Newt Gingrich for President?
I'm still grateful to Newt Gingrich for the 1994 Contract With America. However, 21st century Newt has indulged a series of populist ideological tics, like his 2008 government-must-end-climate-change commercial with that paragon of bipartisanship, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, that give one pause. But hey, Newt’s a politician and Global Warming was a hot item for a while. No big deal, right?
Not so fast. Newt 2012 was seen in Iowa last week waxing rhapsodic over ever-more federally mandated ethanol in your car’s gas tank. This is no trivial matter. The Wall Street Journal reports that 40 percent of total United States corn output is now dedicated to gasohol production. Meanwhile, even Al Gore admits that this does absolutely nothing to help the environment. And if Mr. Apocalypse himself can’t defend this intoxicating sop to farmers, Newt seems on thin ice, environmentally-speaking.
Worse, much worse in my estimation, our food-for-cars policy has geopolitical ramifications. The world’s breadbasket is now burning its surplus food rather than exporting it to hungry people overseas. Partly as a result, marked global food price inflation is spurring unrest among millions, including poor Egyptians. While well-off Americans can survive higher food prices, Egyptians getting by on $2 per day cannot.
A couple of questions come to mind: 1) Is Corn-for-Cars morally defensible? 2) Can Newt Gingrich credibly run as a conservative presidential candidate?
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Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
George,
As a former Newt staffer, I'm second to none in my admiration for the man's intellect and creativity. That being said, the ethanol shilling is an embarrassment that deserved the scorn of the WSJ editorial page (especially bizarre was Newt's rationale that big city newspapers obviously have it out for Middle America -- yeah, because the New York Times hates energy subsidies so much).
Big-think Newt is just as sophisticated as he thinks he is. Politically calculating Newt isn't.
Jul '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
AWG is why I am in full veto mode over Newt for dog catcher. And before that, he was a failed Speaker. In many ways Speaker is trickier than President, but my in-laws spit when his name is mentioned for divorcing his cancer-ridden wife and dancing off with some cutie into the sunset, one-upping John Edwards before there was a John Edwards worth one-upping.
And everyone says, oh, that's private. But if they'll chump their spouses, they'll chump us all and laugh in our faces.
And he not only fell for AWG, but waved away the IPCC email scandal, the fraud, the arrogance, the scofflaw antics, the rigging of peer review system by intimidation, the destroyed data that was the basis of everything they said for 30 years, and so on. They spit in the eye of intellectual integrity, and the Newt genuflects to their august wisdom.
Pack it in old man, you've won nothing in over 16 years and there's a new generation that recognizes the smell of bovine fecal product when it is freshly laid before them.
Jan '11
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
A couple of questions come to mind: 1) Is Corn-for-Cars morally defensible? 2) Can Newt Gingrich credibly run as a conservative presidential candidate?
I haven't had a test this easy since my halcyon days at St. John De La Salle grade school. Same answer both questions - NO!
Jul '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
That video is a political suicide note. Why not tongue kiss the old harpy while he's at it?
Edited on Jan 31, 2011 at 10:06pmNov '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
Federally mandated ethanol support is intellectual quicksand in which I am so sorry to see this highly learned historian submerged.
Edited on Jan 31, 2011 at 10:17pmDec '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
This ethanol fixation is beyond idiotic.
The energy balance is in the wrong direction, it's water intensive, as you've already stated it burns food that could otherwise go to feed the rest of the world, and it is very hard on engines and infrastructure not specifically designed to burn or contain it.
It is hygroscopic and highly corrosive, it has a very low ignition temperature, and a very high heat of vaporization. This means that the alcohol won't vaporize worth a damn when it's cold outside, and thusly your car won't start. In fact, my methanol burning race engines wouldn't start on a 90 deg (F) day using methanol. They had to be drip started by squirting gasoline into the carburetor by hand (quite dangerous due to coughs and possible backfire) until the cylinder temp was high enough to vaporize the alcohol properly.
Alcohol is an excellent fuel in high output engines that are designed to burn it. My race motors (engines to the non-redneck amongst us) were all alcohol burners. Methanol in that case, but they could burn ethanol with a few build tweaks. However, the fuel system and the entire engine was designed around the highly corrosive nature of the fuel, and they required extensive and frequent maintenance.
Most production cars are NOT designed to store/carry or burn fuel with high percentages of alcohol.
I will leave the moral aspects to other, more qualified commenters, but from an engineering aspect, ethanol is a very poor motor fuel for every day use.
