Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
In his Morning Jolt, Jim Geraghty included this from CNN:
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich will announce his presidential campaign on Wednesday, his spokesman Rick Tyler confirmed to CNN. Gingrich, who has been exploring a presidential bid for several months, 'will announce on Twitter and Facebook.' His first formal speech as a presidential candidate will be Friday at the Georgia Republican Convention. Gingrich has been traveling to some of the key early voting states as he has tested the waters trying to appeal to various constituencies of the party.
Here are my questions: Is there even one among the "various constituencies" of the party that could possibly be cheering at the news? Is there a sub-constituency consisting of people who admire serial adulterers and who believe that subsidizing ethanol is a good thing?
Is there anyone in the Richochet world who welcomes this with enthusiasm? If so, why?
Editor's Update: Below you'll find Newt's announcement of his presidential candidacy in a YouTube video he released this afternoon.
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Aug '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
Whenever I hear Gingrich speak, I marvel at his clarity, brilliance, and confidence. But then he goes to Iowa and embraces ethanol subsidies. He explained it by sayin, "Reagan did it!"
Drives me nuts.
Aug '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
In his own way, Newt is as crazy as Ron Paul.
Edited on May 10, 2011 at 2:52pmAug '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
Reminds of the days , as a young boy, when the new car models would come out. Very exciting stuff. Trouble with the unveiling this year, he is going to be debuting with Daniels, Bachmann, maybe Christie.
Newt Gingrich is an incredibly intelligent technocrat, who proved in the past that he could guide the country, which he did a lot of hard work and accomplished some as Speaker.
But it's like Oldsmobile.With Boehner the last model, a convertible, tanned and still smoking, but still an Oldsmobile, or more accurately the Alero. A great car, but pretty much unsung.
We need some fast Acura thinking, Lexus stability, and Honda cheap.
And remember Obama is most often photographed behind the wheel of a Volt !
Gingrich rides the razor's edge, as too smart for a job that has grown too big for any man. Where's the smart CEO with a great network ?
Oct '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
I tend to like Newt for one reason: He balanced the budget before. He can do it again.
May '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
Guess who will be at the Georgia GOP convention? I guess I should try some real-time commenting.
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
This will take some explaining to primary voters (I've heard him try to explain it) but remember - in politics, if you're explaining, you're losing!
Dec '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
The marital history, the voice and the goofy appearance rule him out. Fair or not.
Sep '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
AGW = Absentia Gingrich Winning
Dec '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
This is a complete waste of his time and the money of anyone that supports him (which will be important going up against the Obama war chest). Vanity play.
Jun '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
A third of the country is probably carrying about the same amount of marital baggage. I don't think people care about divorces anymore. And, what's wrong with his voice? That's the first time I've heard that criticism. He's not my choice, but I think he's a great debater. He'll make it interesting.
Aug '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
Tommy De Seno: This will take some explaining to primary voters (I've heard him try to explain it) but remember - in politics, if you're explaining, you're losing! · May 11 at 1:10pm
This is why he will not be getting my vote in the primaries. It's one thing to say we need to be mindful of how we utilize our resources and come up with conservative ideals to meet that goal. It's a completely different to concede to the other side's framing of the argument to order to get the youth vote and people that vote for the current political fads (which, to my recollection, is why he did this stunt).
I can't trust him to stick to the ideals he may articulate because he may shift with the political winds.
Jun '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
Absolutely! I'm still waiting patiently for Rob's prediction that Hillary will run in the primary to play out. Just imagine the 2012 campaign: Gingrich vs. Clinton, where the two major issues in play are balancing the budget and government-run health care. It's be like the last decade never happened! Alt rock, grunge fashion, and the Seattle music scene will be back in style, Hollywood will make movies and TV shows about lovable slackers working in coffee shops...
Jan '11
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
"...marital history, the voice and the goofy appearance rule him out."
"...embraces ethanol..."
"Newt is as crazy as Ron Paul."
"We need some fast Acura thinking, Lexus stability, and Honda cheap."
"AGW = Absentia Gingrich Winning."
"This is a complete waste of his time and the money of anyone that supports him."
