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NASCAR driver Carl Edwards of Columbia, second from right, flanked by his father, Carl Edwards Sr., and his younger brother, Kenny Edwards, listens to Giuliani’s speech from the front row yesterday. •  Article: Giuliani channels Reagan •  See the Slide Show •  Video: Giuliani's visit to Columbia

A crowd of 200 patient people waited as long as three hours yesterday to catch a glimpse of presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani at the Columbia Expo Center.

While many said they were charmed by the former mayor, who shared his vision of America as the shining "city on a hill," few interviewed were willing to pledge unwavering support if he falters in early primaries.

"I’m still going to have to see the herd thinned out a little bit more to make a call," said Sonny Utterback of Columbia. "There’s so much time left."

Utterback, a gun owner who calls himself a "one topic" voter concerned with protecting the Second Amendment, didn’t get the red meat he wanted; Giuliani bypassed the issue of gun control in his 40 minute speech.

"I know he got a bad grade from the" National Rifle Association "as a mayor, but he was trying to clean up New York at the time, so that might be understandable," said Utterback, whose license plate reads "PRO2ND." "I’m glad he came. It’s not that often the frontrunners come to flyover country."

Likewise, Tom Algiere, a retired naval officer from Columbia, left impressed but not effusive.

"I feel strongly that he is one of the best people to lead the country," said Algiere, who asked Giuliani questions about school vouchers and energy independence. "At this point, I know I’ll be voting Republican, but that’s all I’ll say."

Giuliani’s speech was delayed for almost two hours, in part because of a failed plane engine in Kansas City. Upon arrival he walked through the parking lot to a waiting CNN bus, where anchor Wolf Blitzer conducted a live interview that further delayed the Columbia event. That perceived snub drew grumbles from some in the crowd.

"He can talk to Wolf Blitzer anytime. He should have stayed on schedule," said Martin Ryan, a former quality control inspector for 3M who was laid off in 2006. Ryan hoped to hear more about industrial job growth in the speech. "The problems of globalization are very real to me. For me it’s very personal."

The most vocal and visible group at the event was a band of supporters of Texas Republican congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul. About 20 people lined the parking lot with signs and chanted slogans such as: "What do we want for Christmas? We want our freedom back."

Dave vonKleist, a radio talk show host from Versailles, drove to the event in a bus fitted with Ron Paul banners. In a first-floor hotel suite, vonKleist played a CD of a song he wrote questioning the constitutionality of income taxes.

"We want to be as professional and polite as possible and we don’t want to give anyone the impression that we’re anti-anything," said vonKleist of the group’s mostly libertarian views. "We are pro-Constitution, pro-liberty and pro-truth. We’re straight shooters, and that seems to be a foreign concept in some places."

Many of those who came to see Giuliani yesterday listed immigration enforcement as the top issue that will influence their voting. The biggest applause line of the day came when Giuliani told the crowd, "When you become an American citizen, you’ve got be able to read English and write English like everybody else."

That was the message Mary Russell of Columbia hoped to hear. "We need the jobs for our people that are citizens," she said. "I believe anyone here that’s collecting a paycheck should be a citizen and should pay taxes. That’s the biggest thing to be dealt with."

But Russell, like many others, is biding her time before making a firm decision.

"It’s kind of up in the air, but Rudy’s one of my favorites," she said.

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