Apart from the corporations that bear his name, Giuliani has had at least two high-profile opportunities to demonstrate his much-ballyhooed leadership skills. In 2003, Mexico City hired Giuliani to advise officials on its rampant crime and corruption problems, to mixed reviews at best. "They weren't consultants, they were retired policemen. And they were trying to organize another police force, but not with a methodology or a clear idea," a Mexican police official later complained to the New York Sun.

And then there's the Iraq Study Group. Giuliani is one of the staunchest backers of the war effort, but he resigned from the bipartisan panel after failing to attend a single meeting in two months. Members of the I.S.G. have said that Giuliani opted out of the meetings due to his numerous speaking engagements, for which he earned $11.4 million last year.

With his private-sector record hidden, Giuliani is left to stump heavily on his years as mayor. To succeed, he'll need to keep the focus on his antipornography, pro-business, and low-crime initiatives and hope that the more damaging stories about his temper, poor race relations, and extramarital affair stay out of the public eye.

"I think that I can get you results that the others are talking about," he told a voter at a recent town-hall meeting in Laconia, New Hampshire. "They don't have the results to back up what they are promising," he added of his rivals on both sides of the aisle. "I do."