Gingrich: Israel shouldn't warn U.S. on Iran attack

Republican presidential candidate, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich speaks in Brunswick, Ga., Friday, March 2, 2012.

/ AP Photo/Evan Vucci

(CBS News) KINGSPORT, Tenn. - Newt Gingrich said on Monday he believes Israel shouldn't give the Obama administration any advance warning if it decides to attack Iran over its nuclear weapons program, saying the administration can't be trusted to keep the information secret.

"If I were the Israelis, I wouldn't give this administration one minute's notice, because someone will leak it," he said on Fox News' Hannity. "When you have an operational secret, you want to keep it as close hold as possible."

Gingrich is scheduled to speak before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee on Tuesday along with fellow candidates Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum.

Special Section: Campaign 2012

Assessing his Super Tuesday chances, he told host Sean Hannity that he would comfortably carry his home state of Georgia and do well elsewhere. He flew across Tennessee in a last- minute attempt to persuade undecided voters on the day before they go to the polls. He has sought to boost his appeal in other Southern states by challenging other candidates to debate him in either Mississippi or Alabama next week.

"I think we're going to carry Georgia four or five times by Romney's size [of victory] in Michigan," he said. "We're surging in Tennessee and Oklahoma, we have a good chance to pick up delegates in Ohio. We see opportunities in North Dakota, and even Massachusetts where conservative republicans regard Romney as a liberal governor and there is a faction that would like to split. "

One day after Romney said Gingrich was pandering to voters by promising $2.50-a-gallon gasoline, the former House speaker struck back by saying Romney might be too wealthy to understand how big of a problem rising energy prices are.

Speaking to radio host Scott Hennen, Gingrich said: "Romney may be rich enough that he hasn't noticed how big a problem this is. But the fact is for working Americans, for retired Americans, for independent truckers, for people who are in manufacturing, this is a real problem and it's going to crush the economy."

Gingrich has been focusing on rising energy prices on the stump for the past two weeks, promising that his energy plan, which will include more drilling on federal lands and off-shore reserves, will bring the price of gas down to below $2.50. Speaking before a crowd in Kingsport, he said that Romney's "pandering" comment on the topic showed a lack of leadership.

"There's this thing called setting goals," Gingrich told a large crowd that gathered to see him at a Republican Women's Luncheon. "It's not called pandering, it's called leadership."

[thebob-bob]

The Newt super-pacs are buying up time on the Rush Limpaugh show to demonstrate support for his "women who use contraceptives are *****" comments.

Meanwhile Newt is displaying his Isreal-first allegiance. Encouraging a foreign power to decieve his own country. Yup, that's Newt's version of Patriotism. Sounds more like a traitor to me.

[AOCGUY]

Should Israel be attacked then I would support our doing what we can to defend them. However, should Israel launch an attack on Iran, or anyone else for that matter, then they should be on their own. The last thing this country needs is another war.

[AOCGUY]

In the meantime Israel continues to lobby this adminsitration to release their spy Jonathan Pollard.

[AOCGUY]

With friends like Israel, who the he11 needs enemies.

[Dgunner]

I am for drilling on federal land if it means less dependency on foreign suppliers. The foreign suppliers have to have customers and we can cripple them on the world market if we set aside our sentiments on federal land and create something for the next generation before they end up sitting in a run down house staring at thier american dream in a frame hanging on the wall saying to themselves all the while. Everyone said if I gradute college I would have a future.

[ProgressNow]

Say Nut (Newt)...how about giving the moon to the Palestinians as a homeland?!?!??!?!?!!?!??!??!?

[nancy_naive]

Geez, Newt! What a effing igit!

We're gonna know, Newt. We have to deliver the weapons to them before they can use them.

[stevehamilton858]

How did this stupid individual ever get the support from the RNC to run? He's dumber than Herman, which is hard to contemplate, but he exhibits it day by day. this is as stupid as his promise to bring us $2.00 gas at the pump. I guess although he touts himself as a "historian" he has never read the US Constitution and does not realize that the president of this country is not a monarch. He also displays an enormous naivete about how the international market sets crude oil prices, and a lack of knowledge about how much oil the US could produce at maximum capacity vs. what we use on a day by day basis. Also, he hasn't figured out yet that no married woman in America is going to vote for him. He should get on the train to ignominy with Herman and Michelle and the other Rick, before he steps on his Richard one more time. In the words of the immortal Bugs Bunny, "what a maroon!"