Giuliani's public profile started to rise when he was appointed as the United States Associate Attorney General by President Ronald Reagan. He held the position from 1981 to 1983, when he was appointed United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. He held this post until 1989, when he resigned to run his first campaign for Mayor of New York City. He lost the race but won four years later, and served as the city's mayor from 1994 to 2001. As mayor, he was best known for his leadership role during the September 11 attacks, when he coordinated and managed the immediate emergency response, earning him the title as "Time" magazine Person of the Year in 2001. He also positioned himself as "tough on crime" and was often credited with the reduction in offenses that occurred during his tenure in office. Giuliani briefly ran for U.S. Senate in New York to fill the vacancy left by the retiring Daniel Patrick Moynihan in 2000, but was forced to withdraw from the race after being diagnosed with prostate cancer. Although he held traditional views on defense and economics, Giuliani was considered socially liberal, holding pro-choice views on abortion, supporting same-sex civil unions and embryonic stem cell research. As mayor, the abortion rate in New York City dropped by 16% in comparison to the 12% drop nationally; adoptions raised by 133%.