Gingrich hopes for another campaign resurrection

Newt Gingrich's presidential campaign has a history of near-death experiences, and the former House speaker insists another resurrection is on its way.

"I'm very happy to continue this campaign based on real solutions that ... are going to attract a lot of Americans," Gingrich said Monday while on a fundraising swing in California. "We've done it twice and I suspect you're about to see us do it again."

Evan Vucci / AP

Republican presidential candidate, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich meets with voters during a campaign stop at the Tulare World Ag Expo Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2012, in Tulare, Calif.

The third time may not be the charm. Gingrich sustained a string of disappointing performances in several state contests last week and has watched rival Rick Santorum emerge as the leading conservative opponent to Mitt Romney.

While Romney and Santorum are preparing to face off in Michigan's primary Feb. 28 and Romney is campaigning to win Arizona the same day, Gingrich has all but stepped off the campaign trail to focus on raising money. Ahead lie the 10-state Super Tuesday contests of March 6 and a handful of Southern states where he hopes he can revive his sputtering candidacy.

"Newt has to do two things simultaneously: Drive a movement for the 60 to 75 percent of Republicans who are conservative and don't want Romney to get the nomination," said Rick Tyler, a former Gingrich aide now with Winning Our Future, a "super" political action committee backing his candidacy. "Then he has to get out the primary map and look at states that are conservative and focus on them."

There's no question Gingrich has a record of resuscitating his candidacy when others have written him off.

He surged into a lead in Iowa not long before that state's first-in-the-nation caucuses, only months after his entire team of advisers quit over disagreements about campaign strategy. That rise was halted after the pro-Romney super PAC Restore Our Future deployed $3 million in ads casting Gingrich as a baggage-laden Washington hypocrite.

His campaign was revived again in South Carolina, where he trounced Romney despite a similar barrage of negative super PAC ads. Then his momentum was halted in Florida's primary Jan. 31, where Restore Our Future and the Romney campaign together spent $15 million on attack ads.

Related: Gingrich says Santorum 'completely misunderstands' modern warfare 

Since then, Gingrich has struggled. He came in a distant second to Romney in Nevada on Feb. 4 and badly lost four straight contests last week. Santorum won in Minnesota, Missouri and Colorado, breathing new life into his own limping candidacy.

Gingrich also placed a disappointing third in the Conservative Political Action Committee straw poll last weekend despite giving a speech that drew praise and cheers from attendees.

If it's a disheartening turn of events for Gingrich, you'd never hear him say it.

He's brought his signature bravado to a handful of public appearances in California — from a sparsely attended event at a Mexican restaurant outside Los Angeles to a tea party gathering in Pasadena to a stroll through a huge agriculture expo in Tulare, where he admired farm equipment. He delights in excoriating bureaucrats, chiding President Barack Obama as a "radical," and casting himself as the only GOP contender with bold ideas for fixing the nation's problems.

"You need somebody who understands what America needs to do to be successful, someone who's had the experience of doing it, and then you've got to have somebody who can go out and explain it to the American people. That's why I'm running," he told reporters in Tulare.

For all the big ideas, Gingrich's campaign still has something of an improvisational feel. He ventured to the San Diego Zoo on Tuesday without bringing or notifying the reporters assigned to cover him. He visited the elephant exhibit and fed a panda, with only a handful of local press — alerted by the zoo, not the campaign — on hand to record the visit.

Gingrich says he's retooled his pitch to be more positive and solutions-oriented, a move away from his sometimes-caustic attacks on Romney's record at the investment firm Bain Capital. But he relished a chance to knock Santorum, who suggested last week that women should not serve in military combat.

"I just think Rick completely misunderstands the nature of modern warfare," Gingrich said. "The fact is if you are serving in uniform in Iraq or Afghanistan ... you're in combat, whatever your technical assignment."

Gingrich's wife, Callista, has begun speaking publicly on his behalf after months of standing silently at his side. Her willingness to step out reflects an effort to improve his standing with female voters, who polls show have been particularly skeptical of his candidacy. One reason may be a marital history that includes two divorces and acknowledged infidelities.

