Video: Newt Gingrich is not ready to make nice with McCain
posted at 10:00 am on February 9, 2008 by Bryan
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Laura Ingraham guest hosted for O’Reilly Friday and her first guest was former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Gingrich didn’t come out and either endorse or pledge to oppose John McCain in the general election this fall, so there’s no bombshell in this interview along those lines. He did say than when push comes to vote, he’ll vote for McCain because he’s better on enough issues than either of the Democrats who’ll face him, but that doesn’t mean that McCain should get a pass from the conservative movement when he transgresses conservatism.
Ingraham and Gingrich also make pitch perfect points about how a conservative ought to build bipartisanship. It’s not by moving left as McCain tends to do, but by standing on principle with the American people to force the Democrats to move to the right. Gingrich was very effective at that. McCain has yet to earn any meaningful spurs in that area. The interview then moves into the veepstakes, and that’s where it gets interesting. It’s at about 2:40 into this clip.
Newt Gingrich was first elected to Congress in 1982. John McCain was elected to represent Arizona in the Senate in 1982. Gingrich left Congress in 1998, and McCain is of course still one of Arizona’s senators. You need that background to understand what Newt Gingrich says about McCain and the team he has chosen to work with him is very interesting. With all those years of overlap in Congress, Gingrich would be in a position to know what McCain’s people think of the conservative movement. If Gingrich is right, it explains a lot.
To Gingrich’s take I’ll add that I’m not ready to make nice either. Sen. McCain delivered a fine speech at CPAC, but people can say anything. It’s what they do that tells you who they are. And it’s who they surround themselves with that tells you what they really think. McCain is still surrounded by people who are offended by the conservative movement and he still has NO-borders zealot Juan Hernandez hanging around the campaign. Sen. McCain says he is proud to defend America; Hernandez is not someone who has America’s security interests at heart. He still needs to go.
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Gingrich brings up a good point about voter turnout - we have enough trouble right now getting 2/3 the number of voters that Democrats have. If McCain and his cronies are willing to turn their collective backs on the conservatives, does he realistically expect to win the popular vote?
fourstringfuror on February 9, 2008 at 1:35 PM
That’s too bad. Now I only have Huckabee and McCain to choose from at the caucus today!
fourstringfuror on February 9, 2008 at 1:36 PM
Bryan,
So basically McCain knows what real conservatism is and is purposefully redefining it now, rather than simply admitting where he differs with it.
Purposeful redefiners are completely untrustworthy because they can nod heads with you one minute, stab your back the next, and then claim that you were the ultra or hyper representative in the first place.
Knowing that this man desires the Whitehouse and would gladly use this kind of dishonesty adds a seperate layer of concern on top of the already existing amnesty problem.
I fear his mishandling of events that may become more important than immigration. World unification for one.
shick on February 9, 2008 at 1:36 PM
He won’t, though. McCain is always right. Just ask him.
sloopy on February 9, 2008 at 1:39 PM
I doubt it, but I wish someone would recruit him to run for Congress against Jim McDermott. Bob wouldn’t win, but that would be the best. congressional. campaign. ever.
fiatboomer on February 9, 2008 at 1:44 PM
I don’t like Newt, he’s to chummy with algore. But he is right in that we can’t vote for anyone else. If McVain does not pick a CONSERVATIVE vp I won’t vote for anyone at all.
HotAirExpert on February 9, 2008 at 1:44 PM
From what I hear, he’ll still happily collect delegates, but is scaling back his operations in order to focus on his own reelection in his district. I don;t have a link yet, so vote your conscience, and don’t really listen to me until it’s official.
Big S on February 9, 2008 at 1:54 PM
Okay, so McCain needs a conservative VP. I could never understand why Duncan Hunter would support McCain. Could that endorsement have come with a promise that Hunter, a conservative’s dream, would be offered the spot to bring the base with him. Both a strong defense/war on terror, which I believe is McCain’s biggest concern.
gozips on February 9, 2008 at 1:55 PM
Again, you’ve swallowed a talking point pushed by Chicken Littles, Democrats, and the MSM. Since 1972, Democrat primary turnout has swamped Republican primary turnout in every election cycle except 2: 1996 (Clinton re-election) and 2000 (Gore coronation).
