One thing I’ve noticed that the Establishment misses is that the more Republicans listen to Newt, the more favorably they view him. When the candidates first started to declare, I couldn’t possibly imagine that I’d be favoring Newt Gingrich (I was THRILLED when Perry got in and thought he would be the guy to block Mittens). Then, watching the debates, I landed solidly in the Gingrich camp.
If you look at the polling for SC, those who watched the debates favor Gingrich by an absolutely massive margin, and those who didn’t actually broke for Romney. Newt wins debates so powerfully that people’s perception of him steadily improves.
When independents hear Gingrich debate, and obliterate Obama in the debates, Newt’s favorables will rise. Approval isn’t a static value. This is the same line of bull they used last time to insist that McCain was the only candidate who could beat...well, I think they actually thought Hillary was going to be the opponent at that time. But it’s the same thing.
The media myth of how brilliant Obama is dies the second he debates Newt. Will slippery Mitt be able to shatter that illusion of Obama’s false genius? I just don’t think so.
In my heart of hearts, I think Newt can and will beat Obama, and will be a stronger candidate than Mittens against Obozo.
You’re right,66-— People know the country is heading on the wrong path— and they’re looking for someone to lead.
They may not like Newt’s personality- but they’ll vote for his competence.