Gingrich's supporters dismiss Santorum's rise as rookie luck, suggesting the former Pennsylvania senator has simply been the beneficiary of the air war that's been trained on Gingrich.

"Santorum is not the recipient of 13,000 false advertisements in Iowa, Florida and South Carolina," Tyler said, writing off Santorum's recent victories as "meaningless" because the states he won will not award delegates until later in the spring.

Gingrich and his advisers have mapped out a strategy focusing on Super Tuesday states including Georgia, Oklahoma, Ohio and Tennessee; Alabama and Mississippi, which hold primaries March 13; and Texas, whose primary is April 3. That state's governor, Rick Perry, endorsed Gingrich after dropping out of the Republican presidential contest last month.

Campaign officials insist fundraising is going well enough for Gingrich to be competitive in a number of states. But he hasn't run any television advertising since the Florida primary, nor has the Winning Our Future super PAC. The group's major patron, casino magnate Sheldon Adelson's family, has contributed $11 million to the super PAC but hasn't announced plans for any further financial help.

With so many competitive primaries and caucuses looming and attention focused on the contest between Romney and Santorum, some supporters are asking whether Gingrich's luck may have finally run out. He vehemently pushes back on that suggestion.

"I'm still here," he told tea party supporters, to loud applause.

Bob Walker, a former Pennsylvania congressman and a top adviser to Gingrich, pleaded for patience.

"People who are out there calling for him to get out don't seem to understand his whole political career," Walker said. "We always knew it would be a long campaign. This is just one more example of the campaign taking its course."

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Don't give up, Newt! Hang in there. Now, more than ever, we need Moonbase Gingrich!

    Reply#27 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:18 PM EST

    He will the nomination by promising, in his Convention speech, to send ALL Democrats there as colonists.

      #27.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:24 PM EST

      Oops! Forgot the "win."

        #27.2 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:45 PM EST
        Reply

        If Newt's campaign is resurrected, he won't be able to come out into the sunlight, because he'll shrivel into dust. Only look for him on the darkest nights.

        • 3 votes
        Reply#28 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:27 PM EST

        Gingrich is a bad choice for president, granted. But the alternatives also stink.

        I'm still hoping that the RNC wakes up and drafts a last minute candidate that is not any of the clowns currently running.

        I'd vote for Newt before Romney and Romney before Santorum. So not much in the way of options here and that is if I was willing to settle for the lesser evil.

        Which all translates to yes I will be voting for Obama in 2012 because there is no alternative.

        • 4 votes
        Reply#29 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:27 PM EST

        I'm still hoping that the RNC wakes up and drafts a last minute candidate that is not any of the clowns currently running.

        Well, don't you think that's their secret strategy? Google "brokered convention" to see what's on every top Republican's mind nowadays. What a Godsend! A candidate that hasn't been vetted at all by voters. A choice strictly by old guard Republicans, unfettered and unblemished by that nasty political voting process!!

          #29.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:43 PM EST

          E-keep that hope of yours going, the RNC has allowed itself to be colonized by the baggers so what does that tell you about the RNC? I'm beginning to wonder if they do (secretly) want the President to have another term in office, what else could it be? I personally don't think that the RNC has really look for a viable candidate.

            #29.2 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 9:38 AM EST
            Reply

            I think if I were Newt I would spend my time hoping for another erection. He has a better chance with that.

            • 4 votes
            Reply#30 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:39 PM EST

            Probably right...but haven't you noticed that when a Republican gets caught with their pants down, they respond by pulling down their underwear, presumably to reinforce what big p****s they are.

            In cards, I think, it's called "doubling down."

            • 1 vote
            #30.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:48 PM EST

            Well, Calista is certainly praying for another Resurrection......

            • 2 votes
            #30.2 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 3:07 PM EST

            Do you mean erection?

