Mitt Romney: Newt Gingrich is the frontrunner

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During most of the race for the Republican presidential nomination thus far, Mitt Romney has acted like the frontrunner, keeping his attacks focused on President Obama rather than his GOP rivals. But now the former Massachusetts governor is acknowledging that he has to cede his frontrunner status to Newt Gingrich.

Asked during an interview with Politico if the former House speaker is the frontrunner, Romney replied, "He is right now."

Poll after poll now shows Gingrich taking a strong lead nationally and in key states, including Iowa, South Carolina and Florida.

Gingrich's lead has prompted the Democratic party to go after him, but Romney may not be able to afford to let the president's party do all the dirty work. Romney demonstrated today he's ready to go after the new frontrunner himself, slamming Gingrich for doing lucrative consulting work for the mortgage giant Freddie Mac. He called on Gingrich to return the $1.6 million he made.

Still, Romney told Politico that he's only willing to go so far with the attacks against his Republican rivals because primary voters "want someone who is willing to be a responsible leader, that brings America together as opposed to dividing America... I don't tend to say outrageous things about other people that I don't believe in order to win political points."

(Earlier Monday, Romney described the $10,000 bet he offered to Rick Perry as "an outrageous number to answer an outrageous charge from [Perry]." It appeared, after two days of defending his proposed bet, that Romney may have come to regret that "outrageous" language.)

While Romney is attempting to take the high road by limiting his attacks against Gingrich, he may run the risk of appearing somewhat detached from the race.

"I could become our nominee, or someone else might become our nominee and I can go back to business and go back to my family," Romney told Politico. "Either one of those is a very nice outcome... Of course I want to win. I'm fighting hard to win, but, you know, I have a life, too."

He suggested that former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush may have made a better Republican nominee, saying, "If I thought someone else could do a better job -- I mean, I've said before, if Jeb Bush were running and in this race, I probably wouldn't have gotten in."

Though Gingrich is surging in the polls now, Romney said he expects to get the nomination after nomination contest that "could go for months and months."

[sharkboy234]

newt gingrich is antichrist send newt gingrich home now newt gingrich is out of the race mitt romney will win iowa, N.H. states send newt gingrich home mitt romney will take in beat newt gingrich out newt gingrich failed because he's antichrist.

[topaz2022]

It makes me sick to think that people are so ignorant that they would vote this country right back into the same hands that nearly destroyed our country with their greed and immoral desision making that has brought the American people down to their knees.

Does the people in this country really want to stay on there hands and knees begging Romney and Gingrich for every scrap those men wish to throw the peoples way..And it will be both of them..One as president and one as vice president they are going to keep it all in the family just like the moffia bosses that they are.

If you want to vote republican vote for one of the others who are running..but keep these 2 dictators out of office..Your vote for them will distroy this country and they will sit on the commitee to rule the world...