Newt Gingrich: Race is "Wide Open"

CBN ^ | 2-13-12 | Brody

[VinL]

The Brody File sat down with Newt Gingrich for a one-on-one interview at CPAC in Washington last week. We discussed the state of the race, from his perspective. Here's what he had to say. Transcription follows the video below.

David Brody: “Hey, you know, I like to call you the Yoda of this presidential race, so Yoda, if you will, give me your impression of where we’re at.”

Newt Gingrich: “Is this a comment on the fact that I’m a grandfather or what?”

David: “It could be partially that. Give me your sense of where we’re at in the race, where are you at?”

Newt Gingrich: “Look, I think it’s temporarily a wide open race. I think what’s happened is with each passing wave of negative ads, Romney has marginalized himself, and that finally came crashing down on him starting in Nevada where he really dramatically underperformed, and then Missouri, Minnesota, Colorado where he basically collapsed. And I think now he’s got a real challenge, there’s a new poll out in Georgia, he’s running third, I am now first, Santorum is second, things are in turmoil. Santorum’s gotten a nice bump, and should have, he earned it. He made the right strategic gamble. And now, we’re going to sort out who is really prepared to have bold changes, who is prepared to do the things we need to get back on the right track as a country, and that will be a good debate. I think people will look at it with new interest now.”

[Ozymandias Ghost]

Not much of an “agreement” if that’s all there is to it; but, I have learned not to expect honor amongst politicians ...so you’re probably right! (smile)

[JediJones]

I think she was saying that Rick might have made a deal to be Romney’s V.P. I wouldn’t put it past him at all. Rick does seem more willing to set principle aside when it’s convenient. But I believe that Rick has been more clearly kinder to Newt than Romney and there is a suspicion that they may have made a deal (just as Romney and Paul seem to have made a deal). I still see it as more likely Newt and Rick team up at the convention to combine their delegates and if Rick did become the winner in the primary, I think it’s likely he would pick Newt as his V.P. (as the Cheney-like wise conservative elder figure).

I don’t really agree with the attacks on Rick. I think he’s Newt-lite, which is better than most of our other alternatives, but clearly not as good as Newt. Unfortunately, even though Rick’s likable, has more values I agree with, and seems tough enough to defend those values, his proposals pale in comparison to Newt’s and it would be a stretch to even call them “reform.”

[Ingtar]

Another pair of possibilities in that case. Romney does not take Santorum as seriously. Another is that the financial backing behind Romney might finally be getting tired of so much money spent to so little return.

[JediJones]

To my knowledge, however, they haven’t surveyed what would happen if Paul dropped out. Laugh if you like, but he’s gotten a respectable number of voters in some states, and he would have some delegates to give. And I suspect most of his voters would probably go to Gingrich.

Livius, I've researched this and we discussed it in a thread earlier today. The online sentiment among Paul loyalists is that Romney is by far their second choice among this field. For who they'd actually vote for in the Fall, it's either stay home and protest, write in Paul, the Libertarian Gary Johnson, or Obama. Going to Newt might seem plausible if you thought economics was their main agenda, but their main agendas are libertarian social policy and anti-war/anti-Israel sentiment.

[Georgia Girl 2]

“I’m thinking Santorum will actually pull it out.”

Well unless they look real hard at Rick’s voting record in the Senate. Not exactly a tea party conservative.

*Was the prince of earmarks while in the Senate
*Voted to raise the debt ceiling 5 times
*Voted for CAFTA which ran almost all the textile mills out of the South.
*Votd for Sarbanes Oxley
*Voted agains’t the 1995 Right Work Act
*Voted for taxes on the internet
*Voted Greenspan to a fouth four year term
*Voted to increase the minimum wage
*Voted for the 1997 Lautenberg gun ban which stripped someone of their rights for spanking their kids
*1999 voted for a bill that included a provision fot require background checks at gun shows
*Voted for Medicare Part D drug prescription program
*Voted for the gun lock requirement ammendment in 2005 with Barbara Boxer
*Voted for the Firearms Manufacturers Protection Bill then flip flopped and voted agains’t it in S 1805 Firearms Manufacturer’s Protection Bill
*Voted for No Child Left Behind
*Worked to increase big government programs like Headstart
*Voted for taxpayer money to go Pennsylvania families for their heating bills
*Sponsored legislation to force companies to pay laid off workers benefits
*Vote for HR 796- the protection of abortion clinics
*Introduced and co-sponsored big govt health-care bills

Santorum oppoed the tea party and its reforms in the Republican Party and conservative movement just a couple of years ago saying “I have some real concerns about this movement within the the Republican party...to sort of refashion conservtism. And I will vocally and publicly oppose it.”