            • 2 votes
            #30.3 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 3:09 PM EST
            Reply

            Go home Newt nobody cares about you. Your done, go fishing or get a new wife your done

            • 2 votes
            Reply#31 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:59 PM EST

            Run, Newt, run! Running is a good way to lose weight. Seriously, Democrats desperately want Newt to be the Republican nominee. As of today, Obama's lead over Gingrich is over 13 points and is greater than Obama's lead over any other Republican pretender.

            • 1 vote
            Reply#32 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 3:18 PM EST

            Yeah, Calista G's speaking out will help Newt with the women voters - except perhaps those who are married, or hope someday to be married and would like to have fidelity in that marriage, or maybe those whose husbands have cheated on them, or those whose father cheated on their mothers. Yeah, Mrs. G will help his campaign, sure.

            • 3 votes
            Reply#33 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 3:38 PM EST

            I have to say Gringich should stay in! I don't always like his ideas-but he has more of them than the others do. He was the only one willing to change course on Libya when he realized the immense advantage of opposing a brutal dictator agianst long odds of sucess. He wasn't the summer soldier that Mitt Romney was or the sniviling coward that Ron Pual was.

            He can justly say he helped liberate people by putting his prestige on the line while others laughed. He didn't take the safe course and say nothing-and he was up fonrt about his mind change. In an era when most wait for then ext poll to tell them what to do-Gringich has demosrtated the ablity to think on his feet and make adjustments to fdast changing situations while theopponets have cement shoes. He's the hockey player of politics.In the modernera offast changing world events we need that.

            Lots of his policies are thing I don'tike. But of allof the Obama wanna be's he's the only one who actually has ideas.

              Reply#34 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 3:42 PM EST

              Arlin, Thank you, obviously you are Newt's Mom.

              • 1 vote
              #34.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 5:17 PM EST

              Whhhhhat?

                #34.2 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 1:19 AM EST

                Arlin, I think you haven't finished with your morning coffee. Other than you saying you wanted Newt the Hoot to stay in the race and that he has "more" ideas,(what ideas?) we aren't really certain what it is you're attempting to say. You were able to say that he changed his mind on the Libyan situation. Newt has a well documented history of speaking before he thinks that's is why he is able to change his "mind" so rapidly, after someone has pointed out yet and still another gaff.

                  #34.3 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 9:49 AM EST
                  Reply

                  JG-895068: "I'm thinking we should bulldoze Washington down, haul it all off to the dump and start all over."

                  Good idea! But first we should completely reform campaign finance laws and get rid of money from unions, corporations, PACs, etc.

                  • 3 votes
                  Reply#35 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 3:56 PM EST

                  and a limit on all contributions from everyone

                  • 2 votes
                  #35.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 5:21 PM EST
                  Reply

                  Historically, the ONLY way right-wing mobs have maintained control is by distorting the truth and misleading the citizenry.

                  Imagine what it would sound like if right-wingers told the truth about their policies.

                  Senator Buffoon: "Hi, I am running for office and I wanted to tell you about my platform. First, I want massive tax cuts for the ultra rich so they will donate more to my future campaigns and give me huge kick-backs and a obscenely paid position after I tire of fleecing the people.

                  "Second, I want to deregulate every f-ing industry I can get my hands on so BIG BUSINESS can run wild and do any and every destructive thing they can think of. We might even extend the tax credits to MEGACORPS like GE for exporting millions of jobs.

                  "Third, we will make up some science just because the real thing doesn't support our anti-environment stance. Who needs clean air and water anyway after I am dead and gone.

                  "Fourth, remember all those government programs that actually help people? You can forget that crap. If the poor and indigent can't pay Mitt Romney's income taxes for him then we will turn them over the right-wing Flordians for a swift a efficient "final solution."

                  "Fifth, can't afford an education at the highest levels and most costly institutes? Too bad. You don't deserve one anyway. You also don't get any help with health care costs, job training, job placement or food stamps. That makes you less than human so off to Florida with you."

                  "Sixth, we can fix the courts. We already own most of them with our collection of kangaroos working for all sorts of mega corps. We made sure people can't do any harm to our corps or hold them accountable for nothing and justice is for those who can afford it.

