[ Right. Any Republican who is the nominee will be tarred and feathered. Look no further than McCain and Romney. Two liberal Republican squishes. By the end of the election, by the time the media and Dem operatives (but I repeat myself) got through with them, they were damaged goods. ]
Hell i would have loved Newt in 2012 because at least Newt (dispitte being a bit squishy and progressive on some issues) would have at LEAST fought BACK!
BINGO. The idea of a Newt candidacy was not really about Newt per se, as much as it was about the way a long Newt V Obama campaign would have unfolded, including, but not limited to, the debates. It would have been a national discussion of the Tea Party vision versus the Occupy Wall Street vision.
Now I know some will say "wait, Newt is not really Tea Party" - and that's true. But when Newt was ON, the good Newt, he articulated the limited government vision better than perhaps anyone we've seen in a long while…and for Newt to have won the nomination, this is what he would have had to continue to do, as he did early in Iowa, and then again in SC (instead he got drawn into Mitt's negativity in Florida and it was over).
It would have been clarifying. An electorate contrasting Newt would have been forced to be a little higher information than they are now. Would it have worked? I dunno. It would have been risky, but safe didn't work either. And if Newt was elected, would he have been a disappointment? Probably in some areas.
But Newt would swing the bat. Mitt was out on called strikes...