October 26, 2009 3:08 PM
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New Gingrich Continues to Discuss 2012 Run
(AP)
Yesterday, as Politics Daily and Politico report, Gingrich talked about a possible bid on CSPAN's Washington Journal.
In the interview, Gingrich said he would make the decision in February of 2011 and that probably would run if he and his wife, Callista, decided that they feel "a requirement as citizens that we run," which would be based on how they asses the other candidates running for the Republican nomination.
"We are going to reach out to all of our friends around the country," Gingrich said. "And we'll decide, if there's a requirement as citizens that we run, I suspect we probably will. And if there's not a requirement… if other people have filled the vacuum, I suspect we won't."
When pressed by host Steve Scully about what factors would play into the decision, Gingrich said it would hinge on whether there is another candidate in the field who aligns with his message.
Gingrich said he thought politics should be "about ideas" and that the Republican Party needed to offer alternatives rather than to just oppose Democrats.
"We need to have standard-bearers who are prepared to offer vivid, powerful alternatives," he added.
Gingrich went on to praise several Republicans who might run -- former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.
You can watch more of the interview here:
It's unclear how a Gingrich candidacy might affect what could be a crowded Republican primary field which is likely to include at least some of the names above. Gingrich left office ten years ago after a series of scandals, but he has still has a following and has since tried to cultivate an elder statesman stature within the party.
In other Gingrich news, the former Speaker is at work promoting his new novel written with Bill Forstchen, "To Try Men's Souls," which is about George Washington and the 1776 Battle of Trenton.
Yesterday and today, the publisher and Gingrich Communications staged a "Twitternactment" of the battle where you could follow George Washington, Jonathan Van Dorn, a private in the colonial army, and Hessian commander Colonel Johann Rall on Twitter.
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Kevin Hechtkopf Kevin Hechtkopf is CBSNews.com's politics editor.
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