Newt for President?

CBS News' Brian Goldsmith Interviews Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich

(CBS)  Political Players is a weekly conversation with the leaders, consultants, and activists who are shaping American politics. This week, CBS News' Brian Goldsmith talks with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich about dissatisfaction with the current Republican candidates, and whether he might jump into the race.

CBSNews.com: There is a new AP poll, showing that the most popular Republican candidate for president is named undecided. Do you think there’s a reason there is such a hole in this field, and that Republicans don't feel happy about their choices?

Newt Gingrich: Well, look, I think that the average Republican understands that we need very large change in Washington. I think they keep looking for a candidate who can articulate with passion and directness the scale of the change, and what they would do differently.

And while the people who are running are solid folks, they don't think any of them have connected yet in that way, and it is ironic from my perspective. If you think about it, that the people who told me all spring, “You had to make a decision, you had to make a decision. You have to run, you have to run.” Now we are faced with a situation where nobody is much above 30 percent.

McCain, who was the frontrunner, is gradually disappearing. Thompson, who didn't exist, is now almost the frontrunner. It strikes me, it is a pretty good vindication of a theory that this whole thing is way too long and consultants are making way too much money. I think that it's perfectly reasonable to wait around for a while, and see what happens.

CBSNews.com: But is there an argument to be made that you need that much time to build the organization, if not to vault to the top of the polls?

Newt Gingrich: Well, I would ask John McCain.

CBSNews.com: If you think you are the guy with the big ideas, if you think you could win, why wouldn't you run?

Newt Gingrich: Well, I think first of all, I’m using this time to develop American Solutions, a new generation of solutions at all levels, not just for Washington, but for school board, county commission, city council, state legislature. There are 513,000 elected offices in the US.

And I think my first job is to try to understand what we need to do to be successful as a country. How can we organize ourselves to do it? And to try to launch a mass movement of people across the whole country who are committed to that scale of change, and who want to apply it. Not just to the presidency, not just to the House, the Senate, but to every level of government. I think that is my first job. And until I have completed that educational job, I am very, very unwilling to spend my time and energy on politics, if I can avoid it.

CBSNews.com: And I see that beginning on September 27th, the 13th anniversary of the Contract with America, you are going to be reaching out to all these elected officials throughout the country, proposing solutions on energy and education and health care. What do you think the results of the conference are going to be?

Newt Gingrich: Well, first conference, first briefing is actually this Monday, from 12 to 6 Eastern time, at the US Chamber of Commerce. And it will be webcast at American Solutions. There will be six hours on moving government from the world that fails to the world that works, and outlining a first layer of solutions and tools.

And you get a little taste of it if you go to YouTube, and look at FedEx versus Federal Bureaucracy, which is a little piece of a speech I gave at the American Enterprise Institute, that begins to illustrate the scale of change I think we need.

Second, I think that my goal is going to be, on September 27th and 29th, when we webcast to the whole country, to try to reach out to Democrats, Republicans and independents, with practical, common sense, sound solutions that lead people to believe that they can get things done in an effective way.

CBSNews.com: Why haven't the other candidates embraced your ideas? You’ve said a number of times, it would be a lot easier for you if someone else would do this.

Newt Gingrich: Well, you ought to call them and ask them. I mean, let me give you an example. English as the language of government is an 85 percent issue. I don’t know why candidates don't campaign on an 85 percent issue. The right to say “one nation under God” as part of the Pledge of Allegiance is a 91 percent issue. I do not know why candidates don't campaign on standing up to the Ninth Circuit court, which has just been so profoundly wrong and so anti-religious.

By 89 to seven, the country believes that science offers great opportunity to find solutions. And yet I do not sense any candidate in the race talking about the centrality of science, and the importance of rethinking all of our regulatory processes to maximize the rate of innovation. You ought to go ask the candidates. I think what happens is all of these candidates talk to their consultants.

