SUNSET PARK The Counter on Ocean Park Boulevard is typically packed during the lunch hour rush, but on Tuesday, the popular burg-er joint was even more crowded than normal as diners were treated to a short visit from former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and a dozen or more of his supporters. and fries and to shake hands with voters, continuing his efforts to shore up support in California, which his campaign believes is crucial to his chances of winning the Republican nomination.
It was Giuliani’s 12th trip to California during this campaign season, where the most recent poll, conducted Nov. 30-Dec. 2 by SurveyUSA, gave him a 32 percent-18 percent lead over Arizona Sen. John McCain.
Former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee each had 14 percent, followed by former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson with 13 percent.
Still, Giuliani is trailing in polls in Iowa and New Hampshire, the first two states to select the national convention delegates who will determine the party nominee, and is in a statistical dead heat in South Carolina, the first southern state to hold a primary.
Nationally, Giuliani is in a dead heat with Huckabee, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll released Tuesday.
The Giuliani campaign has long pinned its strategy on winning in the large states that will hold their primaries on Feb. 5, including California.
“Mayor Giuliani has shown a commitment to campaigning in California that no other Republican has shown,” said Jarrod Agen, a Giuliani regional communications director. “Rudy has maintained consistent and solid support from Republicans throughout California and we are well organized to win in the state.”
Some questioned why Giuliani would pick a restaurant like The Counter and a city like Santa Monica to have a meet-and-greet, given that the city is known for being fairly liberal with an overwhelming number of registered Democrats.
One fan of the former mayor said he did not want to be interviewed by the press “because there are a lot of liberals out here and I don’t want my name in the paper.”
Giuliani’s supporters said he is a moderate Republican who appeals to many different segments of the population.
“I think it’s a good move,” said Dianne Lenning, former chair of the Republican Education Caucus, who drove up from her home in Orange County to get her picture taken with the candidate. “It’s important to reach out to people from both the major parties so that we can work together as one country and that is what Rudy plans to do.”
Employees at The Counter said the Giuliani camp called the restaurant and asked to come and visit.
While his supporters were all smiles, customers at The Counter didn’t seem thrilled with the throng of reporters and Giuliani followers that made their way into the cramped restaurant.
“This is ridiculous,” said one man who came in for lunch. “This place is crowded enough already.”
Another woman could be overheard contemplating whether she should stay or go.
“The burgers are so yummy, but this is just too long of a wait,” she said.
Giuliani spent most of the 15 minutes at The Counter shaking hands, hugging supporters and signing autographs. He thanked volunteers for working on his campaign and took a few questions from reporters, most focusing on what Giuliani would do differently than President Bush if elected.
Giuliani’s two-day trip to California began yesterday with a stop in San Francisco, where he told reporters that “the most important thing we could do is reinforce the dollar” and “build the economy,” adding that he would cut the corporate income tax rate from 35 percent to 25 percent.
“That would leave money in your pocket, ultimately,” Giuliani said. “What it would do is bring more jobs to the United States, it would keep more jobs in the United States. It would reverse the flow of outsourcing.”
Giuliani volunteer Elise Cooper, of Glendale, said he was a Democrat who voted for former Vice President Al Gore, but since 9/11, has changed her political position, favoring Giuliani for his stance on national defense. Cooper also likes his stance on social issues.
“He’s a moderate on social issues, so why wouldn’t he come to Santa Monica?” Copper asked. “He’s one of the few candidates who can actually think. He’s intelligent.”
He also likes burgers. As he walked out of the front door of The Counter smiling and waving, a security guard was seen running out the side door with two large paper bags in each hand filled with food.
Apparently, when you run for president, eating on the run comes with the territory. The question remains, can Giuliani make California and the Westside his territory?
Giuliani marks the sixth presidential candidate in Southern California over the past three days, and the first Republican.
On Monday, Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and Christopher Dodd conducted fundraisers, while New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson gave the keynote speech at the GreenXchange Global marketplace Conference in Century City and conducted a fundraiser.
On Sunday, Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D- Ohio, concluded a two-day campaign swing through the Los Angeles area Sunday by attending fundraisers in Mount Washington and Santa Monica and the Peace Expo at the Los Angeles Baha’i Center in Baldwin Hills.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 12, 2007. Read the original PDF.