BARRINGTON, IL -- His presidential campaign on the ropes, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich grew reflective on Thursday, encouraging students in Illinois to dream big.

“You should define for yourself what your dreams are and I would argue that one of the great weaknesses of American culture right now is we haven’t had a conversation about the size dreams we need for a country of 305 million people or 310 million people,” Gingrich, a former history professor, told the packed crowd in Barrington High School’s auditorium. “You don't lead a country this size with tiny things.”

It is because of these big ideas that the former House Speaker is not wavering in his decision to keep running for president -- following on the same “large ideas to try and get America moving again” that John F. Kennedy used in the 1960s.

“I'm staying in the race to see if I can't, in the second half of the race, Louisiana is sort of halftime, I want to see if we can't reset this whole race around the idea of really big ideas and really big solutions and insist that the American people have a chance to vote for a dramatically better future,” he said. The Louisiana primary is March 24th.

Gingrich’s nearly hour-long speech stepped away slightly from focusing solely on gas prices and national security, the two themes of his campaign as of late. Rather, he mentored the mostly high school student crowd, telling them to always be willing to learn, not to do something they hate, and be proud of the person you are.

“I find every single day of the presidential campaign, I’m learning new things,” the speaker said. “I'm suggesting to all of you, you have to have a habit of learning every day because the world is bigger than you are and it changes… you'll find yourself learning your whole life.”

And for Gingrich, who remains fighting for his political life during this Republican primary season, he says he still loves what he is doing.

“I love life. I love getting up in the morning. I love seeing what the weather is going to be. I love animals. I love the process of interacting with people. I like learning,” Gingrich said with a smile on his face. “So I really am basically cheerful everyday because in my mind everyday is cool, I am still here.”

More classic Gingrich today in Barrington, Ill., per NBC's Alex Moe:

"You should define for yourself what your dreams are, and I would argue that one of the great weaknesses of American culture right now is we haven't had a conversation about the size dreams we need for a country of 305 million people or 310 million people. You don't lead a country this size with tiny things.

"There is a rule in Biology called hyper carnivia that basically says that lions can't afford to hunt chipmunks because even if they catch them, they starve to death. Lions have to hunt antelope and zebra.

"Ronald Reagan understood this and so Ronald Reagan came into office..."

We're not totally certain of "hyper carnivia," its spelling, or what it is. The closest we could come up with is this. (Any biologists out there?)

“I love life. I love getting up in the morning. I love seeing what the weather is going to be. I love animals. I love the process of interacting with people. I like learning. So I really am basically cheerful everyday because in my mind everyday is cool; I am still here.”

-- Newt Gingrich in Barrington, Ill. today, per NBC's Alex Moe, defending his answer at debate that he is "cheerful."

GULFPORT, Miss. – Despite calls to withdraw from the presidential race, Newt Gingrich says no matter the outcome of the primaries next week, his campaign will go on.

"We'll clearly do well enough to move on, and I think there's a fair chance we'll win” in Mississippi and Alabama, Gingrich told The Associated Press in an interview Friday. “But I just want to set this to rest once and for all, we're going to Tampa."

The former House speaker appears to be lowering expectations in the two Southern states after his press secretary told reporters that the elections on Tuesday were crucial.

Campaign spokesman R.C. Hammond had told reporters on Wednesday that Gingrich needed to win both Mississippi and Alabama to remain a credible candidate. “From Spartanburg to Texas, those all need to go for Gingrich,” Hammond said.

Gingrich barely mentioned his two leading Republican competitors – Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum – at all on the stump Friday despite running neck-and-neck with them, according to new polls.

The Speaker is continuing to campaign like it’s business as usual, focusing his criticism on President Barack Obama’s energy policies.

Friday afternoon, the Gingrich campaign stopped at an oil drilling training facility in Laurel, Miss., to jab Obama’s recent speeches on energy, while touting his own $2.50 a gallon gas price plan.

“I just wanted to point out, Mr. President, that this is how they get natural gas. This is drilling. They don't get natural gas from algae,” Gingrich said as he stood in front of an oil rig.

Speaking at Gulfport High School – his last event in Mississippi Friday – Gingrich also called for Defense Secretary Leon Panetta to resign.

“I have been told that the secretary of defense has suggested that international agreements override the Congress,” Gingrich said, referring to comments that Panetta made Thursday about Syria as he testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee. “If he believes that, he should resign tonight … Leon Panetta needs to learn we do not have a United Nations secretary of defense, we have a United States secretary of defense.”

 Gingrich campaigns in Alabama Saturday.

JACKSON, MS -- After a long day of events and travel following Super Tuesday, Newt and Callista Gingrich took to the dance floor here in Mississippi, showing off their personal side on their first night in the state.