[livius]

Newt might seem plausible if you thought economics was their main agenda, but their main agendas are libertarian social policy and anti-war/anti-Israel sentiment.

That's probably true. I live in a town where there are a lot of older Paul supporters who are also members of the local (self-proclaimed) Tea Party. If Paul dropped out, I think they'd vote for Gingrich on economic issues.

None of the GOP candidates agree with them on their libertarian and anti-war/anti-Israel stands, so they couldn't vote on that basis. However, Romney is the most liberal and thus the closest to their Paulista life-style and economic issues. So who knows?

I do think Paul, as usual, has been the true spoiler in this race, since he shouldn't even be running as a Republican.

[Lady Lucky]

Conservatives are not “groupies” by nature

That was my belief at the start of this primary season. Now I'm not at all sure it is valid.

[Lady Lucky]

Rick might have made a deal to be Romney’s V.P. I wouldn’t put it past him at all.

I agree completely. But if he racks up any more delegates, bound or no, I wouldn't put it past him to renege on the deal.

[Right_in_Virginia]

Newt is VERY gracious toward Santorum in this interview. Will Santorum’s supporters return the favor?

No, Rick's going to allow Willard to pound Newt. There's a thread here somewhere saying that Willard's running negative ads against Newt .... not Rick, but Newt.

I'm trying hard not to believe there isn't a pact between Willard and Santorum. They're both afraid of Newt.

Time will tell.

[Right_in_Virginia]

I think Santorum’s surge is one that will stick because the more people look at him and how he’s lived his life the more they will like him.

Really? Americans no long want experience, depth, vision in a candidate?

If likability is the yardstick what's to stop Obama's victory? Fifty percent of Americans support him and even more think he's a "nice guy".

[Toespi]

Santorum is an ankle biter. He takes every opportunity to whine to media about someone going negative, cheating, or excluding him. He exaggerates and is just as nasty as anyone, but does it in a sneaky, manipulative manner.

[Right_in_Virginia]

I agree he’s an ankle biter. But prepare yourself for this ticket: Romney/Santorum.

God help us.

[garjog]

Newt is our Yoda! We need a seasoned warrior to save our nation from the dark side.

[petercooper]

Santorum gets in a snit when he is challenged, and I don’t think “richie cunningham” has the wherewithall to win over “uber cool” fonziebama.

That's it in a nutshell. Obama will come right at Little Ricky, Little Ricky will have a hissyfit, back down, and show everyone what a little boy he actually is, and Obama will sail back in.

[PSYCHO-FREEP]

Santorum is just a carbon copy of George W Bush. He is a social conservative, but his past career and even most of his current fiscal policy is still moderate/status quot.

Bush had much more executive experience than Santorum, but they are mostly the same, and their popularity is based on ignorance about who and what they truly are.

We need a true professional like Newt to fix this mess. No other substitute will do. The time for On The Job training is over. Screw the “morally pure/family values” obsession. Voting for a candidate based on those qualities only, will ruin us.

[RitaOK]

I hardly need to post if you are on a thread. Could not agree more with your assessment of Newt and Rick as “oil and water”. I certainly see Rick as flaming surface oil and Newt as the oceanic mass, confident, with fascinating depth, rolling the waves of the surface with that confidence, and the unmatched experience in the tide coming in and to wash ashore.

To wax poetic on the imagery, it is reported that the West Coast apparently will see a wave of debris coming in from an earthquake, bringing in with it all sorts of things from land, manufactured items, furniture even, “baggage” if you will, and bodies of those who died.

Somehow it is the ocean that buoyies all these things, and brings it across that ocean for care, repair and buriel. Even in that scene it is the ocean that manages, from shore to shore, the debris of an earthquake.

Is that not us today in the US?

And then there is Santorum. Not quite the same, is it?

[napscoordinator]

I’ve said this many times. He’s in cahoots with Romney.

Oh you have been running your mouth about how Bachmann was in cahoots with Romney and then it was Cain who was in cahoots with Romney. You just can’t make up your mind which is why you have ZERO credibility here.

[dforest]

I think Newt is in cahoots with Romney. Newt knows he isn’t going to move up, but he will settle on Romney when the bucks run out.

Is that how it works?

[napscoordinator]

You have explained that perfectly.

[altura]

Look at Free Republic two weeks ago. Everyone was begging for Santorum to bow out for the good of the party.

This race seems to change by the week.

I, for one, hope Newt can regain some momentum. He’s a better candidate.

We’ll see.