Here’s a link to the raw numbers:
http://www.centerforpolitics.org/crystalball/article.php?id=FRC2008011701
The average ratio of Democratic primary voters to Republican is 3:2. In 1988, when both spots were fairly heavily contested, the Democrats beat the Republicans nearly 2 to 1, but their eventual candidate, Dukakis, had his head handed to him in the general.
The comparisons don’t take many other factors into account, and I concede that the conservative movement has a relatively weak position this time around: The latter is an argument FOR adopting a more centrist-independent-oriented strategy, unless you’re aiming for a Goldwater-level blowout. Note: For everyone dreaming of Reagan 2 dropping out of the sky early, the Republican who took over in ‘68 was a centrist whose major domestic accomplishment was probably the creation of the EPA. It took 16 years, the rise of a once-in-a-century figure, and a lot of luck for a conservative (and far less than perfect conservative) to turn things around.
CK MacLeod on February 9, 2008 at 1:57 PM
Okay, so McCain needs a conservative VP. I could never understand why Duncan Hunter would support McCain. Could that endorsement have come with a promise that Hunter, a conservative’s dream, would be offered the spot to bring the base with him. Both a strong defense/war on terror, which I believe is McCain’s biggest concern.
gozips on February 9, 2008 at 1:59 PM
No one believes me when I tell them that Newt is covertly working for Hillary.
“Clinton, whose machine I think has fundamental challenges to the way we operate”
That was his criticism of Hillary.
Buddahpundit on February 9, 2008 at 1:59 PM
Jonathan Martin on Ron Paul’s future.
Big S on February 9, 2008 at 2:00 PM
so, the strategy is then to recraft the GOP into a Democrat Party adjunct, huh?
Onager on February 9, 2008 at 2:00 PM
Newt makes a lot more sense than McCain.
duff65 on February 9, 2008 at 2:11 PM
If that’s what I thought, that’s what I would have said. If you on the other hand belong to the 3.6% of the population or less (probably much less) for whom John McCain is hard to distinguish from Hillary Clinton, then there’s no winning political strategy at all. Time to face facts and probably pick a different hobby - unless you really like getting your head beat in year after year after year.
CK MacLeod on February 9, 2008 at 2:12 PM
If you vote for him in the fall, McCain does get a pass, because your vote is the only thing that matters. All the rest is jaw jacking.
paul006 on February 9, 2008 at 2:24 PM
Thanks for posting those comparisons of GOP/Dem primary turnout. Hadn’t seen them before but they offer some comfort.
Pax americana on February 9, 2008 at 2:36 PM
No - popular action still has an important place as seen with McCain-Kennedy-Bush. But it works best when petitioning someone from your own party - I don’t think Barry Hussein gives two hoots what you think on immigration since you’re not his constituency and never will be. That is not the case for McCain, ergo a vote for him is still far better than a vote for the Dems.
Pax americana on February 9, 2008 at 2:40 PM
Maybe when Mav is prez he’ll have more of a conciliatory tone.
THE CHOSEN ONE on February 9, 2008 at 2:41 PM
I will never make nice with McCrankypants. He has no business being this close the the White House, and neither do the Dems. Which one of these people are qualified to be the leader of the free world? NONE!
I insist we have on our ballots the selection:
None of the above.
I want a do-over.
CrimsonFisted on February 9, 2008 at 2:45 PM
I’m probably going to start a fight here, but I disagree with Newt about Obama. I don’t think he’s more liberal than Hillary. Hillary is an out and out socialist. Anyone who saw her Christmas video KNOWS what she’d try to do as President. She’s already talking about garnishing peoples wages to make them pay for their health insurance.
