Jay Nordlinger, on Friday, decides to liveblog the Giuliani speech from Tuesday. Of course, he's really fucking old, so we must give him a pass. But still, let us shout at clouds.
They say Rudy “looks like an undertaker.” So, maybe he does — but a formidable and interesting undertaker.
Those chants of “U-S-A, U-S-A” — harmless, I know, but awfully jingo.
And Rudy went off-text a little, improvising, riffing: “Oh, I just can’t make a decision — I don’t know whether to vote yes or no. It’s just too tough.” He was incredibly merry when he was saying all this — enjoying himself, cracking himself up, cracking up the audience. A mischievous delight ran through the hall.
Sarcasm is a tricky thing: You can’t let it get too heavy-handed. And Rudy stayed on the happy side of that line.
This man gave one of the most engaging, rollicking, and fun — yes, fun — speeches I can remember hearing. That’s if you’re a partisan Republican, of course. And even if you’re not — you might have gotten some sort of kick out of it.
Like Willard Scott, only without the gravitas.
I like particularly the "harmless, I know, but awfully jingo" line. I'm almost afraid to touch it, it is so very beautiful. Flaubert only wished he could invent Jay Nordlinger.