The conservative Washington Times has joined the chorus of media outlets reminding Republican voters of why former House speaker Newt Gingrich was considered a longshot to win the GOP nomination just a few short weeks ago.
Seth McLaughlin of the Times writes that Gingrich’s many years in Congress, featuring erratic behavior and undisciplined leadership, is starting to haunt Newt as he miraculously rises to overwhelming frontrunner status in the 2011 race. Former House colleagues said Gingrich left “political messes” that required frantic cleanups.
GOP Reps. Peter King of New York and Steven LaTourette of Ohio, as well as Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and former Sen. Jim Talent of Missouri, are among the Republican lawmakers who worked with Newt and now warn that he lacks the leadership skills and discipline needed to be a reliable president.
“You were in a situation where you would get up in the morning, and you would have to check the newspaper, the clippings — that was before the Internet — to see what the speaker had said that day that you were going to have to clean up after in your own district,” former House member Talent said.
But Newt’s astounding gains in the polls, suddenly demonstrating 2-1 margins over Mitt Romney in some states, indicates that many voters are either unaware of the former speaker’s checkered past – or they just don’t care.
“Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is no longer just the flavor of the month since his boomlet has now stretched from November into December and voting begins in Iowa in less than four weeks,” said Peter Brown of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. “The suspension of Herman Cain’s campaign is unlikely to hurt Gingrich and might help him vis-a-vis Romney by reducing the number of candidates courting Tea Party voters.”
Coburn, one of the most solid Senate conservatives, said in an appearance on “Fox News Sunday” that he “found (Newt’s) leadership lacking,” while Mr. LaTourette told the Associated Press that he still had a “hangover” from Gingrich’s reign, when “everything always seemed to be on fire.”
In an interview on CNN, King said Gingrich is “too erratic” and “too self-centered” as a leader.
“He’s a tremendously inspirational person as far as rallying troops,” King said. “But as far as governing, I think he doesn’t have the discipline. He doesn’t have the capacity to control himself. And he can’t stay focused.”
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