So if it comes to a match up between McCain and Hillary, I’ll slap on my gas mask and pull the lever for McCain. If it comes to McCain and Obama, frankly, I’m more inclined to vote for Obama. Why? Because I believe that a Republican party will hold the line more against him as president than they would against John McCompromise.
eclark1849 on February 9, 2008 at 2:46 PM
CrimsonFisted on February 9, 2008 at 2:45 PM
No do-overs bro. The silent majority has spoken and Maverick will make quick work of the liberal messiah.
THE CHOSEN ONE on February 9, 2008 at 2:48 PM
You’re quite welcome. Who knows? We may eventually be able to stamp out this defeatist meme (and a few others while we’re at it).
CK MacLeod on February 9, 2008 at 2:53 PM
I don’t think that an old, crotchety, smug, arrogant man could defeat a young, smary, smooth, arrogant man. McCain thinks he has this in the bag. He does not. He is clueless how deep the resentment there is against him. And B Huessin, like a proper anti-Christ, can charm and schmooze the masses before he destroys them.
CrimsonFisted on February 9, 2008 at 2:55 PM
McCain had a chance at CPAC to make promises and make up and he didn’t… just a lot of empty platitudes.
He’ll secure the border ‘first’ then deal with the other issues in a ‘way that is respectful of the rule of law’. In other words, pay a fine and get citizenship! Sounds like McCain-Kennedy and doesn’t sound as if he’s gotten anything through his thick, arrogant head.
Yes, you have to compromise sometimes, but McCain doesn’t even try to negotiate, he just concedes points to the libs. As people elsewhere have pointed out, when has he lobbied, cursed and harassed Kennedy to try and get him to support some GOP sponsored legislation?
It’s not just once that he’s done this either, as some of you Cainheads would like us to believe; it’s over, and over… and over again.
The problem is we don’t really have any one to articulate the conservative position in Congress or the White House and that is why our causes aren’t resonating with voters. The President hasn’t done well defending Iraq, didn’t do well explaining/pimping SS reform, etc. The President also pushed some very liberal things like prescription drugs and amnesty, so why shouldn’t voters be confused?
As for ‘conservatives’ voting for McCain, you’re wrong. Exit polls show McCain wins over 60 and libs/moderates, and not conservatives.
I’m not talking social conservative either; it’s economic and security where he falls down, which is why he doesn’t have widespread base support.
linlithgow on February 9, 2008 at 3:01 PM
I’m impressed with your confidence and quiet optimism. Defeatism is pernicious. If I were on the front line I know who I’d rather have on my side round here.
Reminds me of a compliment Winston Churchill once paid to his great political friend Lord Birkenhead:
“If he was with you on the Monday, you would find him the same on the Wednesday; and on the Friday, when things looked really blue, he would still be marching forwards with fresh battalions.”
Pax americana on February 9, 2008 at 3:04 PM
You don’t have to like McCain. Just vote for him to ensure the other two chumps don’t get into the White House and really DO screw us up far worse than you THINK McCain MIGHT.
I’d also like to point out something:
Gingrich’s “style” on bipartisanship is one of the main reasons why he’s wholly unelectable on a national level, where he to run.
Vyce on February 9, 2008 at 3:08 PM
Nonsense. McCain is one of the strongest advocates in Congress of reducing the federal deficit and spending. He has Steve Forbes as his economic advisor. That’s good enough for me, and better than anything Barry Hussain is going to offer.
Pax americana on February 9, 2008 at 3:08 PM
The only “popular action” with functional consequence is the ballot. We were successful in stopping McCain-Kennedy not because we jacked our jaws, but because Republican politicians feared that they might pay a political price for the law’s passage. In other words, they feared that we wouldn’t vote for them.
If conservatives support McCain in the general election, we will prove that fear unfounded. And when McCain-Kennedy comes up again — and it will — the politicians will know that they can safely ignore our jaw jacking, because it doesn’t translate at the ballot box.
