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Subscribe to RSSNEWBERRY, S.C. – Newt Gingrich made President Obama his only target in a town hall here tonight, describing what he believes would be a brutal general election fight against the president.
“In January 2012, Gingrich-Obama campaign will come down to two questions: Can you endure the pain of four more years of radical incompetence, which would be my argument, and, can I survive the weight of negativity, smears, assaults and lies that they’re going to throw?” Gingrich said.
Speaking to a packed Newberry Opera House after a fundraising barbecue for the South Carolina Republican Party, Gingrich added that the Obama campaign is already attacking Republican candidates because the president can’t highlight his first-term record.
“Watch their first ambushes against Romney and ask yourselves this question: Why would a president of the United States run an attack ad in November before there’s even a Republican nominee? It’s because they’ve got nothing positive to say about three and a half years of failure.”
While the Democratic National Committee and pro-Obama Super-PAC Priorities USA (run by former Obama administration officials) have already begun to attack Mitt Romney, the Obama campaign itself has not, releasing its first ad, a direct appeal to voters from the president, today.
Gingrich dared Obama to run a strictly positive campaign, saying it would greatly reduce his re-election chances, although Gingrich seemed uninterested in doing so himself, referring to the president as a “Saul Alinsky radical” at least three times during the town hall.
The twenty-year congressman and former House speaker’s criticism of Washington was not limited to the president, as he also slammed members of Congress for making insider trades, saying newly-elected members should have to keep their assets in blind trusts.
“It is so clear that they have so much power that there is no way to build trust in an environment where they can make money out of what they’re doing,” Gingrich said.
He also suggested that Congress’ record-low approval ratings are a threat to the country. “You can’t sustain freedom in a country where that level of contempt exists for one of the key institutions of self-government.”
Gingrich also criticized inside-the-Beltway political consultants, suggesting former President George W. Bush’s team could have had a bigger win in the 2004 re-election campaign if they had listened to Gingrich’s advice.
“In the summer of 2004 I wrote a paper for the Bush campaign arguing that [Democratic nominee John] Kerry was vulnerable to a catastrophic defeat,” Gingrich said, noting Kerry’s liberal voting record. “And I couldn’t get the consultants to agree to run a campaign based on ideas,” he added in remarks reminiscent of those he made after former campaign staffers resigned en masse in June.
“My campaign consultants understood 30-second attack ads,” Gingrich said on Fox and Friends on June 15th. “They didn’t understand you could actually write a book with big ideas and actually campaign talking about big ideas.”
Absent from his remarks tonight was any real criticism of Mitt Romney, although Gingrich generated attention for saying he is “a lot more conservative than Mitt Romney” during a radio interview with a Charleston station on Monday morning.
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My comment: Please nominate him. The man that tried to impeach a president while at the same time was seeing another woman that was not his wife.
He has told so many lies that he can't keep his answers straight. He is just like Rep Virgina Fox, Rep from western NC, there is Dem. woman with her own money and can fight just as dirty as Fox. That is all these people seem to understand is get down in the gutter with them and dish just as much as they do.
Who cares, he didn't abuse the people's house by getting b.js in it.
Nothing wrong with bjs. Cheating on a cancer victim wife is not too cool.
Obama ran an ad against Romney for a few reasons, Romney ran the normal BS ad Republicans are best at,,,,,,,,,And Romney IS the only viable candidate Republicans have,,,,,,,,,,,Newt is a serial cheater, ex-lobbiest, money hungry leach, Perry is an idiot, Bachmann is insane, Paul is,,,,,,Ron Paul (Virtually everything he says is the exact opposite of his actions)
At this point, Romney is the ONLY Republican candidate
PEOPLE!! PEOPLE!! PEOPLE!!!
Newt Gingrich will say anything!!!!!!!! He doesn't know what he is !!!
How fortunate for governments that the people they administer don't think.
Adolf Hitler / Newt doesn't want you to think!!!!!!!!!!!
Saul Alinsky: He was for the people, his organizing skills were focused on improving the living conditions of poor communities across North America. In the 1950s, he began turning his attention to improving conditions of the African American ghettos!!!!!!!! "Whenever anyone asks me my religion, I always say—and always will say— Jewish."
The people today don't know and don't care who Saul Alinsky was.!!
Sense President Obama was elected, out of the Dark came the TEA PARTY!!!
To defend the BIG FAT CAT'S and Republican obstructionism
Ole Newt knows how to hide money he will tell you for a fee!!!!!
Demoralize the enemy from within by surprise, terror, sabotage, assassination. This is the war of the future.
Adolf Hitler Newt Gengrich has been doing this for years!!!
Newt Gengrich is the new “Saul Alinsky radical”
All propaganda has to be popular and has to accommodate itself to the comprehension of the least intelligent of those whom it seeks to reach.
Adolf Hitler / Newt Gingrich was ousted from speaker by his "OWN PARTY"
Newt Gingrich slammed members of "Congress for making insider trades, saying newly-elected members should have to keep their assets in blind trusts."
