Giuliani: Pride and Disappointment

Finally, the case of Zacarias Moussaoui is closed.

He will spend the rest of his life in jail.

Just minutes after the verdict in Moussaoui's sentencing trial was announced, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani spoke with Chris Matthews.

Try to disregard the insufferable Matthews and focus on what Giuliani had to say.

Transcript

CHRIS MATTHEWS, HOST, "HARDBALL": Your thoughts must be going back to 9/11 right now with this, the first verdict really in the case of 9/11.

RUDY GIULIANI, FMR. NEW YORK MAYOR: Oh, sure. Of course they do and I testified in the penalty phase of the trial. It was much more difficult than I thought it would be reviewing all that, going over it, seeing the films of it.

Obviously I’m not personally involved in this, but I would have preferred a different verdict but it does show that we have a legal system that we follow, that we respect it. And it is exactly what is missing in the parts of the world or a lot of the parts of the world that are breeding terrorism.

So maybe there is something good that come out of this in showing these people that at least showing the ones that have any kind of an open mind that we are a free society, a lawful society, a decent society, that we have respect for people’s rights and that we can have disagreements about whether the death penalty should be imposed on somebody like Moussaoui.

I think it should have been. I’ve been a lawyer more of my life than anything else. And I respect a jury’s verdict. I sat in front of this jury for about three or four hours. They look like very careful and very decent people. I am sure they did the best they could.

...It is a complex set of feelings that I have. I would have preferred to see the death penalty, but I kind of stand in awe of how our legal system works that it can come to a result like this. It has to say something about us to the rest of the word.

...


MATTHEWS: You will be asked in the days ahead, Mr. Mayor, whether justice was done today. Was it?

GIULIANI: Justice was done. Sure. I mean, this is the system that we have for justice. It was a trial. It seemed like it was a fair trial. I think the judge was fair. I think the jurors were fair. It’s just not the result that I would have come to.

I think that if you believe in this system, you have to be willing to deal with conclusions that are maybe different than the one you would like as long as it has been carried out in the right way.

I do think there is a value to this. I think the greater value would have been if he had been executed, but I think there is value in demonstrating to people what is America is like. We can have these kind of emotional disagreements, then there’s the law and we’re going to follow it.

MATTHEWS: So you don’t think that jury’s inability to reach a unanimous decision for death showed a lack of guts or lack of will?

What a stupid question! Typical Matthews.

GIULIANI: No. No. I would never say that. I’ve prosecuted many cases. I’ve been in court many times and I was on the jury myself. I have great respect for the jury process. From everything I can tell about these people when I testified in front of them, these were very serious conscientious people. They reached the result they thought was the right one. You and I may disagree with it. I do.

...

MATTHEWS: Let me ask you this question. The man who is now going to face life imprisonment without parole, probably solitary most of time, said on his way out of the court room tonight, this is Zacarias Moussaoui as he was led from the courtroom he said, “America you lost” and clapped his hands. Your reaction to that.

GIULIANI: He is wrong as he has probably been wrong for a very long time. America won tonight. America demonstrated something that the places that he came from, I doubt they’d be able to demonstrate. Not a lot of places could demonstrate. It demonstrated that the legal system that we have, that we would like to see the rest of the world have something like it, it works, it works to be fair, even if we disagree.

If anyone understands the destruction of the 9/11 attacks and the horror and heartbreak of their aftermath, it's Rudy Giuliani.

What a perfect response to the verdict!

Giuliani supports the death penalty and he wanted Moussaoui to get it. When that was not the sentenced delivered, rather than lashing out at the jury, Giuliani chose to comment on the great respect that he has for the American legal system.

While making it clear that he was personally disappointed in the decision, he also made it clear that he believes in the rule of law and is proud to live by it.

In America, no one is going to kidnap Moussaoui, torture him, demand that he make a videotaped plea for his life, and then televise a tape of hooded men beheading him as he screams in agony.

That's not what we're about. We have a system of laws and we abide by them. We may not always be happy with the outcome of a trial, but we understand the importance of acting within the law. That's a powerful message to send to terrorists and their accomplices who provide them havens.

Giuliani is right. America won.