But that was hardly the perception of any conservative Republican. Reagan got into the conservative movement early on and his good faith was never in question by conservatives, whatever other voters or reporters thought.
Key fact: Jane Wyman left him, not the other way around. And he and Nancy had a very solid relationship. Also, I'm not aware anybody held the SAG Presidency against him. Times have changed a lot since then.
The question is - does he have a set of solid core beliefs to fall back on when he's erred as a man? Do those core values help guide his trajectory in life, and in his decision making? Do those core values align with those espoused and championed by the Framers?
If you're talking about Newt's political philosophy, I don't know. It's possible that he does have a core set of political values that have guided his decisionmaking in terms of positions and policy. I'd have to look more closely at his career, but you'd have to consider things like the Nancy Pelosi sofa ad.
If you're talking about character and values in Newt's life, we have more to go on there. I can't look into the man's heart, but given some of his behavior there's reason to be skeptical.
Maybe Newt really has changed. I hope to be pleasantly surprised by him. But so far he's struck me as the guy who pushes people out of the way if they're between him and a microphone, and then goes on to say way more than he should to show how smart he is. I hope he'll prove me wrong.
Newt Gingrich wasn't my first choice in this race. Far from it. I personally wanted Palin for our nominee, but when it became clear that she wasn't going to run, I had to begin the process of studying the remaining candidates to see who I could support.
I was nominally on the Cain train, and then he was run off by the 'politics of personal destruction'. Where to go now?
It was only then that I actually took another look at Newt. What caused me to finally step into his camp, was his actual record of accomplishment in the House. Only when I did that, was I actually able to hear the man. Prior to that, my ears were closed, due to his many forays off the conservative reservation. Fortunately, he has also repudiated all of those positions that made me grit my teeth.
The one thing that is most clear to me, is that Newt is the best of the lot to take the reform agenda to Washington. When I ask myself who among the four remaining candidates will honestly take an axe to the Socialist leviathan, I have to choose Newt.
I understand your misgivings about the man. I had them myself. But we're down to where the rubber meets the road, and he's the best fighter on the roster.