Newtmentum Part 2 (Or As Frenchie Speaking RINO Mitt Romney Would Say, "Part Deux")

Heeee's Back!

How can we tell?

First, he's back within 3% of Mitt nationally according to Rasmussen (warning, there's an annoying auto-play video at the link) and CNN has the race in SC tightening. It could just be a one day thing but coming off his debate on Monday and now the sort of endorsement by Sarah Palin, Newt's clearly on a roll.

Most tellingly, Mitt Romney sent his attack poodles after Newt again. Last time he was doing well Mitt dispatched John "Sure David Souter Is a Conservative And Where's My Government Jet?" Sununu after him. Now it's former Congresswoman Susan "72% Lifetime ACU Rating" Molinari doing Mitt's dirty work.

Molinari did serve in the House with Gingrich but there's a lot of backstory here involving her husband, former Congressman Bill Paxon and her dad, Guy, who held the same House seat before she took it over.

Judge accordingly.

“Newt Gingrich had a leadership style that can only be described as leadership by chaos,” said former Rep. Susan Molinari, who was a centrist Republican from New York, in a Romney campaign web video. “The last time Newt Gingrich was the head of the Republican Party as speaker, he became so controversial, he helped re-elect a Democratic president.” She referred to the re-election of President Bill Clinton in a 1996, at the peak of Mr. Gingrich’s stormy tenure as speaker.

I'm not even remotely going to deny Newt has problems but blaming him for Bob Dole's defeat? That's a special kind of stupid. But it's what Team Romney has so they are using it.

To be clear, I support Newt. Yes, I'm fully aware of his many, many, many faults. In an ideal world the thought of him being the nominee would be laughable but it's not an ideal world. It's a world in which the other choice is Mitt Romney.

I think supporting Mitt means overlooking just about everything he's ever done or said in politics before 2008 while giving him credit for the lip service he's paid to conservatives since then. Supporting Newt does require overlooking a lot of liberal things he's said but I think too many have totally ignored a lot of conservative things he's actually done and is proposing to do.

When Romney took Gingrich down in Iowa, they did so with a sustained barrage of ads (as did Ron Paul). It also coincided with a long, for this cycle, break in debates, which have been at the core of Gingrich's strategy all along. Well there's another one tomorrow. If he has as good a showing and Mitt and Ron Paul are as weak as they were on Monday...South Carolina and the nomination fight might not be over just yet.

Below the fold, Newt's newest TV ad featuring some of his greatest hits from Monday night.

It's hard to imagine Romney ever standing up for conservatism that clearly and passionately.

posted by DrewM. at 04:38 PM

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