Politicians don’t care what you think or say. They care how you vote. The vote is the only currency that matters.
paul006 on February 9, 2008 at 3:10 PM
Ever since Newt went ga-ga for Gore’s Global Gospel, I take everything he says w/ a grain of salt.
jgapinoy on February 9, 2008 at 3:13 PM
Gingrich is a nasty, bitter person. He’s just POd that he couldn’t win the nomination.
funky chicken on February 9, 2008 at 4:23 PM
Newt lost ⅝ of his marbles..
Chakra Hammer on February 9, 2008 at 5:47 PM
Newt’s speech this afternoon at CPAC was the best of the conference by far.
DCJeff on February 9, 2008 at 6:05 PM
I like Newt, I just don’t like how he characterizes the center.
Chakra Hammer on February 9, 2008 at 6:07 PM
Gingrich gives approval to McCain presidential run
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich gave his approval to Arizona Sen. John McCain’s White House bid Saturday, telling a conservative crowd that political victory was more important than ideological purity.
“I think it’s a totally honorable thing to say ‘I support the candidate but I oppose the policy,’” he told activists gathered for the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington.
Later, he made his view more explicit: “As a citizen, I would rather have a President McCain that we fight with 20 percent of the time than a President Clinton or a President Obama who we fight with 90 percent of the time.”
Chakra Hammer on February 9, 2008 at 6:07 PM
Mike Huckabee Speaks to CPAC - 2/9/2008
ITookTheRedPill on February 9, 2008 at 6:39 PM
Why is it that no one has expounded on how we would have a better chance at getting Hilary to make concessions to us conservatives? She will do anything to get elected, would do anything for a second term, and she must be getting desperate by now …
McCain on the ballot guarentees that I will not be voting for the GOP candidate. How about you?
DannoJyd on February 9, 2008 at 6:47 PM
Disregard anything Newtie says - he’s drank Gore’s Kool-Aid and is not a global warming wacko
Get your guns
Build a bunker
Store two years of food
and wait til some nut launches the first nuke
The great experiment of liberty is dead
mksmithwriter on February 9, 2008 at 6:54 PM
see also,
McCain open to advice, cash from Karl Rove
I love the moth joke, who says McCain does not have a sense of humor. There is hope for the GOP after all.
myamphibian on February 9, 2008 at 7:18 PM
I’m with Mitt!
madmonkphotog on February 9, 2008 at 8:04 PM
Gingrich for President!!!!
Ok, just had to get it out of my system.
Bruce Hendrix on February 9, 2008 at 9:48 PM
where is that exactly? LOL
Chakra Hammer on February 9, 2008 at 10:45 PM
ANYBODY is better than McCain.
Igor R. on February 10, 2008 at 12:50 AM
Newt Gingrich immigration grades while in office.
Doesn’t look like he has a leg to stand on.
Last grade F-!
Grade HISTORY
OVERALL ACTIONS
Session Year Grade
105 ‘97-’98 D-
104 ‘95-’96 D+
103 ‘93-’94 No Votes
102 ‘91-’92 No Votes
101 ‘89-’90 F-
http://grades.betterimmigration.com/view_history.php3?District=GA&VIPID=217
Speakup on February 10, 2008 at 1:22 AM
I looked at his grades backwards, excuse me, his last grade was D-!
Speakup on February 10, 2008 at 1:28 AM
Oh dear.
Pax americana on February 10, 2008 at 1:56 AM
So were some of the most vile despots in history. You McLiar shills think that tenacity is a virtue. It’s only a virtue for those on the right path. McShamnesty is on the wrong path.
csdeven on February 10, 2008 at 8:13 AM
Yeah, there is hope for the GOP to survive. But only as a liberal organization with McShamnesty at the helm. And at that point, there are no conservatives left in the GOP and you guys might as well go be democrats.
csdeven on February 10, 2008 at 8:18 AM
Man, I almost wish Newt would run. He’s a true conservative and a pretty smart guy…
too bad he can’t stop putting his foot in his mouth…
BadBrad on February 10, 2008 at 10:50 AM
sounds alot like “I support the troops… but oppose the war.”
BadBrad on February 10, 2008 at 10:53 AM
Laura believes she was a “young kid” in Washington during Newt’s speakership? Sure, if that is what we are calling people in their young 30’s nowadays. A lot of people use that language, but I thought Laura was opposed to an extended adolescence.
dedalus on February 10, 2008 at 11:55 AM
The only way the creeping move towards the middle in the Republican party will be stopped is by a total disaster. Fortunately or unfortunately we are on a path to total disaster, and it’s due to bi-partisanship and moderation.
Igor R. on February 10, 2008 at 11:57 AM
Newt’s position is the only reasonable one for conservatives. By November only one of two people will become president, either the Dem or Republican. In the Super Bowl you don’t get to cheer for your favorite team if they aren’t in the game.
The war is similar. If every opinion about the war has to utlitmately be resolved into “Yes vs. No”, then there are a lot of people on both sides of that question who support the troops.
dedalus on February 10, 2008 at 12:00 PM
A
Uh, not exactly GOP presidential candidate material.
funky chicken on February 10, 2008 at 12:34 PM
Howler of the day!! BWAHAHAHAHA!
RushBaby on February 10, 2008 at 7:26 PM
Just a caution, quoting big chunks of other peoples work in here may flirt with fair use/copyright violations. It’s better form to quote a paragraph or two then link to the source.
RushBaby on February 10, 2008 at 7:27 PM
Caution as to whatever Gingrich has to say about McCain is mandated by the facts: (i) that John McCain has continuously been in the Senate since 1982 to the present day, is the repsumtive Republican Party nominee because he successfully took his case to the voters and is a credible national candidate; and (ii) that Gingrich was never in the Senate, has not been in the House since 1998, declined to put his name in the running for President and has issues that would preclude him from being a credible national candidate. Personally, I don’t give a damn about what Gingrich has to say.
Phil Byler on February 10, 2008 at 8:59 PM
Where was Newt when the pack of candidates was being defined? Its real easy sitting on the sideline being a critic.
I think its time for ALL the demigods to decide whether they want to help unify and get behind the republican candidate or fragment and hand political power, and the Supreme Court, to the (progressives, liberals, socialists, marxists,…choose any one you want) for at least the next twenty(20) years.
If the progressives/liberals/socialists/marxists gain control of the Presiency, the Senate and Congress, you can bet they will expand the public trough to the point that there will be more taking from the public trough than putting into the public trough. Do you think those that are taking out are going to vote their benefactors out of office?
belad on February 10, 2008 at 10:44 PM
He was supporting the policies of John McCain.
Pax americana on February 11, 2008 at 1:25 AM
Firstly, McCain and his supporters need to understand that it isn’t my job to unite behind the fake conservative they nominated. It’s McCain’s job to start walking to the right far enough for me to see he isn’t Hillary and make some freaking promises, right up front in public, about securing the borders and holding employers responsible for hiring illegal aliens and that he won’t turn all the Gitmo terrorists loose on our domestic criminal court system. McCain also needs to admit that the McCain Feingold trash free speech law needs to be torn down and burned. No, he needs to somehow get that abortion of a law out of the books before November if he wants my vote. He also needs to punch that Hernandez bozo in the nose on the Glenn Beck show. Aw, who am I kidding, I wouldn’t vote for McCain even if he were facing a Gore / Kerry ticket. I’ll be staying home come November because real conservatives don’t vote for Democrats even if they have an R behind their names.
Buzzy on February 11, 2008 at 2:03 AM
Well I won’t be staying home. I support the troops. If that means I have to wear a therapy smile when I go to the polls this Fall, so be it. Godspeed, John McCain!
argos on February 11, 2008 at 4:56 PM
Well Argos, I won’t be staying home either.
I support the Constitution too much to do so.
If that means I have to vote for a Democrat to be sure that the man who has assaulted the First Amendment for 7 years loses, so be it.
Go McCain’s opponent (whichever one that is).
gekkobear on February 12, 2008 at 1:40 PM
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