That alone should be enough to put an end to it.
Edited on Jan 31, 2011 at 10:08pmOct '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
I don't usually support suicide, but in this case, may I be of assistance?
Nov '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
Newt also goes around saying “the age of Ronald Reagan is over,” and seems unaware that it’s offensive to many conservatives. We think Ronaldus Magnus was a man for all time and that the age of Reagan will never be over. Newt may as well say the age of Lincoln and Washington is over. He must be out of his mind. Who’d have thought that the Newt Gingrich of 1994 would end up pandering to liberals?
If he tries a run for president he’ll just end up making a bigger fool of himself.
Jul '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
TeeJaw : Newt also goes around saying “the age of Ronald Reagan is over,” and seems unaware that it’s offensive to many conservatives. We think Ronaldus Magnus was a man for all time and that the age of Reagan will never be over. Newt may as well say the age of Lincoln and Washington is over. He must be out of his mind. Who’d have thought that the Newt Gingrich of 1994 would end up pandering to liberals?
If he tries a run for president he’ll just end up making a bigger fool of himself. · Jan 31 at 10:20pm
He will and he will. And in honor of Troy and George and the Newt of 94, I will drag out my copy of the Contract with America and remember when Newt's was a name of hope and potency. And I'll dig out the clauses that need revisiting for 2012 in a member post.
Cheers.
Edited on Jan 31, 2011 at 10:38pmOct '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
Troy Senik: George,
As a former Newt staffer, I'm second to none in my admiration for the man's intellect and creativity. That being said, the ethanol shilling is an embarrassment that deserved the scorn of the WSJ editorial page (especially bizarre was Newt's rationale that big city newspapers obviously have it out for Middle America -- yeah, because the New York Times hates energy subsidies so much).
Big-think Newt is just as sophisticated as he thinks he is. Politically calculating Newt isn't. · Jan 31 at 9:15pm
He isn't just cozying up to the farm lobby?
Dec '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
Good Berean
I don't usually support suicide, but in this case, may I be of assistance? · Jan 31 at 10:08pm
Yes.
Please Lord, spare us a Newt Presidential Campaign.
Sep '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
This seals it for me with Newt - just when I was ready to forgive and forget.
Sep '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
Newt – more distasteful than your average RINO. He has not changed since 94 some people have finally opened their eyes. Newt has always been about doing what he thought was best for Newt and being unprincipled that meant moving in the direction he thought the wind was blowing.
Dec '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
I align myself with CoolHand, for the engineering aspect.
Morally, this is big government corporatism; subsidize corn producers at taxpayer cost, then force taxpayers to purchase new equipment they neither want nor need. I have three weedeaters and two push mowers that are useless, now, as the ethanol in gasoline has melted the seals and hoses. Boats are another issue. It is not unusual for the damage to engines and fuel systems on a single boat to be in the multiple tens of thousands of dollars.
It would be interesting to have Gingrich in the debates, if only so more conservative candidates can run to his right on these issues, making broad appeals to the more realistic electorate.
Sep '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
Nyet squared.
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
Newt, Mitt, Mike, Rudy -- these are the Republican dinosaurs. Their entrance into the presidential sweepstakes will only muck things up. The Republican Party needs new blood. It is time for it to turn its back on the managerial progressives.
Jul '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
Clinton played Newt the way Heifetz played the Stradivarius. The tip off came when the Speaker was invited for a ride in Air Force One but wasn't allowed up front. The tizzy Newt went into told you all that was necessary. This old attention whore has been before the footlights long enough. His novels stink, too. And who up there referred to him as "a distinguished historian"? Please. That's like calling Gore a scientist.
Jul '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
"Our tent is too damn big."
Aug '10
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
First, I agree with CJRun above. I also have several yard tools that cannot be properly run because the ethanol mix has attracted water since ethanol is hydrophilic, thereby rotting the seals and carburetors in lawn tractors, mowers, blowers etc.
Second, ethanol subsidies make about as much sense as sugar subsidies. The one makes everything that depends on corn more expensive (grain fed beef being a prime example). The other makes sweet tea more expensive.
Third, if someone adheres to a Toffleresque-philosophy uncritically, as it seems that Gingrich does, then I question his veracity in calling himself a conservative. There is no "conserving" in Toffler's third wave, just pushing aside and embracing the new and flashy, regardless of what it does to our culture.
Re: Newt Gingrich for President?
Indeed.