Sarah Palin's Newt Gingrich Embrace

US News and World Report ^ | January 27, 2012 | Scott Galupo, former Boehner staffer

[2ndDivisionVet]

The circling of wagons against former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has been quite a spectacle. Establishment dinosaurs like former Sen. Bob Dole, the Reaganite grande dame Peggy Noonan, the moderate agoniste David Frum, the reclusive Web guerrilla Matt Drudge, even the flame-throwing Ann Coulter—rarely do you see such a diverse array of establishment and movement conservatives in such united opposition to someone who's at least nominally conservative.

Myself, I'd rather see former Gov. Mitt Romney crushed under those wagon wheels.

And so, apparently, does former Gov. Sarah Palin. In an interview with Fox News Business Network, Palin opined:

"Look at Newt Gingrich, what's going on with him, via the establishment's attacks. They're trying to crucify this man and rewrite history, rewrite what it is that he has stood for all these years. So it's not just Ron Paul. I believe it's also Newt Gingrich that the establishment, that the liberal media, certainly that the progressives and Democrats don't like."

There's little doubt that, in her tiptoeing characterization of the opposition to Gingrich, she meant to include everyone I included above.

So it came as quite a shock to my system when I found myself saying, "Go Sarah!"

And then I mentally slapped myself across the cheeks.

Of course Sarah Palin is taking this tack. It's in her long-term political interest to see Mitt Romney bloodied and defeated in November. Palin and Rush Limbaugh are the figureheads of a subset of movement conservatives who scorn tactical pragmatism. And if President Obama wins, it will have been a sweet vindication for Palin and Limbaugh and the principled Romney doubters like RedState.com's Erick Erickson who believe that Republicans' failings—either in office or in the failure to win office—are almost always a retribution for the betrayal of conservative values.

It's hard to take totally seriously Palin's defense of Gingrich; if she had chosen to run, I imagine she'd have taken the same line against Gingrich that her congressional counterpart Rep. Michele Bachmann took (and which Romney is now taking to great effect): that the former speaker is a sleazy influence-peddler. It's easy to imagine because it's the truth.

But since she can't stop Romney directly, she undermines him indirectly—which is why she intervened in the South Carolina to help deliver the state to Gingrich and why she's speaking out on his behalf now. It's not out of love for Gingrich; it's simply to keep the race going, and thereby damage Romney.

As a short-term tactic, Palin's magic worked brilliantly. But only briefly.

I should note that I don't think Palin is acting purely from a position of calculation. She's more in touch with the conservative id than anyone in Washington; she knows Romney is a weak candidate precisely because of his utter fraudulence.

It's going to be interesting to see what how just how tightly she ultimately chooses to embrace the Romney candidacy in the coming months.

[RobbyS]

I also forgot the military enclave in the Panhandle.

[RobbyS]

The Republican Party was part of the old Protestant Establishment, with the Episcopal Church and Yale among its anchors. Bill Buckley prophetically told us what was happening to that world in his book “God and Man at Yale.” Yale is totally secular, and the Episcopal Church has gone way beyond that, down much the same path followed by the Unitarians into total syncretism.

The Republican Establishment exemplifies secular Yale and showed its stripes when GHW Bush, its titular head, embraced Teddy Kennedy and virtually adopted Bill Clinton. They are agrressively backing the Romney campaign to fend off the Tea Party movement, because they are beginning to realize that its several leaders constitute a real threat to their power. Santorum is as unacceptable to them as Newt. He represents the Catholic wing of the Party. Of course, if Obama’s war with the Catholic Church escalates,and pushes authentic Catholics toward the Republicans, then they may pick him for VP. But since Jeb wants to claim that for himself in 2016, that presents a problem.

[Terry Mross]

Yesterday Bret Bair and Kraut were making fun of those who talk about the elites. Kraut said Rove is the president and they meet once a month. Man, the arrogance.

[RobbyS]

More than that: Did you know that Johann Kepler! talked about going to the moon? That’s how central the idea has been to the whole scientific enterprise.

[NoRedTape]

Sarah would NEVER support/endorse Mittens. That would be the end of her political strength after bouncing back from the McCain debacle.

[The Working Man]

IMHO - It was Romeny and his ilk that have been behind all of the attacks to last 3 years against Sarah, all one needs to do is look at how they are attacking Newt and how he attacked Sarah and it points to Romney.

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I’ve suspected that for some time now. And if you and I are right AND if the rest of the voting population that tends to the conservative side also come to that conclusion. Then Romney, Romney-care/Obamacare are doomed.

Unfortunately for us all he has the money to sway the primary elections and is using it to do so. And if he runs true to course he will allow himself to be steamrolled by the democrats.

Which will solidify in my mind at least that he and his ilk are truly nothing more than Democrats in Republican clothing and have been for a long time.