Romney camp jabs Gingrich's "desperate" campaign

The Romney campaign struck back at Newt Gingrich on Tuesday, dismissing the former House speaker as "desperate" just a day after his campaign released a memo painting the former Massachusetts governor as a "moderate" candidate.

In an interview with MSNBC's Jansing & Co.," Romney press secretary Andrea Saul attempted to turn the tables on the Gingrich camp's criticisms, assailing the candidate as an "unreliable conservative" whose efforts to "tear" Romney down were mere evidence of his "flailing campaign."

"Speaker Gingrich is a desperate candidate trying to revive his failing campaign," Saul said. "If you want to talk about someone who's been an unreliable conservative -- Speaker Gingrich sat down on a couch with Nancy Pelosi at the behest of Al Gore to talk about global warming and support cap and trade."

Despite his pledge to maintain a positive campaign, Gingrich's team on Monday night sent out an email targeting Romney's conservative credentials, wondering if a "Massachusetts Moderate" could be entrusted with a "conservative agenda."

"Can we trust a Massachusetts Moderate to enact a conservative agenda?" asks Gingrich 2012 press secretary Joe DeSantis in the email. "Our campaign might have plenty of things to say about that, but the best response certainly comes from Mitt Romney himself:"

The statement then links to a video, filmed in 2008, in which Romney describes himself as a "moderate," with "progressive views" - not "a partisan Republican."

Saul brushed off the email as a sign that Gingrich's campaign is "sinking."

"He's an unreliable leader, he's an unreliable conservative, so it's no surprise that he's flailing right now and trying to attack Gov. Romney and tear him down just to try to you know, save his sinking campaign," she said.