Rudy Giuliani on re-opening America: We have to get something started
The plan should be incremental openings, says former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
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Former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, the Republican who guided the Big Apple though the immediate aftermath of Sept. 11, told "Hannity" on Friday that the city must begin to return to normal, even if in extremely limited increments.
Giuliani, a veritable New York Yankees superfan, said that there is a responsible way to allow people some freedom to take in a game once again in the South Bronx.
"I like the idea of checking people who go. Maybe go with half of a stadium or a third of a stadium," he said, offering no specific timeline other than to advise an incremental approach.
He said that, after 9/11, he reopened Broadway theaters three days after the terror attack. At first, he recalled, venues only saw about one-third of their capacity, but that it eventually grew as people became more comfortable congregating once again.
"They didn't want to open. I said to them, I will protect everybody that comes in -- I will protect all of the actors, the actresses, the band, the whole thing," he said.
"Maybe you start with 20,000 people in the stands [at Yankee Stadium] -- spread them out," he added.
Giuliani said that if the city or the teams are not comfortable with summarily putting people in the stands together, sports leagues like MLB should consider live streaming games on television, or Broadway streaming shows for a fee.
"If I could watch a game on television, it would be like being in heaven for me," Giuliani said. "What we have to do ... we have to get something started. Whatever compromise we have to make to get it started, let's make it."
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"I love watching you, Sean [Hannity] and Laura [Ingraham], but I would really like to see [Yankees right fielder] Aaron Judge hit a home run," he said.
Host Sean Hannity also asked Giuliani -- who said he worked closely with the late former Gov. Mario Cuomo while mayor -- to potentially urge Cuomo's son, current New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo, to potentially spar with President Trump in private rather than publicly.
"President Trump did everything for New York. If he wants more stuff, call him. He doesn't have to do it publicly -- do it privately. Work together. Every time he goes 'I need, I need,' it drives me nuts," Hannity said.
"That's the way I dealt with [Mario]," Giuliani replied. "He [Andrew] should deal with Trump that way. I called him up privately, I didn't embarrass him. I never dealt with [Republican] Gov. [George] Pataki that way, either."
"[New York City Mayor Bill] de Blasio has got to stop this 'we're going to be closed down for six months,'" he added.
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