                  "That is so over rated, that accountability thing. Who needs it? It didn't work for W and his collection of incompetents, so I say Americans don't want any accountability or oversight or efficient, working government. A lawless and chaotic society offers so many opportunities for abuse and corruption. Embrace it!

                  "I almost forgot. That infrastructure thing we have been ignoring since Saint Ronnie opened this holy economic class warfare? The one where we now need almost $10 Trillion just to repair the things we should have maintained all along since 1981? Forget that crap, too. Sell ya a national park out west for mining purposes. Or aun unsafe bridge in upstate New York.

                  "Remember my name. I am Senator Buffoon, a proud right-winger, a veteran class warrior, and have I got a boat load of composite to feed all you idiots. So, vote for me. besides, this might be the last free and open election in this country now that the ultra wealthy and Meagcorps can now thankful buy any sham election they want or turn it into a parody of democracy,

                  "A vote for Buffoon is a vote for more destruction of our once proud society!"

                  • 3 votes
                  Reply#36 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 4:03 PM EST

                  As I look at this disgusting farce, I have to go back four years and look at that one. I am, by general nature, a Democrat, but I was NOT a happy one. On the Democrat side, we had a choice between Hillary Clinton and this unknown guy "Obama". For Hillary, her husband was a president and a Rhodes Scholar, to boot. Definitely not dumb! Yet, Hillary was always smarter than he was. That did not give me confidence. Trying to pin down the Obama guy was like trying catch a moonbeam--couldn't tell where he was coming from, what he was into, just an unsettling emptiness. Well, Obama won the race and became the contestant for the presidential race for the Democrats.

                  On the Republican side, things were catastrophic. Bushy, JR and little Hitler Cheney had screwed this country up beyond rational belief AND had "convinced" the Republian brain-dead that it was "good for them". Their candidate was John McCain. Now, I actually had a lot of respect for McCain--the man at least had the guts to put on a military uniform and had spent a lot of time as a POW. No matter what his politics were, these were powerful points in his favor. Then, he selected Sarah Palin as his running mate.

                  It didn't take long into the race (like about two days) to realize that McCain/Palin had no choice but to "play the Republithug game--or else". When Election Day finally came, what it boiled down to was this: In one corner, we had "Big Mo from No" (Obama) and his "Homeboy Whitey Attack Dog" (Biden). In the opposite corner, we had the "Absent-Minded, Delusional Sugar Daddy" (McCain) and the "Bimbo from Limbo" (Palin).

                  Folks, this was not a presidential election--it was a sentence at hard labor. I don't remember ever being arrested, read my rights, or being tried--but it sure didn't stop "them" from convicting me in absentina, did it? Okay, we got Obama/Biden.... To be fair, Obama definitely muzzled Biden and tried to play the "let's work together" game to get things done. People, it shouldn't have taken Obama more than two months to figure out that the only way to get the old, fat, wealthy, racist, sexist while Republithugs to "compromise" on anything was by putting out a bounty on them. So, no matter what President Obama looks like on the outside, this told me that he was definitely slow between the ears. The Republithugs would have willingly destroyed America rather than "compromise" one iota on their so-precious (and obscenely criminal) "conservative values". Please note that no Republican--EVER!--has attempted to spell out those "values". If they did, the result would be a national "Death List" with their names all over it.

                  Four years later, all I see is another criminally stupid "farce" being played out again, only by the Republithugs--and at taxpayer expense. Seriously, just really look at what "candidates" are/were being offered to We the People. If it didn't require effort, I would puke.....

                  God protect our country, for we are too stupid to do it ourselves. But, why should He bother?

                  • 2 votes
                  Reply#37 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 4:11 PM EST

                  Bye Bye, Newt!

                  • 1 vote
                  Reply#38 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 4:12 PM EST

                  Unless Newt comes back I am resigned to another four years of disaster. If it keeps going the way it is we might see a second civl war on our soil :/

                    Reply#39 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 4:14 PM EST

                    From Wikipedia:

                    He was disciplined in January 1997 by the House of Representatives for an ethics violation,

                    Eighty-four ethics charges were filed against Gingrich during his term as Speaker

                    It was the first time in the history of the House that a Speaker was disciplined for an ethics violation.

