Former New York mayor and close Donald Trump ally Rudy Giuliani is fighting for his life at a hospital in Florida.
The 81-year-old is critical but stable, according to his spokesperson Ted Goodman.
“Mayor Giuliani is a fighter who has faced every challenge in his life with unwavering strength, and he’s fighting with that same level of strength as we speak,” he said in a statement on Sunday night (Monday morning AEST).
“We do ask that you join us in prayer for America’s Mayor-Rudy Giuliani.”
Giuliani had hosted his online show “America’s Mayor Live” on Friday night from Palm Beach, Florida and appeared to sound worse than usual.
“My voice is a little under the weather, so I won’t be able to speak as loudly as I usually do, but I’ll get closer to the microphone,” he said.
Giuliani, a former US attorney, earned the nickname “America’s mayor” after he led New York through the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attack on the Twin Towers.
He later ran for president in 2008 and was considered a frontrunner for the Republican Party nomination but dropped out to endorse John McCain.
Giuliani has worked closely with former administrations, having campaigned for George Bush’s re-election in 2004 and received the Ronald Reagan Presidential Freedom Award.
The former Time’s Person of the Year changed course from working as a partner of a private law firm when he joined President Donald Trump’s team in 2017.
In a statement about his hospitalisation, Trump said Giuliani is a “true warrior” who was treated “so bad by the Radical Left Lunatics”.
“Our fabulous Rudy Giuliani, a True Warrior, and the Best Mayor in the History of New York City, BY FAR, has been hospitalised, and is in critical condition,” he said in a Truth Social Post.
“What a tragedy that he was treated so badly by the Radical Left Lunatics, Democrats ALL — AND HE WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING!
“They cheated on the Elections, fabricated hundreds of stories, did anything possible to destroy our Nation, and now, look at Rudy. So sad!”
Giuliani has served as a member of Trump’s personal legal team, investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 election and Joe Biden and his son Hunter.
He famously failed to overturn the results of the 2020 election, leading to criminal charges in two states and a defamation lawsuit by election workers.
He was also disbarred in New York, filed for bankruptcy but failed and had his radio talk show cancelled.
Trump, in September last year and just two days after Giuliani was injured in a car crash, announced he would award the former mayor the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
– With Associated Press, CNN