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Perhaps the biggest reason behind Newt's popularity is that despite his flaws, he's recognized as being extremely bright, and excels in the world of ideas. And it is conservatives who are valuing that. So how can so many conservatiuves like a guy who is clearly an intellectual if they hate intellectuals?

True, but there is definitely a strain of Republicans, who are probably all supporting Santorum, who either don't appreciate or value Newt's intellect, but have a hostility to it. These people usually have trouble stringing a complete sentence together on FR. So I think it's the same phenomenon some women have toward Sarah Palin. Some women will hate any women prettier than they are and some people will hate anyone smarter than they are. They'll spin it as saying that person is "arrogant," "talks down" to people and so forth, but it's not really about that.

There's a few of those people who prefer a more rapid sort of populism, but there are Democrats who think that way too -- who mistrust "smart-talking" people. I don't think that's the explanation for why Republicans overall seem less inclined to nominate "intellectuals". It's that most of those "intellectuals" are the ones who want to tell the rest of us what to do.

But for the most part, Republicans love conservatives who are intellectuals. like Paul Ryan, etc.