                    The Ethics Committee's Special Counsel, James M. Cole, concluded that Gingrich had violated federal tax law and had lied to the ethics panel in an effort to force the committee to dismiss the complaint against him

                    The House banking scandal and Congressional Post Office scandal were emblems of the exposed corruption. Gingrich himself was among the 450 members of the House who had engaged in check kiting

                    Not the sort of person I want to represent me or my country.

                    Obama a radical? - the only thing that's radical about our sitting president is that he's the first man of color to sit in that chair.

                    The only GOP candidate with bold ideas to fixt the nation's problems? I guess he'll say anything.

                    • 4 votes
                    Reply#40 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 4:35 PM EST

                    1. Gingrich was not disciplined by the House for ethics violations- that is a lie

                    http://www.newsmax.com/Headline/gingrich-refutes-ethics-fine/2012/01/25/id/425485?s=al&promo_code=E044-1

                    2. Another lie about 1st Speaker- Google Democratic Speaker Jim Wright

                    In 1988 Wright became the target of an inquiry by the House Ethics Committee. Their report in early 1989 implied that he had used bulk purchases of his book, Reflections of a Public Man, to earn speaking fees in excess of the allowed maximum, and that his wife, Betty, was given a job and perks to avoid the limit on gifts. Faced with an increasing loss of effectiveness, Wright tendered his resignation as Speaker on May 31, 1989, the resignation to become effective on the selection of a successor.[12] He was the first Speaker to resign because of a scandal. On June 6, the Democratic Caucus brought Wright's speakership to an end by selecting his replacement, Tom Foley of Washington, and on June 30 Wright resigned his seat in Congress.

                    3. Gingrich was cleared by the IRS in 1999

                    Despite ongoing allegations to the contrary, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was completely cleared by the Internal Revenue Service in February 1999 of politically driven allegations that he earned money by teaching a college course that was partisan rather than educational.

                    The mainstream media, which had devoted hours of television coverage and acres of newsprint to the accusations, virtually ignored the subsequent ruling that neither he nor the nonprofit organizations that sponsored the classes had done anything wrong, according to a report in the Washington Examiner.

                    CNN and The Associated Press were among the media outlets that reported on the IRS finding. CNN produced a solid news segment that laid out the facts of the case—and the IRS exoneration of Gingrich. CNN’s reporter Brooks Jackson – now director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center’s influential FactCheck.org – made it clear that the IRS was adamant in its view that Gingrich had done nothing wrong.

                    In his report, which ran at a little under two-and-a-half minutes, Jackson started by saying, “It was legal after all. Newt Gingrich’s oh-so-controversial college course that he started back in 1993 before he was speaker.

                    “Remember how Democrats denounced it,” added Jackson, before cutting to clips of Reps David Bonior, D-Mich., and John Lewis, D-Ga, attacking Gingrich.

                    “Tax fraud? Well, never mind,” said Jackson. “After a three-and-a-half year examination, the Internal Revenue Service – Bill Clinton’s IRS – has issued an official finding. No violation of tax laws.

                    “Critics said the course, which was videotaped and widely distributed, was too political, a scheme to use a tax-exempt educational foundation to promote a Republican agenda and elect Republican candidates. But in a 74-page memorandum, the IRS said otherwise,” Jackson reported.

                    He then quoted the IRS report: “The…course taught principles from American civilization that could be used by each American in everyday life whether the person is a welfare recipient, the head of a large corporation, or a politician.”

                    It said the course “was not biased toward particular politicians or a particular party. The facts show the class was much more than a political platform,” added Jackson.

                    Read more on Newsmax.com: CNN: IRS Exonerated Gingrich in 1999
                    Important: Do You Support Pres. Obama's Re-Election? Vote Here Now!

