Free Republic

Mike Huckabee, the amiable former governor of Arkansas and Fox News media personality, has decided after all not to run for president. It seems that he does not want to be president and is instead happy doing what he is doing. That leaves the question, if not Huckabee, then who? The former governor had a big following among social conservatives, a considerable voting bloc in the Republican Party. Now that voting bloc has to find someone else to rally around. But whom? There are a few people one can automatically cross off the list. Donald Trump has too much of...

In 1995, shortly after becoming Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich mulled a radical overhaul of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. As he put it to a room full of health insurers, “Maybe we’ll take out FDA.” What made Newt likable to advocates of freedom is sadly no longer part of his schtick. Here’s how Andrew Stiles reports on Newt’s appearance on Meet the Press yesterday: “I don’t think right-wing social engineering is any more desirable than left-wing social engineering,” he said when asked about [House Budget Committee chairman Paul] Ryan’s [R-WI] plan to transition to a “premium support”...

Brit Hume trashed Newt on Fox and called him nothing less than a Bomb thrower.  That's an understatement. Brit said that Newt attacked Paul Ryan and handed a talking point to the Democrats......"vote for a Republican and Medicare will be gone."  All that on day 5 of his campaign. Brit pretty much said that Newt is going to implode even faster than he did as Speaker of the House. He complimented Ryan for his detailed plan and ridicules Newt for not offering anything but a lot of noise.

Newt Gingrich was on Meet the Press this morning in his first Sunday show appearance since announcing his intention to… challenge President Obama for the Democrat nomination, apparently. Andrew Stiles at NRO has the details: Newt Gingrich’s appearance on “Meet the Press” today could leave some wondering which party’s nomination he is running for. The former speaker had some harsh words for Paul Ryan’s (and by extension, nearly every House Republican’s) plan to reform Medicare, calling it “radical.”

This morning Republicans are just beginning to assess the damage that former House Speaker and current presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has done to the GOP budget plan currently before Congress. On "Meet the Press" Sunday, Gingrich denounced House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan's plan to restructure Medicare, saying, "I don't think right-wing social engineering is any more desirable than left-wing social engineering. I don't think imposing radical change from the right or the left is a very good way for a free society to operate."

Newt Gingrich came in for some serious criticism on today's Morning Joe for his attack on Paul Ryan's health care proposal. Reacting to footage of Newt on Meet the Press alluding to Paul Ryan's health care proposal as "radical," Joe Scarborough accused Gingrich of being in "the mushy middle." Pat Buchanan came with the unkindest cut of all, saying Gingrich is "out on the left wing of the Republican party." View video here.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Sunday that he strongly supports a federal mandate requiring citizens to buy health insurance – a position that has been rejected by many Republicans, including several who likely will be running against him for the Republican presidential nomination. Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Gingrich told host David Gregory that he continues to advocate for a plan he first called for in the early 1990s as a Congressman, which requires every uninsured citizen to purchase or acquire health insurance. Read more on Newsmax.com: Gingrich Backs Obamacare's Individual Mandate Requiring Health Insurance Important: Do You...

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Sunday that he strongly supports a federal mandate requiring citizens to buy health insurance – a position that has been rejected by many Republicans, including several who likely will be running against him for the Republican presidential nomination. Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Gingrich told host David Gregory that he continues to advocate for a plan he first called for in the early 1990s as a Congressman, which requires every uninsured citizen to purchase or acquire health insurance. (snip) Gregory asked Gingrich if he would criticize GOP presidential rival Mitt Romney, whose "Romneycare"...

Discussion on the Sunday talk shows centered on the budget and the looming debt ceiling, with House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) on CNN’s State of the Union and House Speaker John Boehner (Ohio) on CBS’s Face the Nation. Domestic energy production and the ongoing turmoil in the Middle East also were addressed. Meet the Press (NBC) Gingrich: Paul Ryan' s plan is "right-wing social engineering," goes too far Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R) explained that he felt compelled to run for president because "to not seek to help the country to fix the problems we have would...