I was leaning toward Newt as a 2012 candidate for a number of empirically clear reasons, but the clarity of the arguments against him (see above) have persuaded me to take another look. This time with my ad hominem glasses on.
May '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
This is good. I'm sure Newt knows in his heart he doesn't have a chance to get the nomination, but Newt has a special power to politically stab Obama. His critiques have great intellectual weight. His participation will benefit whoever is selected for the GOP nomination.
A slight tangent: primaries are always a team push for the GOP, and this time, more than ever, because 2012, like 2010 will be an election of ideas, and a horizontally integrated set of campaigns: the campaigns of everyone for the Senate and the House, and Presidency will all overlap because of their common ideas. The common meme/idea will be the need to right and repair the ship that's crashed into socialism under Obama.
Needless to say, horizonal campaign intergration will be as never before due to social media, the web, and talk radio. It will be like one mega-campaign. Individual candidates will matter less than at other times; this will be a team effort.
Edited on May 11, 2011 at 2:33pmApr '11
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
I am thrilled to hear that Newt has entered the race even though I don't think he'd make a good President. But I do think he'd be a brilliant Vice President and his running opens the possibility that future events will persuade him to take the junior slot.
Though he fumbled the job as Speaker, his years in the trenches fighting his way up showed him to be a first-rate political tactician. A VP Gingrich chairing advisory groups proposing solutions to our current dilemmas would be well worth it. Can anyone doubt if Gingrich chaired the recent Presidential Deficit Commission that it would not have produced a set of proposals, a PowerPoint Presentation full of bullet-points, and a best-selling book and video to persuade the nation to accept the recommendations? And the thought of Newt mopping the floor with Joe Biden in a debate is priceless.
As far as his personal peccadilloes go...well, we're not electing a Pope. In these times of darkness the nation cries out for a Master Politician, not more amateurs.
So, welcome aboard and give 'em hell Newt.
Dec '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
Anon, the phrase "...marital history, the voice and the goofy appearance rule him out." is not ad hominem, it is descriptive. I'll grant you however that the use of the term "goofy" comes close to the line.
Perhaps a better term could be used that still captures the thought fairly and frankly. Unusual, strange, insincere, sinister, I'm not sure. He is a smart guy by all accounts but I believe he is unelectable to the presidency for the reasons I have mentioned.
Jul '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
Yeah, I'm totally stoked for a guy who, in her hospital room, announced to his cancer-stricken wife that he was leaving her for his mistress - and who, years later, wrote this off as a peccadillo caused by the fact that he was working so hard for the American people.
Ethanol and global warming? Man, that's just icing on the cake!
Mar '11
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
If anyone can put voters to sleep in 2012 it is Newt Gingrich.
May '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
I've been campaigning for Republicans for president since 1980. Made thousands of phone calls, walked hundreds of miles.
I can't stand the sight of Gingrich, and the sound of his voice is like nails on a blackboard.
If the people who he will be counting on as ground troops feel that way about him, he has a very heavy lift to win.
Isn't he really doing this just to keep his name in front of the public and sell books.
Characterizing him as a braying, self-aggrandizing blowhard would be an insult to braying, self-aggranding blowhards everywhere.
Aug '10
Re: Newt Gingrich Announces Presidential Bid: Republicans Retch
Anon: "...marital history, the voice and the goofy appearance rule him out."
"...embraces ethanol..."
"Newt is as crazy as Ron Paul."
"We need some fast Acura thinking, Lexus stability, and Honda cheap."
"AGW = Absentia Gingrich Winning."
"This is a complete waste of his time and the money of anyone that supports him."
I was leaning toward Newt as a 2012 candidate for a number of empirically clear reasons, but the clarity of the arguments against him (see above) have persuaded me to take another look. This time with my ad hominem glasses on. · May 11 at 1:52pm
Touche, Anon!
Perhaps "crazy" was a bit over the top - how does "creepy" grab you?
In all seriousness, I believe Newt is unelectable because he was successfully demonzied by the Clintons, he gives most social conservatives heartburn because of his adultery and classlesness with his cancer stricken former wife, and his support of global warming has damaged his reputation with fiscal conservatives.
Oh, and because at the end of the day he's still just a congressman with no executive experience