When the traveling national press entered the lobby of the Hilton Hotel after midnight Wednesday, no one expected who would be sitting in the bar -- the former House Speaker (sitting sans jacket and tie) and his wife Callista, along with members of their staff and scattered Secret Service agents.

They were all enjoying drinks and the cover band after another 18-hour day. It was a rare moment on the campaign as the Gingriches let loose with staff and a handful of members of the media to the tunes of the Beach Boys’ “California Girl,” Michael Jackson’s “Billy Jean,” and yes, even T-Pain’s “Apple Bottom Jeans.”

NBC's Alex Moe

Newt and Callista Gingrich cut loose in Jackson, MS.

Gingrich joked that his wife, who is very musically inclined, has much better dance moves than he does.

When Elton John’s “Rocket Man” came on, the Gingriches moved in front of the band while the rest of the group looked on -- and the Speaker turned Callista around the dance floor.

“We had a long day, we did a lot of things,” Mr. Gingrich told one reporter at the hotel bar. “My first interview is at 6:30 in the morning….You’ve got to take a few minutes off.” 

MONTGOMERY, AL -- Wins in both Alabama and Mississippi next week are essential for Newt Gingrich to stay credible in the 2012 presidential race, his campaign spokesman acknowledged Wednesday.

“A big win in Georgia kept us in the race. Big wins in Alabama and Mississippi will add even more fuel to the tank,” Gingrich campaign spokesman R.C. Hammond told reporters.

The former House Speaker himself continued to raise expectations in the Yellowhammer State.

“I believe Alabama has a major role to play in setting the stage for the presidential nomination,” Gingrich told the crowd here during his first event post-Super Tuesday where he only placed higher than third in one of eleven states.

While Gingrich is still running second in delegate count as of this morning, according to NBC News, with 111 delegates [Mitt Romney 339; Santorum 107], many people, including his competitors, question how he can continue on much longer without actually winning more states. The Speaker has only won South Carolina and Georgia.

The campaign feels it is so essential to focus on these two states, where voters take to the polls on March 13, that they will skip campaigning in Kansas.

After sending out a press schedule just yesterday with the subject line: “Newt and Callista Gingrich Announce Campaign Stops in Kansas,” Hammond told reporters Wednesday morning there has been a change in schedule.

“Gingrich," he said, "will be here in Alabama and Mississippi."

The former Speaker’s attendance at the six scheduled campaign appearances in all four of Kansas’s congressional districts have been cancelled, including a Newt 2012 Big 12 Tournament Basketball Watch Party.

The move to not campaign in Kansas, although the campaign says it will still utilize resources there, is in line with Gingrich’s Southern strategy.

“Everything from Spartanburg all the way to Texas, they all need to go for Gingrich,” Hammond said. 

Gingrich placed third in both the Tennessee and Oklahoma primaries Tuesday but has high hopes next week in Alabama and Mississippi.

Despite winning just one state last night, Newt Gingrich is vowing to stay in the race.

"We are staying in this race, because I believe it is going to be impossible for a moderate to win the general election," Gingrich said.

He dismissed Rick Santorum as a "good team member," but one who can't change the game.

"With all respect to my friend from Pennsylvania, Sen. Santorum," Gingrich said, "there is a big difference between being a good team member and changing the game."

The comments are similar to what Gingrich said this morning on Bill Bennett's "Morning in America" radio show.

"If I thought he was a slam dunk to beat Romney and to beat Obama, I would really consider getting out," Gingrich said of Santorum on the show. "I don’t ... I think each of the three candidates has strengths and weaknesses and that this is a very healthy vetting process.”

Gingrich refused to set the bar of when he might drop out.

"If you asked Rick Santorum that question immediately after Nevada, what would we have said?" Gingrich retorted. "He had been running fourth for a month and -- including me -- people were saying maybe he should drop out. He ignored all those. He now has had a terrific month. I think you have to wait and see how the race goes on.”

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich speaks at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – As many voters across the country were casting votes in Super Tuesday States, Newt Gingrich was talking about space exploration in Rocket City, U.S.A.

“What we're in today is a launching pad -- this isn't the end state for the space program, this is the launching pad for the next phase of excitement and invention,” Gingrich told the several hundred people gathered at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center -- home of Space Camp.

The former House speaker, who is hoping to win big in Georgia Tuesday night and start to relaunch his presidential campaign, defended his dreams for America’s space program despite criticisms from his GOP rivals.

“I want to restate -- far from backing off -- I want to restate: America has a destiny in space,” Gingrich said. “It is a part of who we are. We are not going to back off from John Kennedy’s challenge and we are not going to go timidly into the night allowing the Chinese to dominate the future of space.”