                    Obama is a lifelong Marxist Radical who ran and was elected to the Illinois State Senate as a member of a Socialist Party- the New Party. Furthermore, the Communist Party USA has endorsed him in both 2008 and for 2012 which they would hardly do for someone they didn't believe reflected their ideology

                    Here is the New Party link noting Obama as a New Party candidate for the Illinois State Senate seat that he won

                    http://www.chicagodsa.org/ngarchive/ng42.html#anchor792932

                    the New Party was formed and backed financially by the Democratic Socialists thus making Obama also a member of the DSA

                    Here's what their founder Michael Harrington said

                    "Put it this way. Marx was a democrat with a small d. The Democratic Socialists envision a humane social order based on popular control of resources and production, economic planning...and racial equality. I share an immediate program with liberals in this country because the best liberalism leads toward socialism.... I want to be on the left wing of the possible."

                    Obama just received a critical endorsement, The Communist Party USA. The Communist Party USA leader, Sam Webb, explains why he will continue to support Obama and Democrats in 2012. The Communist Party USA has consistently supported and infiltrated the Democratic Party.

                    Also note, Sam Webb, the leader of the party, called Obama a friend back in 2008.

                    Sam Webb Via People’s World:

                    http://politicons.net/congrats-communist-party-usa-endorses-barack-obama-and-democrats-for-2012-election/

                    http://peoplesworld.org/does-it-matter-which-party-wins/

                      #40.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 5:11 PM EST

                      Larry -- now matter how many times you put this crap out, no matter how many links you post, you're still either totally delusional or totally lying.

                      • 1 vote
                      #40.2 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 6:27 PM EST

                      Charlie-1915998

                      Larry -- now matter how many times you put this crap out, no matter how many links you post, you're still either totally delusional or totally lying.

                      I've posted the facts and the FACT that you keep posting your garbage without any documented refutation of my facts with links shows you are the LIAR

                        #40.3 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:31 PM EST

                        I've posted the facts

                        No -- you have posted web links. I can post web links that 'prove" the moon landings never happened.

                        • 1 vote
                        #40.4 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:36 PM EST

                        Larry, Larry, Larry...

                        Let's go all the way back to 1997 and read what they wrote then:

                        Washington Post, January 22, 1997

                        The House voted overwhelmingly yesterday to reprimand House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) and order him to pay an unprecedented $300,000 penalty, the first time in the House's 208-year history it has disciplined a speaker for ethical wrongdoing.

                        "Newt has done some things that have embarrassed House Republicans and embarrassed the House," said Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.). "If [the voters] see more of that, they will question our judgment."

                        "We have proved to the American people that no matter how rough the process is, we can police ourselves, we do know right from wrong," said Rep. Porter J. Goss (R-Fla.),

                        In a strongly worded report, special counsel James M. Cole concluded that Gingrich had violated tax law and lied to the investigating panel, but the subcommittee would not go that far. In exchange for the subcommittee agreeing to modify the charges against him, Gingrich agreed to the penalty Dec. 20 as part of a deal in which he admitted guilt.

                        Rep. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.) said that had he known what was in the ethics committee's report, he would not have voted for Gingrich as speaker. "The gray got grayer when you read the report," he said. "When I think of my three boys and what kind of example I want to set for them for leadership in this country, gray is not the example."

                        Seems pretty clear to me... and not what you are spouting!

                        Need I mention that there was a Repubnlican majority in the House at that time and the vote was 395 in favor, 28 opposed?

                        • 2 votes
                        #40.5 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:58 PM EST

                        Larry -

                        Let's ask Gingrich...

                        Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich on Wednesday declined to ask the Justice Department to release thousands of records from the House Ethics Committee's investigation into his conduct as speaker in the 1990s.

                        Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington asked the Justice Department for the records last month, but the department denied the request unless Gingrich agreed to open the files.

                        If he has nothing to hide, why won't he let these records go public?

                        • 1 vote
                        #40.6 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 11:10 PM EST
                        Reply

                        NEWT you and the rest of your republican buddies just don't get it, your wasting all you time and everyone elses money, just to go down in defeat. GIVE UP. SAY UNCLE. SAY ADIOS...