None of their consultants know anything. The consultants all tell them to stick to whatever they read in the Washington Post, or the New York Times that morning. That is how you get kind of a circular conversation among people who do not know very much, telling people not to say very much.

[rharrin1]

We could use some more of that in Washington.
Posted by kesac4650 at 10:03 PM : Jul 20, 2007

How about a job as janitor???

[macusweil]

"I think the most common reaction I get from people, if they actually hear me give an entire speech, is they are amazed at the difference between the media image and the person I am in person."

Yeah, right.. In person he's an even BIGGER liar than on TV!! LOL

[tbweb]

There is no doubt that Newt is the most intelligent of any presidential candidate on either side. It can be pointed out that, of course, intelligence by itself is not the only trait we look for in a president; but Newt also holds firm to the principles that have made the country great, and may yet do so in the future.

Posted by eclecticEel at 01:09 AM : Jul 22, 2007,,,

Agreed. Newt's problem is people never see his soft side. Does Newt have a soft side? LOL Dumping your wife for another women while she's sick in the hospital makes Newt look cold and uncaring. The U.S. is in deep do-do all over the place and the U.S. needs a Newt Gingrich whether it wants to admit it or not, but it ain't happening. I like Newt's clear, direct and to the point manner and he gets things done and the U.S. needs things getting done, a lot of things need getting done!

[shellitzer]

There is no doubt that Newt is the most intelligent of any presidential candidate on either side. It can be pointed out that, of course, intelligence by itself is not the only trait we look for in a president; but Newt also holds firm to the principles that have made the country great, and may yet do so in the future.

[likeitis5050]

Newt? Nope.

[prinzowhales]

fredgrad2000--Come now, you are not silly enough to imagine that the de-polyped Bush and friends are "Conservatives". Look at his budgets... look at his foreign policy...look at the big government criminality that one, according to the Gospel of Limbaugh, one should expect only from those dastardly Liberals. Just what makes Bush a Conservative? What intellectual gymnastics do his accolytes have to go through to present this ideological farce of 'Conservative vs. Liberal' with a straight face?

[okaussie]

Hey FredGrad2000, if you don't like the liberals on this board then don't post here. You should well know that people go to CBS News to get away from the fascist reportings of FOX or the sensationalist headlines from MSNBC

[moosbrth]

Wouldn't that be even dumber than Dubya? All the other great empires lasted longer than this will if Republicans get a chance to trash it even more.

[lars008-2009]

It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace--but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death! March 23, 1775 Patrick Henry

USA's PLEDGE 2 THE WORLD GIVEN BY JFK!!

"Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty."
--John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 1961 "

"Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country." --John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 1961 "

One ought never to turn one's back on a threatened danger and try to run away from it. If you do that, you will double the danger. But if you meet it promptly and without flinching, you will reduce the danger by half. Winston Churchill

"The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing." Albert Einstein

Edmund Burke: All that is necessary for evil to succeed is that good men do nothing.

[fredgrad2000]

And for your Republican haters out there - remember this well; Americans are far more conservative than the Dem party leaders - if it weren't for Iraq, the Dem leadership would not be in the majority on virtually ANY issue. Americans do not want tax hikes, Americans do not want open borders and amnesty (which is what the Dem leaders want), Americans do not want religion removed from every public area (we don't want the Dobsons in control either, but ACLU style crusades are just looney), Americans are against partial-birth abortion, Americans want English as the national language - the GOP lost in 2006 over ONE HUGE issue, Iraq; if that issue goes away by 2008; those Dems who won on that one issue will have a tough time fighting all the myriad issues with which their leadership (wimp Harry, Kennedy, Hillary, Edwards and San Fran Nancy) are on the minority side. If Iraq goes away or we pull out substantially by the election; a clear focus by the GOP on the FACTS that a vote for a democrat WILL increase your taxes and will open our doors to an amnesty policy could very well be enough to put a GOP-er back in the WH and in control of at least one house of Congress. Those 2 issues, without Iraq, could hurt the Dems very much in 2008.

