Posted on 04/10/2012 5:42:31 PM PDT by Red Steel
RALEIGH, N.C. — Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s campaign Monday began morphing into less of a pursuit of the presidency and more into an effort to shape the Republican platform and to influence the discussion in the fall elections.
Campaigning in Raleigh, Gingrich said he planned to battle front-runner Mitt Romney in North Carolina’s May 8 primary and all the way to the GOP convention in Tampa, Fla., but conceded the prospects of overtaking the former Massachusetts governor were not bright.
But he said Republicans still face serious choices at the convention and into the fall — whether the GOP will be a "conservative, dynamic movement" or whether it will move more to the center. Gingrich said he hoped his candidacy would help influence that debate.
"There is no reason to concede anything," Gingrich said at a news conference. "Every vote we can get in North Carolina is a vote for a more conservative platform — every vote we can get in Delaware, or we can get in Arkansas or we can get in Texas, that is a very useful thing to be doing. If there is a major mistake or a major flaw, the race is wide open again."
Meeting earlier with a group put together by black conservatives, Gingrich elaborated on his theme, saying he wanted Republicans up and down the ticket this fall to run on a conservative platform, which he said was not only the principled choice but also the best way to win.
"That’s why I am continuing to campaign," Gingrich said, "trying to send a signal."
Gingrich’s campaign has taken on a different tone in North Carolina. He hardly mentioned, let alone criticized, his primary rivals: Romney, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas.
Romney has two fundraisers planned April 18, but Santorum has no appearances planned in the state with the primary just a month away. Santorum is focusing on the GOP primary in his home state of Pennsylvania on April 24.
That means that Gingrich has North Carolina nearly to himself, and he spent Monday campaigning in Raleigh, meeting with a community group, holding a news conference, having lunch at Caffe Luna and addressing students at Broughton High School. On Tuesday, he will campaign in New Bern and he will return to the state Saturday to attend a "tea party" rally in Greensboro.
While Gingrich is actively campaigning here, he is doing so without any advertising budget that would allow him to reach a broad number of voters.
Gingrich called the state’s GOP primary "very competitive." A survey of Tar Heel voters conducted late last month by Public Policy Polling found Romney and Santorum tied at 30 percent, Gingrich at 19 percent and Paul at 13 percent.
The difficulty Gingrich faces was evident at a meeting with community leaders at the Shanahan Law Group, when one person asked Gingrich whether he thought conservatives might mount a primary challenge to a President Romney in 2016.
Earlier in the campaign, Gingrich might have used such a question to challenge Romney’s conservative bona fides. Instead, Gingrich talked about the need to make the GOP adopt a conservative platform in Tampa.
Gingrich said he hoped the new phase of his campaign would enable him to push some of his ideas — something he said he often found difficult to do during the hectic give and take earlier in the campaign.
He said the country needed bold ideas because economic conditions were much worse than people realize — that unemployment was far worse than the numbers indicate, college kids can’t find jobs, that the national debt was growing, and that many of the social programs such as Medicare and Social Security faced financial challenges.
Hey Newt, I think that’s a windmill.
If y’all think Newt still has a chance, go buy up his shares on Intrade. Right now, there are over 2000 Newt “shares” available at the low low price of 5 cents each. If he manages to land the nomination, you stand to make quite a haul. Only a very few people are looking to buy, too.
By the way, for those who don’t know, a huge pile of unsold shares, and no one buying, means InTrade investors believe Newt is done.
Yes, it’s just InTrade, but it is people who are willing to put their money behind their beliefs, and right now Mr. “Golden Tablets” is touted as having a 97% chance of landing the nomination.
Also FWIW, InTrade currently shows the Democratic party as having a 61% chance of winning the coming election, to a Republican chance of about 38%.
I just don’t see any silver lining in the election at this point, at least not at the top of the ticket. I don’t want Romney to win, but that looks pretty unavoidable, and I really don’t think he has the chops to push the Zer0 out. This may have to be another year where we focus on the House/Senate and other down-ticket races, and hope that the Won doesn’t take his coming victory as a mandate to consolidate his “rule”.
Meant to add: this is the result of all the “tastes great-less filling” crap that the Newt and Santorum (and Cain and Bachmann etc etc) backers went through. As a result of that Balkanization, neither side had the momentum to do any real damage to Romney, and now we’re stuck with him. It’s pretty much a given that Romney doesn’t have what it’s going to take to win the General, and all the Dems had to do was sit back and watch the Republicans eat each other.
Fluid situation. I think the RS withdrawal surprised a lot of folks.
The two biggest reasons to suspend, I would think, are:
internal polls indicate a home state humiliation;
campaign is in debt and digging.
It’s possible Santorum’s campaign was flush before he flushed it down, but not probable.
(There’s a third reason but I have no grounds to speculate and I respect his supporters enough to refrain.)
He dropped out because he wants to avoid the humiliation of losing in his homw state.
Maybe with one major contender against Etch-A-Sketch, there's some small chance of derailing the Establishment railroad job.
Still he recommended GHWB, Sandra Day O'Connor, James A. Baker, Howard Baker, Anthony Kennedy, Michael Deaver, a quite a long list of "moderates" ...
Santorum dropped out before PA?
The media would have a collective seizure if Gingrich won NC.
Romney has likely got this wrapped up but the people of each state from here on in should vote for Gingrich anyhow. If for no other reason then to send the message Romney better not take us for granted.
And, he will take us for granted.
I’m no Romney fan, but the dog argument is completely stupid, and almost makes me want to support him, just to spite those who bring it up. Note: I said “almost.”
“Mitten’s...to retire Rick’s campaign debt”?
How would this be legal? Selling delegates? What if, some months ago, Mitt offered Rick $250 mil to drop out and ‘release’ his delagtes to Mitt? Where do we draw the line? Is it actually legal to ‘buy’ delegates?
Quite probably you are correct.
Maybe with one major contender against Etch-A-Sketch, there's some small chance of derailing the Establishment railroad job.
Very small, indeed. As long as you are playing their game, on their turf, they will almost always win. I think it's time to change the rules.
what are the mathematical issues here.
what percentage of votes must newt win to take the nomination (if that many are even left)
even so has he won the five states neede to claim a nominating spot? right to speak?
chearleading may be fun but what is the reality?
Campaign appearances, ie Mittens can appear at a ersatz Santorum ('suspended') campaign dinner
PACs & SuperPACs can contribute within limits, to other PACs
ping go newt
Thank you. Much appreciated...
I suspect santorum was in it to keep newt out. What huckabee did the religious useful idiots when they unwittingly gave us mccain. (see also fred thompson)
Santorum now (?) has a deal with Romney to pay down his debt. Newt is mathematically out.
If santorum pullout out b/4 florida the contest would be different and both romney and santorum know that.
So far every person I wanted to get nominated dropped out... Maybe if I support Mitt, he’ll drop out!!! ;)
agreed, if he back Romney then it will prove to many that he stayed in for a reason
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