Newt Gingrich’s Ideas Provide Fodder For Opponents To Attack Electability 2012/02/07 at 3:33 pm
By Ros Krasny
COCOA BEACH, Florida–Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich likes to be known as an ideas guy. His brainstorms can seem straight out of science fiction – establishing a colony on the moon – or the novels of Charles Dickens – putting poor children to work as janitors.
The long line of head-scratchers provides fodder for his opponents to attack Gingrichs electability. The thought process that might lie behind the ideas – like suggesting mandatory drug testing for federal aid applicants – also contributes to the candidates reputation as a polarizing figure in the Republican race to pick a challenger to Democratic President Barack Obama in Novembers election.
Its his greatest strength and his most significant weakness. Senator (Rick) Santorum accused him in a debate last week of having grandiose ideas. Gingrich happily accepted the charge, said Dan Schnur, communications director for Senator John McCains 2000 Republican primary campaign.
Gingrich, a former speaker of the US House of Representatives, is running neck and neck with former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney in polls ahead of Floridas pivotal primary next Tuesday and in national Republican surveys.
Gingrichs odd ideas can pop up at campaign events, in his writings, in appearances on Sunday talk shows – a trend that led Romney to snipe this week that Gingrich was capable of delivering an October surprise a day, referring to an unexpected negative development shortly before the presidential election.