I agree that his response was what any mayor *should* have done, which *should* be commendable, but not outstanding. I think he gets all the praise because I don't know that many mayors *would* have done this. (See Ray Nagin in New Orleans after Katrina). (and I mean putting himself in the fray during the attacks, etc.)
In defense, I will say that I don't think either of the two WTC attacks during Guiliani's tenure were in any way representative of failure on his part as mayor. Modifications were made to the WTC after the 1993 truck bombing which prevented any unauthorized vehicles from parking below the structure.
And, certainly, nothing could have been done by the mayor of NYC to prevent aircraft from targeting highrises. As a result, WTC 7 which has been reconstructed and now leases office spaces boasts some of the most advanced facility security in the world. Also, structural implementations were put into place to better facilitate evacuations, emergency announcements, etc.
It's a matter of learning a lesson an adjusting to it. Can an aircraft still fly into WTC 7? Sure. Is it Bloomberg's fault? No. It's the aircraft's pilot/hijacker.
--BMV
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