What's in Rudy Giuliani's Political Future?
WOODRUFF: Each Friday, our Bill Schneider reviews the events of the last seven days, and he chooses one worthy of the "Political Play of the Week."</s>SHAW: But this week is different. Here's Bill to explain.</s>SCHNEIDER: People said there's no way Hillary Clinton could win the New York Senate race, but there are lots of ways Rudy Giuliani could lose it, and he seems to be trying them all: especially this week. "Play of the Week"? No. Instead, we have one of the all-time championship political bloopers. (voice-over): The estrangement between Mayor Rudy Giuliani and his wife Donna Hanover has never been a secret to New Yorkers, but the mayor and his wife treated it as a private matter. And wonder of wonders, so did the press and the voters. When the mayor announced his cancer diagnosis last month, his wife was not by his side, but the line still held: This was a private matter. The polls didn't budge. For months now, the mayor has been seen in very conspicuous public places with another woman, but the mayor did little to keep that relationship private.</s>MAYOR RUDY GIULIANI (R), NEW YORK: I rely on her and she helps me a great deal, and I'm going to need her more now than maybe I did before.</s>SCHNEIDER: People wondered what was this doing to his wife, but she kept silent. This week, Mayor Giuliani dropped a bombshell. He went public with a very private matter, apparently without informing his wife or even his staff.</s>GIULIANI: What I -- what I said is that we should try to work out a separation agreement.</s>SCHNEIDER: His wife could no longer keep silent. A few hours later, an angry and humiliated Donna Hanover made a public statement and an allegation.</s>DONNA HANOVER, WIFE OF RUDY GIULIANI: I had hoped to keep this marriage together. For several years it was difficult to participate in Rudy's public life because of his relationship with one staff member.</s>SCHNEIDER: For most New Yorkers, the issue is not the mayor's private behavior. It's the way he handled the matter. To hurt his wife in such a public way seems callous and insensitive. It reinforces the damaging impression that Giuliani can be an awfully mean guy to his opponents, to his critics and now to his wife. Meanwhile, Mrs. Clinton is following the oldest rule of politics. Never get in the way of an opponent who's in the process of destroying himself. Let him be the story.</s>HILLARY CLINTON (D), NEW YORK SENATE CANDIDATE: You know, out of respect for the mayor and his family, I have nothing to say about that.</s>SCHNEIDER: To many voters, the issue isn't Giuliani's morality: It's his fairness, his judgment, his ability to manage relationships. When you raise those kinds of questions with voters, you've committed a serious political blooper. (on camera): The mayor must decide over the weekend whether he intends to run for the Senate. He's always been a fighter. But can he fight three battles at once? A battle against cancer, a battle with his wife and a very tough battle for the Senate? -- Bernie, Judy.</s>SHAW: Thank you. Very pungent questions. That's all for this edition of INSIDE POLITICS, but you can go online all the time at CNN's Allpolitics.com.</s>WOODRUFF: And this weekend programming note: Commerce Secretary Bill Daley will be talking about China's trade status on tomorrow on "EVANS, NOVAK, HUNT & SHIELDS." That's at 5:30 p.m. Eastern. I'm Judy Woodruff.</s>SHAW: I'm Bernard Shaw. "WORLDVIEW" is next.