Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani. (Reuters/File)
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is joining the team of lawyers representing US President Donald Trump in the ongoing Russia investigation. In a statement announcing Giuliani’s hire, Trump expressed his wish that the investigation wraps up soon and praised Giuliani, a fellow New Yorker, confidant and Mar-a-Lago regular. “Rudy is great,” Trump said, adding, “He has been my friend for a long time and wants to get this matter quickly resolved for the good of the country.”
A staunch supporter of Trump since the early days of his campaign, Giuliani will be working closely with White House lawyer Ty Cobb, who has also been handling the administration’s cooperation with the Mueller investigation.
Who is Rudy Giuliani?
-Giuliani has been working at the law firm Greenberg Traurig, a registered foreign agent for the government of Turkey, where he has been a senior adviser and head of the firm’s cybersecurity, privacy and crisis management practice.
-He played a vital role as New York mayor (1994-2001) during the September 11 attacks at the World Trade Center towers in 2001. He was praisedfor his leadership during the terror strike. When polled six weeks after the attack, Giuliani received a 79 per cent approval rating, as compared to the 36 per cent rating he received the previous year even after completing seven years in the administration.
-After leaving office as mayor, Giuliani advised foreign political figures and worked for lobbying and security firms whose clients have had complicated relationships with the US government. While not personally involved in lobbying, Giuliani spent years at firms that represented foreign governments and multinational companies, some of which had interests that diverged from those of the US.
-His consulting firm also did work in the Persian Gulf monarchy of Qatar and received money for supporting the Mujahedin-e Khalq, the Iranian dissident group, even as it was a US-designated foreign terrorist organization.
-More recently, Giuliani’s work for Greenberg Traurig, who is a registered foreign agent for the government of Turkey, has drawn the attention for his involvement in a high-profile case with foreign policy implications for the US-Turkey relationship.
-Last year, joined former Bush administration attorney general Michael Mukasey in working to resolve the case of Reza Zarrab, a Turkish-Iranian businessman who was accused of participating in a scheme to help Iran evade US sanctions. The case also focused on allegations of corruption against Turkish officials, including Turkey president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Relation with Trump
-Giuliani has known Trump for decades and was widely expected to join the latter’s administration. He rejected the idea of becoming the attorney general, lobbying Trump to name him secretary of state. Trump, however, picked Rex Tillerson, leaving Giuliani without a Cabinet post.
-The two men share similar policy ideals, publicly supporting law enforcement in ways that have alienated minorities, and taking bullish stances on immigration enforcement. In 2016, for instance, Giuliani fiercely criticized the Black Lives Matter movement, saying it encouraged violence against police. More recently, he has said he was consulted by Trump on how to implement the travel ban put in place last year against Muslim-majority nations.
(With agency inputs)