Giuliani: ‘God Forbid Somebody Would Do Some Reporting On Barack Obama’s Use Of Drugs’

On Saturday, the New York Times published an investigative piece on Cindy McCain that delved into, among other things, her past addiction to painkillers. Responding with outrage, the McCain campaign called the article “gutter journalism at its worst” and released a pre-publication letter from McCain lawyer John Dowd that invoked Sen. Barack Obama’s youthful drug use:

It is worth noting that you have not employed your investigative assets looking into Michelle Obama. You have not tried to find Barack Obama’s drug dealer that he wrote about in his book, Dreams of My Father. Nor have you interviewed his poor relatives in Kenya and determined why Barack Obama has not rescued them. Thus, there is a terrific lack of balance here.

In an interview with Fox News today, former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani continued the assault on the Times, claiming that the paper had unbalanced coverage of the two candidates and that “there shouldn’t be two different rules for Republicans and Democrats.” Giuliani, unprompted, also brought up Obama’s past drug use:

GIULIANI: You can’t even — you can’t even raise these issues. And, you know, God forbid somebody would do some reporting on Barack Obama’s use of drugs. I guess that was the point that Mrs. McCain’s lawyer made.

After raising the issue of drugs, however, Giuliani then claimed, “I don’t think the Time[s] should” report on Obama’s drug use. Watch it:

Giuliani accused the Times of “not reading their own newspaper” when they claim to have balanced coverage. But God forbid that Giuliani actually read the Times, considering that the paper has already investigated Obama’s past drug use. In February 2008, the paper published an article that relied on “three dozen interviews” and found that to his friends and associates, Obama “did not appear to be grappling with any drug problems and seemed to dabble only with marijuana.”

Transcript:

KELLY: You know, the Times has come out saying, look, we’ve reported vigorously on the backgrounds of both candidates.

GIULIANI: Yeah, like heck they have.

KELLY: And those who influence them, including both prospective first ladies. They claim that they’ve about just as tough on Michelle Obama.

GIULIANI: Well, they’re living — they’re living in their own bubble if they think that. I mean, in fact, they — it’s even worse than that. If you raise legitimate issues about Barack Obama, his connection with Ayers, his connection with Reverend Wright, his connection with Rezko who bought the house for him and went off to jail — you’re accused of being some kind of a mean, vicious, narrow- minded person.

You can’t even — you can’t even raise these issues. And, you know, God forbid somebody would do some reporting on Barack Obama’s use of drugs. I guess that was the point that Mrs. McCain’s lawyer made.

KELLY: Right. Mrs. McCain’s lawyer wrote to the Times saying — just so our viewers know — it’s worth noting that you’ve not employed your investigative assets looking into Michelle Obama. You have not tried to find Barack Obama’s drug dealer that he wrote about having in his book, Dreams of My Father, nor have you interviewed his poor relatives in Kenya, et cetera.

GIULIANI: Now, I don’t think the Time should do that. I think, you know, the presidential campaigns have gotten bad enough. They shouldn’t do that.

But if they’re not going to do it do Obama, they shouldn’t do it to McCain. And they shouldn’t do it, certainly, to Cindy McCain. And there shouldn’t be two different rules for Republicans and Democrats. And if they don’t think they have two different rules for Republicans and Democrats, then they’re not reading their own newspaper.