vote as the campaign wears on, like Barack Obama did by hosting an affordable rally in Madison on Monday.

"I would be interested to hear him speak. I would go to a rally of his if I could afford it. It's something that interests me," Tate said.