Is this a gamble? The painful reality is that everyone in this year's field of Republican candidates is a gamble. And re-electing Barack Obama is an even bigger gamble.
Whichever candidate the Republican voters finally choose from this year's field, they are bound to have reservations, if not fears. Gingrich's worst could be worse than Romney's worst, both as a candidate and as a president. But Gingrich's best is much better than Romney's best.
Sometimes caution can be carried to the point where it is dangerous. When the Super Bowl is on the line, you don't go with the quarterback who is least likely to throw an interception. You go with the one most likely to throw a touchdown pass.
All of that is just dead-on, and it even applies to Romney. As bad as Romney could be, he's not going to be worse than Obama, and the mere fact that he depends on the GOP for support would push him further to the right that Obama.
But the overall point is right -- Gingrich has a slugger's chance of beating Obama, and that might be the best we're going to get.
The problem is that we've gone too far down the road to economic destruction. Any attempt to roll back the Obama agenda will be met by massive protests and marches, if not rioting and killing. We will need a president who will do what's needed, not what's not too unpopular. Mitt is not the kind of person who will hold the line in the face of violent attack. Newt might.
The kind of person I would really want is Wisconsin gov Scott Walker, but he's not running.