Posted on 11/23/2006 6:36:57 PM PST by no dems
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is telling associates that he’s launching a major new grass-roots movement to recapture the soul of the Republican Party, and quite possibly the White House.
Gingrich says that the effort will be much larger than his founding of GOPAC and his creation of the Contract with America.
The Georgia Republican is spearheading a program called "American Solutions for Winning the Future” in an effort to revitalize the GOP with Ronald Reagan conservatism.
This is the third time Gingrich has led a drive to steer the Republican Party toward traditional conservative values. In 1986, Gingrich took the chair of the Republican political action committee GOPAC and transformed it into an effective tool for electing conservative candidates. The stated theme of GOPAC was "a conservative opportunity society replacing the liberal welfare state.”
GOPAC was a key element in Gingrich’s rise to the leadership of the Republican caucus in Congress.
Then in 1994, as House Minority Leader, Gingrich was a co-author of the Contract with America, a conservative political platform that helped the GOP gain 54 seats in the House and end 40 years of Democratic majorities there.
Gingrich’s new program echoes the title of his 2005 book, "Winning the Future: A 21st Century Contract with America.”
Sources close to the former speaker say Gingrich believes the Republican Party has once again lost its way, and needs to refocus its agenda with an eye toward regaining Congress in 2008.
Stepping back into the political spotlight could help Gingrich’s presidential aspirations as well.
He recently told an interviewer that he won’t decide whether to seek the White House in 2008 until September of 2007.
But insiders predict Gingrich could throw his hat into the ring if a true Reagan conservative doesn’t emerge as a likely GOP candidate.
For the time being, he’s playing his cards close to the vest. "I am not ‘running’ for president, I am seeking to create a movement to win the future by offering a series of solutions so compelling that if the American people say I have to be president, it will happen,” he tells Fortune magazine.
Gingrich said he plans to build grass-roots support for the health care, national security, and energy independence ideas he has been promoting for the past six years.
He'd be my number one choice....JJ61
As Newt said, he's not running for President, but rather leading a movement for dialogue and debate.
Perhaps. He does seem to be a conservative. A man can be forgiven much, but can he keep it in his pants this time around?
Unless his plan includes poisoning the homosexual running the NYT it's a sure bet he won't be living at the WH anytime soon.
Oh for pete's sake.........
Let's see what his ideas are. It's true that the GOP needs new ideas and it needs new leadership. But the same old thing in a bright new package and a World War are not new ideas.
Newt already blew it once. As brilliant as he is, he'll never be president. And his cozying up to Hillary didn't go over real well in this house either.
Listen to the man and you will realize that the
same old good ideas revisited are what this country
will always need....JJ51
My guy. If he'd just get North to run with him.
You are correct.
Here is hoping that Newt has every possible sucess.
I will provide what monies I can afford to assist him in his project and he has my promise of the votes in my family.
He has a terrific mind and outstanding understanding of where we came from and where we need to go, as well as how to get there.
Maybe you're looking for "new" ideas. I'm not. New ideas are mostly a dogplie of untested social theories.
I'd be FAR more interested in a Republican Party seriously centered around making good on its OLD ideas, like tax restructuring, making social security something more than scam on our grandchildren, and making sure that we aren't ruined by uninvited guests in our home.
"Newt already blew it once. "
Give me a break. Even Jesus Christ blew one out of twelve
Indeed. As much as most of we FReepers love to dump our disdain on the mainstream media's falling influence, they're still more than capabale of ensuring he's buried...and will do so bigtime.
It's time for Newt to get this silly little notion out of his head, and quickly to clear the path for someone that's electable.
Yeah, well.......the media did him in. Nice to see how we give the Dems a pass on any- and everything around here, but.....
Oh hell, never mind......if I have to explain here.........
I think so too. He's a brilliant man.
There's a lot of Newt haters here at FR though. When I've mentioned him I get a LOT of flames thrown at me from people who HATE him.
Really odd.
Sorry he is no Ronnie. He has too many problems with his zipper.
I'm not saying that this is 1976, but in '76,
Ron Reagan seemed unelectable also. Let's see
what evolves over the next two years....JJ61
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