In 1994, when Rudy Giuliani was mayor of New York City, he said:

“If you come here and you work hard and you happen to be in an undocumented status, you’re one of the people who we want in this city. You’re somebody that we want to protect.”

What a difference a presidential candidacy makes! Rudy needs to woo conservatives for the Republican primary. So he created the appearance of sympathizing with the English-as-the-offical-language crowd by making a lunch stop on Monday at Geno’s Steaks in Philadelphia.

This fine culinary establishment, you will recall, gained fame last year for a sign in the window that reads, “This is America. When ordering, please speak English.”

The owner, Joe Vento, is the grandson of Sicilian immigrants who spoke no English when they came to America, and says that his parents struggled to learn the language in public school, where at that time there was no other choice. He believes that this is the best and fastest track to realizing the American dream. He observed the growing Hispanic population in his city and decided to provide motivation for them to learn.

Later, discussing the event with FOX News, Rudy said:

“Immigration is the best thing we have going for us. We need new people. We need people who are going to inform us, give us new ideas, but it has to be legal. Illegal immigration is a bad thing.”

Although Rudy insists he has not changed his position, it strains credulity to get from wanting to protect the undocumented to saying that illegal immigration is a bad thing.

It would seem that eating those Philly cheese steaks on a Monday is dangerous sledding for any politician. In 2003, John Kerry garnered serious negative press at Pat’s King of Steaks, on the street corner opposite Geno’s.

Steak Raises Stakes for Kerry in Philly
By Dana Milbank  |  Wednesday, August 13, 2003

If Sen. John F. Kerry’s presidential aspirations melt like a dollop of Cheez Whiz in the sun, the trouble may well be traced to an incident in South Philadelphia on Monday.

There, the Massachusetts Democrat went to Pat’s Steaks and ordered a cheesesteak — with Swiss cheese. If that weren’t bad enough, the candidate asked photographers not to take his picture while he ate the sandwich; shutters clicked anyway, and Kerry was caught nibbling daintily at his sandwich — another serious faux pas.

“It will doom his candidacy in Philadelphia,” predicted Craig LaBan, food critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer….