The debates have brought him to where he is now. Ideas or not, without the numerous debate format, he wouldn’t have been in the position he’s in now without them.
Some might disagree with me, to which I’ll point out that Gingrich was frequently on the Fox News Channel over the past years, and I cannot recall one thread here speaking favorably about his ideas.
Gingrich is the only one with ideas and specifics, and as the Fox News Channel, he wasn’t on there as a presidential candidate and whatever his ideas were, nobody was thinking of them as something that might become a reality or have any impact beyond speculation.
The debates are a different matter, but what he will do if he doesn’t go on the TV debates is simply give speeches and get coverage, exactly the way he said he will debate Obama if Obama refuses live debates.