So interesting answers here (transcript, courtesy CNN). Clearly, Gingrich believes the conservative message is ascendant and is what will sell with GOP voters — at least, those not looking for an establishment candidate. Because the GOP already has Romney for that, and if Gingrich is going to find traction he realizes he has to change his post-Congress course and veer harder right to capture the anti-Romney vote.
His debating skills have helped him. Its the sincerity with which he holds the views he currently espouses — and more importantly, the ways he thinks about fixing problems that so concern conservatives and classical liberals — that give many of us pause: from his recent support of quasi-amnesty to ethanol subsidies to his older broken promises to stand strong on the Second Amendment, it comes down for many to exactly what Newt says it does: do you trust that he’s changed and matured?
Most importantly, though, do you trust that he’ll run a conservative administration, not a clever, pragmatic kingship?
He behaves like a Class A narcissist, which means he never learns from his mistakes.
Has he described what was wrong with the way he did things in the past or does he defend his past decisions?
Mostly he defends.
So no, he hasn’t changed, and he’ll be more than happy to run a clever, pragmatic kingship.
No.
but he played it he played it he played it to the beat
newt’s a progg in a fat man costume
But he’s frugal.
mr. newt is part of the obesity problem in america. say not to fat gov’t.
he’s just the best Team R could do for whatever reason
fortunately Obama is sorta kinda vulnerable cause of people resent how he’s ass-raped America
How much do you have to mature to get over having co-sponsored 418 bills with Nancy Pelosi?
What the hell kind of conservative can you possibly be to have added 418 laws to the books?
This is madness. Newt Gingrich is, was and will be a disaster, for the GOP, conservatism and the country.
What happened, nr? You had newtmentum last week.
fat gov’t types may swear off their fat gov’t ways but not for long. newt does fight though.
But what is he fighting for? I don’t trust him as far as I can through him, and since I weigh about 125 pounds soaking wet, that’s not going to be too far.
through=throw argh
OT:
Quick, call the UN.
sounds like Dustin Blythe has been revealed to be a fascist obamawhore stormtrooper what hates America
mr. newt likes to fight for small gov’t when the wind blows that way.
well he’s better than Romney and better than Obama
and the more exotic candidates just can’t seem to catch a break
thesantorum will join mr newt at the donalds thing per rick on levin’s show. bull moose needs sarah.
santorum should try and look less like the Wedding Singer this time
Newt over Mittens eight days a week. And the Krieble / Red Card plan he was touting for immigration reform seems like a reasonable alternative, or at least something to debate. I don’t give a crap if somebody has been here 10 years or 50 years illegally, we need to find a reasonable way to handle them and still get the labor that fills in the workforce at the bottom. So if this Red Card plan creates a legal migrant workforce and dries up the illegal flow, at least it’s worth talking about. Kudos for Newt for at least having the stones to talk about a comprehensive plan as an alternative to BUILD A FENCE, BUILD A BIGGER FENCE, BUILD TWO FENCES.
Krieble Policy here, if yer interested.
there are so many Rs what are dependent on the immigrant issue it would really a lot disorient them if we were to move forward with a plan I think
An actual plan would mess with the polarity.
I’m with Perry in that regard. Unless and until we get control of the border, I’m utterly uninterested in talking about what we’re going to do with the people who’ve jumped it. You plug the hole in the boat before you worry about bailing.
Axelrod lays out one of the attack lines that will be used on Romney if he is the nominee. Testing the waters I believe.
Yeah! Pablo, come sit by me. I have an extra Team Perry flag just for you.
The Axeltoad is deeply offensive to this middle class American. It doesn’t help that he looks like a sweaty Hiltler most of the time.
there’s nothing Axelmonkey could ever say what could drive a wedge between me and Wall Street Romney, should he become the nominee
we’re gonna get rid of this Obama piece of shit no matter what and then we’ll all sleep better
You’re stauncher than me, happy. I’d have to sleep on it.
this comment there is very apt I think Mr. geoff
the whole ginned-up occupy farce was in anticipation of Romney I think
what a waste if he’s not the nominee
well let’s hope it never comes to that leigh
I’m trying to keep my chin up that it doesn’t.
Mmmm, mmmm, mmmm, smells like GOP establishment.
I am leaning slightly more Gingrich than Romney, since that seems to be the choice left. They both have their flaws and merits. Unfortunately the flaws are pretty significant. I am having a hard time swallowing a big mouthful of Scozzafava.
Krieble Plan, hmm?
A right load of bullshit, actually.
Followed on the next column of the same page with…
I think you should make the reader turn the page before forcing doublethink.
