CHARLESTON, S.C. - Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani said Wednesday the greatest threat facing the world is terrorism spawned by Islamic fundamentalists and that Republicans are best equipped to combat it.

The former New York mayor, speaking the morning after the second GOP candidates' debate, said the showdown pointed out the differences between Republicans and Democrats when it comes to the war on terror and the economy.

Giuliani, who rose to national prominence in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, said last week's arrests of terror suspects accused of plotting against a New Jersey military base show that more extremists may be living in the U.S.

"It's the most fundamental problem in the United States as we saw in this attempt to attack Fort Dix, which was homegrown," he said following a town hall meeting with about 200 people at the College of Charleston. "As the U.S. attorney told me, it may not have been directed by Islamic terrorists, but it was inspired by them. Who knows how much of that homegrown stuff is going on?"

He said most Muslims "are good people."

"But, having said that, you cannot give the impression this is an insignificant movement. It is a significant movement and it is the most dangerous thing that faces us right now," he said.

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LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee said Wednesday he would have to think "long and hard" before he would consider joining a ticket with a candidate who supports abortion rights.

"This is an issue to me that is very critical. It's one of the reasons that I got into politics because I believe the manner in which we treat innocent life and the matter in which we respect human life, at whatever stage ... is an incredibly powerful statement about who we are as a people," Huckabee told reporters in a conference call. "It's something I would have to think long and hard about."

The Republican p residential candidate and Southern Baptist minister did not specifically name GOP front-runner Rudy Giuliani. The former New York mayor has said he is personally opposed to abortion, but supports a woman's right to choose. Huckabee has questioned that position.

"The sanctity of life is not just some peripheral political position," Huckabee said. "It comes to the very heart of who we are as a culture, and I think that's shared by many people here in South Carolina."

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