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GREENSBORO Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani, speaking at a fundraising brunch with female supporters, pledged to stay "on offense" militarily.



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About 750 people attended the "Women for Rudy" event Monday at the N.C. A&T Alumni Foundation's event center.



Giuliani spent much of his time talking about national security, calling it the most important issue in the election.



"We have to remain on offense," he said. "We can't hide, we can't duck."



Giuliani also touched on domestic issues during his speech. He didn't mention other Republicans, preferring instead to go on the offensive against Democrats.



Giuliani said he wants to see less government control in areas such as health care, pensions and education and wants to lower taxes on individuals and corporations.



"We need to have a society in which we reward success, not penalize it," he said.



Giuliani touted school choice and vouchers as the keys to success in education.



American colleges and universities do a good job, but kindergarten through 12th-grade education lags, he said.



The main difference, he said, is that students choose which college they want to attend, yet that's generally not the case for elementary, middle or high schools.



All children should have a choice of schools , Giuliani said.



"We can't just think about your child and my child," he said. "It's about all the children."



Giuliani said his approach to health care is to encourage people to purchase their own health insurance by creating tax breaks for it.



A main problem with the current system is most people don't shop around for the best deal, he said.



"They don't make consumer choices about it," he said.



The Republican nomination is likely to be long decided by the state's May 6 primary, which comes months after the first primaries in January and the Feb. 5 Super Tuesday.



Still, the visit was a chance to make a swing through what could be a competitive state in November, and with prices ranging from $50 to get in to $2,300 for a seat at the head table and a photo opportunity, it was also a chance to bring in campaign cash.



Giuliani was warmly received by those in attendance, but not all have made up their minds.



Friends Jane Miller and Mary Holt of Greensboro said they like the changes that took place in New York during Giuliani's tenure as mayor.



"The best thing he did was he cleaned up New York," Miller said.



Still, both said they haven't quite settled on a candidate.



Miller also likes former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee but said she has one absolute requirement for whoever she supports.



"I'm for whoever can beat Hillary," she said.

Contact Jason Hardin at 373-7021 or at jhardin@news-record.com