Fat chance of Gingrich getting the presidency if he wins the GOP nomination. I can still hear in my ears the sharp cutting rhetoric of that nishi-tard-twit telling us that there’s no way an old man who looks old and is old, old, old will ever beat the Baracky-child. She had that nailed re: McCain; now, with the Owwies being mostly youth-oriented and pre-motivated to act out against anything old, they’ll flock to Baracky, after he spends some sugar-tongue time ‘community-organizing’ the hell out of ’em.
This entire nomination process is looking very grim and tiresome, and worse, after, I fear there’s a predetermined outcome.
(Oh. Remember that Sarah Palin gal; she’s not so that old, now is she?)
…now, with the Owwies being mostly youth-oriented and pre-motivated to act out against anything old, they’ll flock to Baracky.
Scary! We’ll never overcome those 20,000 votes! Never mind that Obama has aged 10 years in the past three.
Other than being (a little over) half the man that Christie is, how much does Newt really differ? Which would be more prone to point us back towards a Constitutionally limited government?
My own supposition is that, so long as the popular will and Congressional support was evident, Newt would be more apt to take that ball and run with it.
The presidency is a might big egg basket… Take away popular will and Congressional votes and none of the candidates will accomplish anything of note.
…
Newt, being an insider with a history, and one clearly at odds with many now inside the beltway would shake up Washington in a vary particular way.
Romney or Perry would merely ride into town, and slide into the appropriate power clique. A smooth transition being the harbinger of what is to come.
Bachmann would probably face serious attempts at marginalization, ones that would prove difficult to overcome as she would be building an administration as an outsider from ground level up. Almost the exact opposite reception from Romeny or Perry, but one leading to much the same outcomes.
Santorum would probably not fare much better than Bachmann. And I suspect he’s really angling for a VP slot with Romney/Perry/Gingrich anyway.
With Newt there would be some of all of that, but you would also see fracturing of presently established lines due tot eh wild card aspect. I certainly cannot argue that the intial changes would, of themselves, be good. But I am quite confident they would be edifying, as things once behind the scenes became public, and would eventually prove to be quite significant in future elections.
Make Congress Tea Party-ish enough, and Newt would have to ride along…
Would you rather have him appointing SCOTUS justices or O!? I see in Romney a thousand Souters rising to the bench… with Newt, who the heck knows?
Oh, we need to get Regis’ opinion, as I saw a blurb that Newt would make Bolton Sec State. Imagine Regis confronting Putin or the Iranians or that fat parrot wearing dude in Venuzuela…
From the looks of him, our Hugo will be pushing up daisies by the time our next Prez is inaugurated.
Newrouter identified my problem with him – he blows with the wind. All of that Pelosi crap was because, for whatever reason, Newt decided that the Democrats were going to have a majority for a long period of time. The very fact that he accepted it and didn’t try to fight against it, instead basically capitulating to the Dems to stay politically relevant (and employed), turned me off. I just don’t trust him. I’d prefer Romney, despite all of his baggage, because he’s run a company, run a state, run a huge international event- he has the executive credentials, whereas Newt is a policy wonk, not a chief executive. I do think Newt would surround himself with good people but I’m afraid his ego is so large that he wouldn’t listen to any of them on a regular basis.
My biggest problem with Newt, buy not the only one, is that he shoots from the lip. He’s like Pete Rose sliding into base head first so he’d get his picture in the papers. Newt goes for the outrageous sound bite so he gets the headlines.
We already have a smart alec in the White House. We don’t need another, albeit, smarter one.
Newt has some of what got Reagan elected in 1980, but he’s never had the Gipper’s sheer candlepower with the imagery. Reagan spoke of a shining city on a hill as though sharing a divine vision, which allowed everyone to imagine their own actual version of the details.
Gingrich would talk about it like, “Here’s my detailed architectural drawings and here’s a list of materials we’ll need…” However inviting the underlying vision might be, he’d give it a technocratic spin that would turn people off.
If he could just stay on the big picture long enough to get elected, he might actually be a bit more effective than Reagan was at getting the damn thing built — but there’s some reason to think it wouldn’t be anything like what we would have designed.
The last time we had a college professor in the White House was Woodrow Wilson, he of Princeton. Look how that turned out.
OT, sorta: Is it just me or is anyone else get tired of candidates and pundits, hell, man on the street interviews, practically, having their credentials trotted out? I can’t stand it when someone is on teevee giving their opinion about the Hot Topic of the Day and next to or below them is a chryon of where they went to school and when. WTF do I care? They either have a valid point to make or not. I don’t care if the went to three Ivies or to State.
Here