Via Ben Smith, it looks as if Rudy Giuliani took a jab at John McCain in an interview that's passed entirely unnoticed -- a gentle jab, yes, but a jab nonetheless. In a Q&A with Dennis Prager (the same one who attacked Keith Ellison recently for being a Muslim), Giuliani was asked how he compared to John McCain. His answer:

"I mean, John and I have pretty much the same view on the war, as best I can tell. I mean, I think he is...it may be that I'm more firmly committed to tax cutting than he is, although he has vote for some tax cuts. He hasn't voted for others."

It's interesting to note that Giuliani has begun to draw differences between himself and McCain on the all-important GOP primary issue of taxes. But something else jumps out about the interview as well.

Specifically, it's interesting that Giuliani says he has "pretty much the same view on the war" as McCain. Does that mean he supports sending more troops to Iraq, as McCain does?

Unclear. Here's what Giuliani said elsewhere in the interview, when he elaborated a bit on his Iraq views:

I think...I don't think we should leave Iraq, certainly not under the present situation that Iraq is in, and with the consequences that would flow from leaving Iraq. I think this is a question of if...if we were to walk out of Iraq, it would satisfy a certain degree of public opinion right now, and I think within six months or a year, the people who made that decision would be very much...would regret it, and I think the American people would, because the terrorists understand how important Iraq is. They are putting tremendous resources into defeating us in Iraq. If they defeat us in Iraq, Iran all of a sudden has a very established strong neighbor that's an ally. You have a place that can be a breeding ground of terrorism. And the reality is, it will make the terrorist movement that much stronger. And I think that we have to figure out, as the President is doing now, I think in a very deliberate way, what's a better strategy, how do we succeed in Iraq, what can we learn from the mistakes we may have made, and then as we go forward, do a better job of creating a stable situation in Iraq. But the idea of leaving Iraq, I think, is a terrible mistake.

It's very clear from this interview, I think, that Giuliani and his people haven't thought through just what his answers to the inevitable Iraq questions will be. On the one hand, he says we need a better strategy than the current one being pursued by President Bush. On the other, he says, Bush is already thinking through those new and improved strategies, whatever they'll prove to be. If Giuliani knows what his own position on Iraq is, he didn't reveal it here, beyond vaguely committing himself to an extended stay for the troops.

Indeed, this reveals yet again how strikingly Giuliani's 9/11 magic carpet is both a blessing and a curse. It has of course allowed him to float above any kind of real scrutiny thus far. But it's also delayed the point at which Giuliani has to account for his positions on issues. Pretty soon Giuliani will be asked to, you know, state his actual positions on some very controversial things.

He won't be able to get away with saying that he has "pretty much" the same view on Iraq as McCain, "as best as I can tell." He won't be able to get away with mush like the meaningless pseudo-criticism he directed at McCain on taxes. How will he do when he's required to give real answers? Again, unclear.

However he does manage it, one thing is clear: Giuliani's inevitable bump-down from being a fuzzily idolized 9/11 hero to a candidate with actual positions on difficult questions will prove to be one of the more interesting sub-narratives in Campaign 2008. It definitely bears watching.