Newt Gingrich’s appearance on “Meet the Press” today could leave some wondering which party’s nomination he is running for. The former speaker had some harsh words for Paul Ryan’s (and by extension, nearly every House Republican’s) plan to reform Medicare, calling it “radical.” “I don’t think right-wing social engineering is any more desirable than left-wing social engineering,” he said when asked about Ryan’s plan to transition to a “premium support” model for Medicare. “I don’t think imposing radical change from the right or the left is a very good way for a free society to operate.” As far as an...

My father, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, has been in politics as long as I can remember. And as long as I can remember, media coverage about him has contained misstatements of facts. The vast majority are simple mistakes that are easily corrected, understood and rewoven into an ongoing storyline. But one of them seems to have taken on a life of its own, and simple corrections have not sufficed to set the record straight. Why does this happen? I can't be sure, but I suspect that the narrative created by these untruths proves to be so much...

Hot Air Candidate Approval Survey: May Edition NO E-MAIL REQUIRED

WILL MAKE ATTACKS ON PALIN LOOK LIKE CHILD’S PLAY And so it begins. Now that Newt Gingrich has made it official, we’re about to see a campaign of personal destruction that will make the attacks on Sarah Palin look like child’s play. This cartoon had the caption, “Newt Gingrich is Scum.” Catch the drift? Disclaimer: I am not condoning or excusing Newt’s past transgressions, which include extramarital affairs and the insensitivity of serving divorce papers to one of his wives while she was in the hospital. I am posing the question as to whether or not his past personal life...

Newt Gingrich has thrown his hat into the ring. The former House speaker has formally declared he will seek the 2012 Republican presidential nomination. Mr. Gingrich has toyed for years with running for the White House. Now he finally is all in. Mr. Gingrich has many positive attributes. He is articulate, smart and possesses instant name recognition. Moreover, he has a political machine and a network of advisers that will help him establish a formidable ground game. Mr. Gingrich’s candidacy, however, is a dollar short and a day late.

The first article, headlined “Romney has eye on one prize right now: money,” Dan Eggen and T. W. Farnam refer to Romney as “the presumed front-runner.” In a second article on page A4, headlined “Romney to confront his critics in a speech on health care,” Karen Tumulty more cautiously writes that Romney “is seen as a possible front-runner for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination?” Presumed by whom? Seen by whom? In the realclearpolitics.com average of recent polls Romney gets 16.6% and Mike Huckabee 16.4%. They’re followed by Donald Trump with 12.9%, Sarah Palin with 10.6%, Newt Gingrich with 7.7%, etc....

I think Newt Gingrich is the spitting image of the Keebler Elf and would lke to see this photoshoped. I don't have these skills and would love to see it done. My thanks up front and my the best picture win! We can all use it over and over again in the comming months.

Mike Barnicle has greeted Newt Gingrich's announcement of his presidential candidacy with a sneer, calling the former Speaker of the House "a delusional loser." The former Kennedy-clan retainer and Boston Globe columnist seasoned his attack with some snobbery, disparaging Gingrich's educational background. Barnicle spewed his bile on today's Morning Joe. View video here.

Trust me, when it comes to the 2012 race for the Republican presidential nomination, I am going to be fair in assessing the candidates. Already I have polled for NewsMax, and my early polls placed former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich in fourth place among announced or potential candidates. But before I go into my harsh analyst mode -- which once in a while leads to an "I'm hurt" email from Newt -- let me share my personal feelings about the man who has just announced that he will seek the presidency. Other than the man most call my "other...

'Callista and I' Barely a sentence goes by without Mr. Gingrich uttering the words “Callista and I.” They are constantly together — at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, at conservative political conferences, at book signings and screenings of their documentary films. She is the voice on his audio books; her face is all over his 2012 Web site, where visitors can read “A Note from Newt & Callista.” At Villanova University on a recent Thursday night, Mrs. Gingrich warmed up the audience for a showing of the couple’s movie about Pope John Paul II by signing books and...

ATLANTA (AP) --- Newt Gingrich, the House speaker who led a national GOP resurgence in the 1990s before facing ethics questions and resigning, is running for president. Gingrich's announcement, made on social networking websites Monday, came after months of public flirting with a bid. He enters a slow-to-form GOP presidential field that has left some Republicans craving more options as they search for a nominee strong enough to credibly challenge President Barack Obama. The former Georgia congressman, well-known to most Republicans, brings to the race a years-in-the-making political machine with ties to early nominating states as well as a network...