Giuliani Urges Compromise on Iraq Legislation

He Proposes Talks Before Veto by Bush

DES MOINES, April 4 -- Former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani accused Democrats of throwing up a flag of surrender in Iraq but urged President Bush to seek a negotiated solution with Congress before vetoing legislation that would impose a timetable for withdrawing U.S. forces from the conflict.

Giuliani offered his views on Iraq in an interview late Tuesday during his first campaign trip to Iowa as a presidential candidate, and sought to respond to many of the questions opponents have raised about his long-term viability as a contender.

He reiterated his support for abortion rights while acknowledging the vital role conservatives play in the Republican Party. And he again expressed support for Bush's Iraq policy, although he was critical of the way in which the administration has communicated its goals in that country.

Of particular relevance to voters in this critical early caucus state, Giuliani said he plans to compete to win in the early contests in 2008, putting to rest suggestions from his advisers that he might skip one of them with an eye to recovering when a series of big states, including California, hold primaries on Feb. 5.

Giuliani congratulated former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney for leading the Republican field in money raised during the first quarter of the year, but he added that he is not reading anything significant into the lackluster fundraising report of Sen. John McCain (Ariz.). Of his own fundraising, he said: "We're not going to have any trouble raising what we need to raise."

At a rally in Des Moines during his brief visit to the state on Tuesday, he laid out his campaign's message: staying on offense against terrorism, cutting taxes and reining in spending in Washington. He said that, as mayor of New York, he had demonstrated the necessary leadership skills and record to be president.

"I can get things done," he said. "I proved it before, and I'll do it again."

Shuttling between meetings in Des Moines, Giuliani was relaxed, energetic and spirited as he fielded a range of questions about the campaign.

On Iraq, he planted himself firmly on Bush's side, saying that the president's decision to send more troops there gives the United States a chance for success.

"I haven't given up on that goal, and I think people who have and are retreating are making a very big mistake," he said. "Because under the conditions that exist right now, with the white flag that Congress wants to wave, you take a very big risk of a civil war in Iraq, which could lead to a regional war."

Asked what he meant when he said during an interview on CNBC that too much time was being spent on Iraq, he offered a clarification. "I didn't mean to suggest at all that Iraq isn't terribly important and you've got to spend a lot of time on Iraq," he said.

But he said the nation must "multitask" in the fight against terrorism. "You've also got to spend time on Iran, Syria -- not losing sight of the fact that we've got to get Pakistan and Afghanistan right. We've got to make sure that the great efforts that our military made in the Afghan war are completed so that we crush al-Qaeda, the Taliban can't reemerge. I think we should put a tremendous amount of effort on trying to catch [al-Qaeda leader Osama] bin Laden."