What is Zerobama? He didn't run as a far left marxist, but as a centrist. We see his true colors and they are not beneficial to the future of this country. He is gone in one year.
...and that year will be 2017! Flights to Somalia available for those disappointed with reality.
It cracks me up when some of the old geezers that post here try shove this make believe all white republican military down our throats....it doesnt exist....people of all races and religions have fought for this nation and believe you me they are not all republicans....the GOPs problem is they think they can put an R besides any idiots name...and as long as they are "God fearing" and "white"....the sheep will vote for them....not going to happen...everyone knows the GOP not only took Cain down...but is trying to dress a piece of poop and call him a candidate...
It makes me laugh when I read ridiculous posts from the new entitlement generation that never had to work hard or serve in the military. Now you find out that a good living is NOT GUARANTEED BY THE NANNY OR OTHER ACHIEVERS.
The leftist propaganda machine kept the attacks on Cain front and center, but it didn't work. Who do your enablers go after now?
Seriously, trying to reason with anyone who generalizes all Democrats as "enablers" is pointless because that person is narrow minded. You can never reason with anyone who can't see the other side's argument and instead just hurls insults or talking points they have heard on TV or the radio because they can't make an intelligent point of their own.
The problem the Republicans have is they don't have a candidate that can beat President Obama and that really makes them mad. As of now, Obama wins against all of them in polls! They are all G-D awful candidates!!! They are flaky, radical or cheating liars. I say the economy is going to slowly get better over the next year - which is good news for this country. And Obama will win re-election. No doubt!
Newt vs Hussein! this is what it might come to?
A career, insiders vs a no experience Kenyan!
why not just shoot us all and be done with it!
To try to paint either side as good, your as dumb and useless as Hussein and Newt are!
If you aint 1% you aint ???
" Greasy Palm " womanizing Gingrich is just another dumb Republican puppet bribed and bankrolled by the crooked greedy corporations and the polluting gas, mining and oil companies. A disgrace to America.
Zerobama is greased from Wall Street and GREEDY CORPORATIONS, NEXT?!
John....Gingrich may be a womanizer..but...he is-not....repeat...he is-not...a dumb republican puppet....I bet you think Obama is smart...lol...
Have you listened to Newt? Everyone talks about how smart he is, but I haven't heard anything impressive from him yet. I can't see Newt getting the female vote, and I can't see Obama losing much of the black vote. I guess time will tell.
uh uh uh where is my teleprompter? Bush did it, I inherited this mess, uh uh uh.
Bush did do it, uhunh! Try going back to 2008 and look at the facts.
That's the best you've got? LOL
Have you made even one post with a comment of substance in it?
Obama has nothing to run on except blaming someone else for his incompetence....he is a complete moron.....a community organizer....no experience running anything...Newt Gingrich would wipe the floor with Obama....without his teleprompter he is a complete idiot....I don't care whom the other candiate is ...I want someone that can get us out of the mess Obama has gotton us into....
"gotten" is not spelled the same as "cotton". I get particular joy from people who can't be bothered to spell or use the language correctly calling anyone else an idiot.
And we were in this mess before President Obama was elected. He may not have been particularly successful in addressing it, but he definitely did not create it. Do any of your posts contain anything other than bs rightwing talking points?
Charlie - You obviously found this blog by mistake. How about start looking in the classified ads for a job?
There is only one serious candidate with a chance to beat Obama and that's Romney. If he picks Ron Paul as a VP it will be a lively campaign. Gingrich should be satisfied with guest appearances on Hannity. Sorry.
I don't believe Romney would be successful. Too many easy things to attack him on. His record in Massachusetts for starters. Jon Huntsman, however, would make a very good candidate. It would be especially hard to attack his character, since he served as the current administration's ambassador to China.
I think the same about Huntsman, and the way the republican party waffles back and forth on their candidates, he might just be the next one at the top.
Newt Gingrich 2012...anybody but Obama.....
Get serious. Gingrich would lead the Republicans into oblivion. The only plus he has is experience in Washington! Who wants more of that? On top of it all he is an acknowledges liar, cheater, adulterer, back stabber, fabricator of fantasy events, there is no negative he doesn't qualify for. On top of it all he does not have the personal self worth to control his caloric intake. He may be dead before November!
Dixies intolerance says it all, anything but Obama. Must be teaparty born and raised.
Newt - here's a newsflash! No one has to run "negative" ads against you - your own actions and choices have been nothing but negative. Talk truth. You are about as "inside Washington" as they come and you have made a lot of money from your political connections - including Fanny and Freddie. Why not talk the truth about how you sat in your Speaker chair in judgement of President Clinton while you were cheating on your own family! You are disgusting and disingenuous. YUCK!!!!!! You live an egomaniacal way of life.
Why would a president of the United States run an attack ad in November before there’s even a Republican nominee?