While campaigning on Florida’s Space Coast late in January, Gingrich called for a creation of a colony on the moon by 2020. His comments resulted in some mockery by late night comedians and questions by people in his own party but the former speaker still choose to gave another speech on space the day 11 states cast votes in this tight Republican primary.

Gingrich spokesman, R.C. Hammond, told reporters he has one thing to say to all the “naysayers.”

“The same folks who mock Newt Gingrich for having vision in science, are the same people who don't want to cure cancer, the same people who are content to live with Alzheimer's, the same people who don't want to fix our public school systems, are the same people who look at a problem and say, 'Well, I can live with that, lets not worry about fixing that.' They're the same critics that created the tea party by turning the Republican Party away from it's actual values,” he said.

Hartselle, Alabama resident Mary Hatfield told NBC News she is leaning toward voting for Gingrich in the primary next week because of his “wealth of experience,” noting she is glad the speaker came to talk about space today.

“I think it should be a part of the discussion,” she said. “There are other things more crucial to our country right now, yes, but I think we have to be part of space exploration because someone is going to do it if we don’t.”

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Newt Gingrich has called for an end to “children’s hour” when it comes to the country’s security and says that Beltway policy makers are missing the point when it comes to Syria.
 
“We don't need to mess around tactically having a debate over Syria,” Gingrich said while campaigning in Tennessee. “We need a fundamental conversation about the entire natural of our role in that entire region and we need rethink what we're doing across the whole region.”
 
Gingrich, the former house speaker, has for months been an outspoken critic of United States policy regarding the Middle East. Recently he has criticized the Obama Administration for apologizing to Afghans when Qurans were burned outside a military post in Afghanistan.
 
“Arguing about Afghanistan today and Syria tomorrow and Iran next day – this is nonsense,” Gingrich told a crowded ballroom inside the Hilton Knoxville Airport Hotel here. “We have been in a period where, for over 10 years, we have attempted to figure out a strategy for fundamental change in the region and I want to suggest to you that it has not worked.”
 
Gingrich also touched on another topic he speaks of often – Iran – but took an even sharper tone than normal.
 
“We should indicate calmly and decisively that any act to close the Straight of Hormuz will be considered an act of war and we will eliminate the government of Iran,” Gingrich said. “None of this limited rules of engagement, take-two-lawyers-into-combat-with-you to make sure you do it right.  You mess with the Strait of Hormuz, you won't be a government anymore.  But – unless they're utterly insane, that would probably stop them.”
 
But with just one day before the all-important Super Tuesday contests, Gingrich shot back during his afternoon speeches at comments his rival, Mitt Romney, made Sunday.
 
“Gov. Romney yesterday said I was pandering” on gas prices, the Speaker told the Kingsport/East Tennessee Republican Women’s Club in Kingsport. “Well, let me say up front, of course nobody knows you'd be at $2.50 [per gallon of gas], but there's this thing called setting goals.”

“It's not called pandering, it's called leadership,” Gingrich said about his proposal to lower gas prices.

The Speaker, who needs a big win on Super Tuesday in his home state of Georgia, also added he is confident going into the state's primary tomorrow.
 
“Looks now like in Georgia we will carry the state by four or five times the margin that Romney had in Michigan,” he said. “So that feels pretty good.”

TULSA, Okla -- Status update: Yup, Herman Cain is still singing.

The grinning former presidential candidate on Monday treated Newt Gingrich supporters at a Tulsa pizza parlor to a booming rendition of "America the Beautiful" before launching into his case for the former speaker of the House.

"Even though I am no longer pursuing the position of president, I am still on a mission and that mission is to make sure that we get the right person in the White House and that person is former Speaker Newt Gingrich in order to help save America," he told the crowd of about 100. "That's why I am doing what I'm doing."

(Although the rally was held at a downtown Tulsa pizza joint, the onetime pie purveyor did not sample any of the goods.)

Heading into the Oklahoma primary, Cain joined former home state congressman J.C. Watts and Gingrich's daughter Jackie to promote the candidate's $2.50 gas plan. Watts predicted a primary struggle at least into May and said that Gingrich will continue to accumulate delegates after Super Tuesday.

"We think we're still in the hunt, and the voters are going to be good to us not just tomorrow but as we continue on," Watts said. 

Cain, himself a longtime radio host, spoke briefly to NBC News after the event about the exodus of at least eight advertisers from Rush Limbaugh's radio show.

"They would have to make that call," Cain said. "I just know that advertisers make their decisions about who they want to support and not support, but I don't think it's going to hurt the Rush Limbaugh show."

Asked if Limbaugh's comments about Georgetown Law student Sandra Fluke, who has lobbied the Catholic university to cover birth control under its student insurance plans, had hurt the GOP, Cain offered a flat "no."

"No, I don't think they hurt the party because Rush Limbaugh is not running for anything, so I don't think they hurt the party at all," he said.