Time magazine’s 2001 Person of the Year, Rudolph W. Giuliani, spoke to a full house as the guest lecturer for the Willis M. Tate Distinguished Lecture Series Monday at SMU.

The former mayor of New York City received a standing ovation before answering questions at the student forum in the Hughes-Trigg ballrooms and addressing a capacity crowd in Moody Coliseum Monday evening.

The first question addressed Giuliani’s whereabouts at the time of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Giuliani said that he was enjoying breakfast at the Hotel Peninsula with members of his council and close friends.

He was expecting a relatively simple day, he said, with a few minor troubles from the mayoral primaries taking place.

It was first reported to Giuliani that a twin engine plane hit one of the World Trade Towers.

The former mayor had no idea how bad the situation was.

“I remember looking outside and seeing a perfectly blue sky,” Giuliani said. “I thought to myself, this can’t be an accident. I first thought that an insane person had done it.”

As the mayor and his emergency team raced down to the World Trade Center Towers, they witnessed the second plane crash into the second tower. He knew then it was a terrorist attack, he said.

“It was the worst day of my life,” Giuliani said. “It was also the greatest day of my life because of all the heroism I saw on that day.”

In the days after the attacks on the United States, Giuliani worked around the clock supervising the rescue and relief efforts taking place at ground zero.

Giuliani said having an extraordinarily strong and capable team of city employees helped him get through Sept. 11. When one person on the team would get weak, they would turn to other team members for support.

“I had very strong shoulders to lean on,” the former mayor said. “The practical experience of being mayor for seven and three-quarters years also helped.”

Giuliani said New York’s previous experiences with hostage crises, the West Nile Virus, building collapses, devastating fires and hurricanes helped in preparing the city’s emergency response team.

Emergency response drilling took place often, as well. Giuliani said the city constantly went over how to deal with emergencies such as plane crashes or nerve gas attacks.

“For me, it was all that experience that gave me the strength to deal with [Sept. 11],” Giuliani said.

Giuliani also dismissed any rumors that he may run for president in 2004.

“I don’t plan very far in the future. You let life take its course,” Giuliani said. “I do know I will campaign very hard to re-elect George W. Bush as president in 2004.”

During the 8 p.m. American Airlines Lecture in Moody Coliseum, Giuliani discussed the leadership characteristics that helped define his political career.

In front of a crowd of 8,000, Giuliani said a leader must have a rigid philosophy and set of beliefs. He used former U.S. President Ronald Reagan as an example.

“When I worked for President Reagan, I always knew what he stood for, and so did the rest of the country,” Giuliani said. “It’s important to know what you stand for so that you can lead your organization in that direction.”

Giuliani added that leaders must have courage in the face of tragedy.

“By courage, I don’t mean lack of fear,” Giuliani said. “Courage is being able to manage your fear in order to do what needs to be done.”

The final characteristic Giuliani pointed out was communication. Communication comes easily if the others are done right, Giuliani said.

“As long as you are honest and communicate from your heart and soul, you will do it right,” Giuliani said.

The recently knighted “Sir Rudy” said he has not completely absorbed the full impact of Sept. 11 on his life. He said it will take more than six or seven months for he and others to gain perspective on the terrorist attacks.

The one thing that has changed the former mayor’s life is his battle with prostate cancer.

“When I found out I had cancer, I realized I wasn’t immortal,” Giuliani said. “Every single day you have to appreciate that you’re alive.”

Giuliani added that although he is an ardent supporter of New York City, the reaction the city gave would have been similar if the attacks had occurred in any other American city.

“[Sept. 11] said to me that people who live in freedom have more strength than [terrorists] do,” Giuliani said. “[People didn’t react the way] the terrorists thought they would.

“I believe there’s something about people who live in freedom that makes them behave differently. When somebody attacks your freedom, then the response is going to be overwhelmingly strong.”