Because both parties have dragged campaigns that far down into the mud. If you want to blame someone, start with Steve Atwater. And eventually you end up with "Swift Boat Veterans for Slander".
No other advertising makes an impact. And because, as anyone would expect, he wants the other party to nominate someone he will beat easily. Newt would fit the bill. Jon Huntsman is the only Republican who can beat President Obama. Unfortunately he is not enough of a right wing authoritarian to get the nomination. The Republicans abandoned real conservatives a long time ago.
IT'S ABOUT THE ECONOMY STUPID.......
When Newt Gingrich was sworn in as the first Republican Speaker of the House in forty years in January 1995, the Congressional Budget Office projected that over the next decade the cumulative federal budget deficits would total $2.7 trillion. Shortly after Gingrich left office in January 1999, CBO projected that over the next decade that federal surpluses would total over $2.3 trillion– a four-year turnaround in the financial outlook of the United States of $5 trillion. A comparable improvement in the U.S fiscal outlook today would total over $8 trillion (as % of GDP).
IT'S ABOUT JOBS STUPID.......
From 1995 to 1999 when Newt was Speaker of the House, Eleven Million New Jobs were Created. In that SAME 4 years, the national unemployment rate fell from 5.6% to 4.2%
And you can't even prove correlation, let alone cause and effect.
IT'S ABOUT OUR MASSIVE DEBT & RUNAWAY SPENDING STUPID....
Over $400 Billion of National Debt Paid Down During the Balanced Budget Years. During his four year Speakership, Gingrich led a reduction in the share of the public debt for every worker in the amount of $2,484. (Compared to an increase of $26,302 per worker under Obama.)
How many unfunded wars was Newt cleaning up? What was the capital gains tax when Newt was speaker? Your posts are facts without meaning.
I do give you a lot of credit for trying to use data instead of talking points, but without context, the data means nothing.
IT"S ABOUT EXPERIENCE STUPID.....
When Newt was Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Barak Obama was starting his political career as a junior Illinois state senator.
So when will you start complaining that Newt's never had a REAL job, then? Or are you counting "lobbyist" as a real job?
When Newt was Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, President Barack Obama was starting his political career as a junior Illinois state senator...
Experience is not always a good thing: from Biography.com...
Gingrich's accomplishments were not without controversy. His popularity began to decline amidst partial government shutdowns in 1995. Gingrich was widely blamed for the shutdowns, after he had refused to compromise with President Clinton on budget cuts.
Ethical considerations were at the heart of much criticism of the speaker. In 1995, he returned a $4.5 million book advance that the House Ethics Committee had questioned. Another ethics investigation arose about whether Gingrich had used tax-exempt donations to fund a college course he had taught while serving in Congress. Gingrich negotiated an agreement with the House Ethics Committee, and he payed $300,000 for the cost of the investigation. The House voted to reprimand him by a vote of 395 to 28. In 1997, Gingrich was narrowly re-elected.
Resignation
In 1998, a scandal broke that would have a big impact on Gingrich's career. Clinton was alleged to have lied before a federal grand jury about his extramarital affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. Gingrich pushed for impeachment, and for Clinton's removal from office. Congressional hearings and a media frenzy created a backlash against Republicans, as many voters felt they had gone too far.
In the 1998 midterm elections, Republicans lost five seats to Democrats. The tides had turned against Gingrich, and even members of his own party were critical of the speaker's tactics and the image he projected of the Republican party. In November 1998, Gingrich stepped down as speaker of the House. In January 1999, he resigned his seat in Congress.
All i got to say please let it be a Newt versus Obama debate because all Newt will do is attack the media and SOUND like he knows what he's talking about then all the President has to do ispoint out the facts to him. Then ask him so you said "I'm being radical in the way I handle the American economy right???!!! Let me show you how many jobs have been lost in my first six months before my policies could take effect and after . Then let's look at foreign policy and see how that's effected the American economy over my four years in office compared to what President Bush was able to get away with. In other words keep pointing out the facts to him (Newt) and he will wilt and get dominated in any debate versus the President. Be careful what you wish for Republicans you might get your azzzesss handed to you touting a blow hard like Newt.
Better luck in 2016 GOP, against Hillary...
Hillary?? Have you had a good look at that old hag lately?? What a walking joke she turned out to be.
In November, 2012 we will make a choice between a Democrat or a Republican.......Hope and Change II or Smoke and Mirrors.
Gingrich needs to look at his backyard before attacking anybody including the meaning of "adultery." There is more to be said about you, gingrich than the President himself.
Reducing SS payroll tax by 2% is joke. It made no difference in my spending habits - just wasn't enough money to notice. If I was a retiree, I think raising the SS tax by 2% for year or two makes a lot more sense.
Obama is just trying to collect votes, not fix the Federal deficit.
No Big Paul he is trying to do SOMETHING - which is more than I can say for the TPGOP - they bitch, moan, gripe, complain about jobs, jobs, jobs yet do NOTHING or let NOTHING pass so that we can move forward.