Rudy Giuliani, the 81-year-old former New York City mayor and close ally of President Trump, remained hospitalized in critical but stable condition Monday after a bout of pneumonia that his spokesman linked directly to a restrictive airway disease caused by his exposure to the World Trade Center attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
Tom von Essen, Giuliani's business partner and the city's fire commissioner during 9/11, told the New York Post that the former mayor "had a tough weekend" and warned that Monday carried special weight.
"Rudy had a tough weekend. He had pneumonia. Today is an important day."
Von Essen did not elaborate on why Monday was so significant. But several people close to Giuliani told the Post he was doing better, even as he remained in critical yet stable condition.
Giuliani spokesman Ted Goodman confirmed the pneumonia diagnosis and said the illness was complicated by a condition that traces back more than two decades, to the morning Giuliani walked toward the collapsing towers as mayor of New York.
"On September 11th, Mayor Giuliani ran toward the towers to help those in need, which led to a restrictive airway disease diagnosis. This disease adds complications to any emerging respiratory issue, and the virus quickly overwhelmed his body, requiring mechanical ventilation to maintain his blood pressure."
The specific virus was not named. But Goodman's statement made clear that a preexisting lung condition, one earned in service during the worst terror attack on American soil, turned what might have been a manageable illness into a fight for Giuliani's life.
AP News reported that Giuliani was placed on a ventilator after the pneumonia set in and that he is now breathing on his own. The wire service noted that Goodman described the mechanical ventilation as necessary "to maintain adequate oxygen and stabilize his condition."
Newsmax reported additional details: Giuliani was rushed to a West Palm Beach hospital after suffering respiratory distress. Doctors found pneumonia in both lungs, double pneumonia, and placed him in the ICU on a ventilator. Sources close to the family told Newsmax he has since been removed from the ventilator, regained consciousness, and can speak in a limited capacity.
"He's showing signs of strength," one source close to the family said, while cautioning: "He's not out of danger yet, but he's improving and fighting, and that means everything right now."
Word of Giuliani's hospitalization first surfaced Sunday, when it was disclosed that he was in critical but stable condition with a publicly undisclosed ailment. By Monday, well-wishers ranged from the president to New York's current mayor.
President Trump led the public response. On Truth Social, Trump praised Giuliani as a loyal ally and connected the hospitalization to a broader grievance about how the former mayor has been treated in recent years. Trump, who has been active on the rally circuit and vocal on social media, called Giuliani "a True Warrior, and the Best Mayor in the History of New York City, BY FAR," as the Washington Examiner reported.
"What a tragedy that he was treated so badly by the Radical Left Lunatics, Democrats ALL, AND HE WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING!"
The chorus swelled Monday to include Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a sign that, whatever political differences divide the city, Giuliani's role on Sept. 11 still commands a measure of bipartisan respect.
Giuliani's restrictive airway disease is part of a long and well-documented legacy of health consequences suffered by first responders and officials who were present at Ground Zero. The dust and toxins released by the collapse of the Twin Towers have caused cancers, lung diseases, and respiratory conditions in thousands of people who rushed to help that day.
Goodman's statement framed the hospitalization squarely in that context. Whatever legal and political battles Giuliani has faced in recent years, and they have been many, his spokesman wanted the public to understand that this illness did not come from nowhere. It came from a morning in September 2001 when the mayor of New York City did not retreat.
The president's own approach to health-related matters has been in the news on other fronts as well. His administration recently nominated a new surgeon general after a prior pick fell through, reflecting the White House's continued engagement with medical policy even as it manages international crises.
Goodman struck an optimistic tone Monday, calling Giuliani "the ultimate fighter."
"Mayor Giuliani is the ultimate fighter, as he has demonstrated throughout his life, and he is winning this battle. His family deeply appreciates the outpouring of love and support. The mayor believes in the power of prayer, and we are feeling that strength today."
That optimism was echoed by the family sources who spoke to Newsmax. But the facts remained sobering: double pneumonia, a ventilator stay, an ICU admission, and a man who is 81 years old with compromised lungs.
The hospital where Giuliani is being treated has not been officially named, though Newsmax identified the location as West Palm Beach, Florida, consistent with Giuliani's residence in the state in recent years. No hospital spokesperson was quoted in any of the available reporting.
Trump, who has been managing a full plate of international developments in recent weeks, took time to publicly stand by the man who served as his personal attorney and one of his most visible defenders.
Several details remain unclear. The specific virus that triggered the pneumonia has not been disclosed. Von Essen's cryptic remark, "Today is an important day", went unexplained. And while multiple sources say Giuliani is improving, no medical professionals have spoken publicly about his prognosis or treatment plan.
What is known is that an 81-year-old man who ran toward collapsing buildings on the worst day in modern American history is now paying a physical price for that decision, more than two decades later. His spokesman wants people to remember that. So does the president.
There is also no indication of when Giuliani might be released, or whether the pneumonia has caused any lasting damage beyond the restrictive airway disease he already carried. The family has asked for prayers. The public response, from the White House to City Hall, suggests those prayers are being offered across political lines.
Whatever one thinks of Giuliani's later career, the man earned his lung disease the old-fashioned way, by showing up when it mattered most. That ought to count for something, and on Monday, it did.
