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Giuliani to give key speech in Florida

BY CRAIG GORDON | craig.gordon@newsday.com

December 13, 2007

JOHNSTON, Iowa - After tumbling into a tie for first place with Mike Huckabee, Rudy Giuliani will gave what the campaign is billing a key speech in Florida on Saturday seemingly aimed at re-energizing the campaign for the homestretch and re-focusing Republicans on why they liked Giuliani all year.

The campaign refused to offer details of the speech, except to say it would focus on Giuliani's top themes -- national security and a strong economy.

It's no accident that Giuliani is picking Florida for the speech. That state's Jan. 29 primary looms ever larger in Giuliani's calculus as he is flirting with fourth place in Iowa and failing to overtake Mitt Romney in New Hampshire.

If Huckabee and Romney split early contests, Giuliani's camp believes a decisive win in Florida would help crystallize national support. Despite lagging in some early states, Giuliani still holds a significant lead in Florida.

The speech also would give Giuliani a chance to change the subject after a month of tough stories, from the indictment of his former police commissioner Bernard Kerik to questions about whether he tried to shift security expenses for visits to Judith Nathan, now his wife.

Those stories have taken some of the shine off Giuliani among some Republicans who supported him in part because of his tough-on-terror persona, and the sense that he has the best chance to beat Hillary Rodham Clinton -- attributes Huckabee lacks.