You are correct that Newt's lack of money and failure to have a good ground game could be his undoing. He almost missed getting on the ballot in Ohio. Newt has never run for statewide office let alone national office. I suspect that he never expected to be the frontrunner. Being good in debates doesn't translate into being able to assemble the team to run a first class campaign.
I hope the Virginia voters can figure out how to spell “Newt.”
“Newt has never run for statewide office let alone national office.”
No, but he DID run a national campaign once, for 435 races. You may recall, it was back in 1994. He managed to pull off a GOP majority in the House for the first time in 40 years. Followed up successfully two more times, too.
This is a ground game in each of the states. Once funded, Newt will be able to do a fine organizing job through his surrogates in the states, districts and precincts across the country.