[fredgrad2000]

Newt at the end of the day will not run because he knows how badly the media would distort his image for their own gain and how badly they want Hillary (particularly CBS) in the White House...

I love all the usual "never vote republican again" and name calling cr*p from all the uneducateds who inhabit this board...the truth remains that Newt is a PhD in American History and has a better grasp of the issues that have developed in this country that Hillary or any other GOP or Dem candidate. He rails against the establishment - who here doesn't think that our entitlement programs are bloated and an upcoming issue or that our current politicians have created a conversation with the New York Times or with the Daily Kos or with James Dobson and forgotten the vast majority of us who think those fringes are just plain LOONS! (Though here, probably a lot of Daily Kos lovers actually)? Newt is espousing fundamental change and stating the the Bush administration has fundamentally failed to do what is needed to reform the gov't. If he had a D in front of his name rather than an R, he'd probably be cheered on this board for emphasizing fundamental change and reaming Pres Bush, which shows the ignorance of the majority of these postings - not listening to the man or policies, just towing the party line.

[r9119111]

Newt for President?

No! No! NO!!!

[grumpas]

Another good old fashioned Republican nut case!!!!! I remember he lead the charge of the hypocrite's to impeach Clinton for doing what they were doing! How low could you get?????? When hell freezes over I will vote for a Republican again.

[bobnjersey]

[It's pretty funny really... Newt- what a washed up looser.... The Presidency? In his wet dreams.... ha ha ]
[Posted by jsilver2th at 03:08 PM : Jul 20, 2007]

if you think gwb is bad ... this guy would be gwb w/ a brain and an ability to craft a message on the fly (like clinton could).

don't underestimate him ... he's probably one of the most potentially dangerous republicans that could end up in a republican primary.

stranger things have happened ... the republicans nominated and elected an illiterate moron to forward their idealogical agenda in 2000 ... think of what a guy w/ a brain and can speak eloquently could do.

[drummer94]

Don't ya fish with newts?

[nottellin1]

In what alternate universe would this ever happen?

[zootallures2]

I could care less if this yo-yo is the all time champ at musical chairs. Report some news that matters. No one cares much about the lives of the rich and looney. We know you ******** could care less about us, so why should we pay any attention to you? The universe could care less about you. You are a bunch of 'Whos' with out a Horton, there Dr. Suese! LOL

[harp1963]

Newt for President.....I just fell off of my chair from laughing. If you dumb b a s t a r d s are dumb enough to vote for another Republican that doesn't give a d a m n about the middle class Americans who are running around like chickens with our heads cut off to make ends meet, then you deserve to have child labor laws repealed so you can take your children to work so people with 100 million in the bank can have more. America the land of dumbness and gullibility....Vote Newt.

NEVER NEVER NEVER EVER VOTE REPUBLICAN AGAIN!

[SIDNEYWILLIAMSMD]

RESPONSE TO UNDERMYBOOT: CHILL OUT. GET A LIFE. THIS TRITE DENIGRATION OF THE REPUBLICANS IS STUPID. WE ARE IN THIS WAR ON TERROR TOGETHER. DIVORCE AND FOOLING AROUND IS NOT A PROBLEM SPECIFIC TO BILL CLINTON, NEWT GINRICH, REPUBLICANS OR DEMOCRATS. IT IS AN UNFORTUNATE RESULT OF GENERAL DECAY OF THIS SOCIETY. PART OF THE SOLUTION IS TO FORGIVE OURSELVES AND EACH OTHER. THERE IS NO CHANCE IN HELL THAT NEWT OR BILL WOULD BURN THE CONSTITUTION.

[SIDNEYWILLIAMSMD]

BEST ORIGINAL POSTING ON THIS SITE FOR 07/20/2007 GOES TO kesac4650. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. YOUR COMPOSITION WAS A+ ABOUT THE QUALITY OF THE HISTORIAN NATURE OF THIS REMARKABLE AMERICAN.