                        • 2 votes
                        Reply#41 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 5:00 PM EST

                        gustifer- you socialist parasites would love it if we gave up on trying to restore our nation to following the Constitution

                          #41.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 5:12 PM EST

                          Socialist parasites? You right wingers lack the intelligence to even comprehend our political structure and landscape, allowing you to only ape and parrot your handlers.

                          • 2 votes
                          #41.2 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 5:23 PM EST
                          Reply

                          Don L-1949089

                          Socialist parasites? You right wingers lack the intelligence to even comprehend our political structure and landscape, allowing you to only ape and parrot your handlers.

                          stereotypical response from brain dead socialists. I probably have studied the constitution and US history longer than you've been alive. I also have a degree in History and have worked actively in politics since 1960.

                          Unlike leftists like yourself, I have enough intelligence and ability to research for myself that I don't need spin masters forming my opinions as you do.

                            Reply#42 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 5:36 PM EST

                            But in the wrong direction, Larry. You seem to have missed much of the meaning of the Constitution, like the "promote the general Welfare part. Unless you have amassed millions in ill gotten gold bullion, you have wasted your life supporting the wrong side. Apparently, you do need spin masters, you seem to follow them to the core of their lying, selfish souls! Awake, my neighbor, and see the world of goodness around you.

                            • 2 votes
                            #42.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 6:30 PM EST

                            tex2c2- the difference between you and I is that I have read the Constitution (repeatedly each month for over 55 years) and the writings of those who wrote it

                            The general welfare clause has nothing to do with the general well being of the citizenry. It was carried over from the Articles of Confederation and relates to the general welfare of the Republic-the nation, not the people themselves. It is about the general stability and functionality of the govt itself, as the clause states “The General Welfare of the United States”, not the citizenry. The sentence clearly states that the taxing power is for the purposes of the common defense and general welfare of the United States. There is a reason for conjunctions in a sentence.

                            “If Congress can employ money indefinitely to the general welfare, and are the sole and supreme judges of the general welfare, they may take the care of religion into their own hands; they may appoint teachers in every State, county and parish and pay them out of their public treasury; they may take into their own hands the education of children, establishing in like manner schools throughout the Union; they may assume the provision of the poor; they may undertake the regulation of all roads other than post-roads; in short, every thing, from the highest object of state legislation down to the most minute object of police, would be thrown under the power of Congress… Were the power of Congress to be established in the latitude contended for, it would subvert the very foundations, and transmute the very nature of the limited Government established by the people of America.”


                            – James Madison, Letter to Edmund Pendleton, January 21, 1792

                            III. The said States hereby severally enter into a firm league of friendship with each other, for their common defense, the security of their liberties, and their mutual and general welfare, binding themselves to assist each other, against all force offered to, or attacks made upon them, or any of them, on account of religion, sovereignty, trade, or any other pretense whatever.

                            http://patriotpost.us/historic/documents/35/

                            Franklins draft proposal for the Articles of Confederation

                            The Congress shall also make such general Ordinances as thought necessary to the General Welfare, particular Assemblies cannot be competent to; viz. those that may relate to our general Commerce; or general Currency; to the Establishment of Posts; and the Regulation of our common Forces. The Congress shall also have the Appointment of all General Officers, civil and military, appertaining to the general Confederacy, such as General Treasurer, Secretary, &c.

                            http://www.usconstitution.net/franklinart.html

                            As the father of the Constitution James Madison stated in Federalist #45:

                            "The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite. The former will be exercised principally on external objects, as war, peace, negotiation, and foreign commerce; with which last the power of taxation will, for the most part, be connected. The powers reserved to the several States will extend to all the objects which, in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives, liberties, and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement, and prosperity of the State."

                            James Madison letter in 1830 on General Welfare Clause

                            Dear Sir,--I have received your very friendly favor of the 20th instant, referring to a conversation when I had lately the pleasure of a visit from you, in which you mentioned your belief that the terms "common defence and general welfare," in the eighth section of the first article of the Constitution of the United States, were still regarded by some as conveying to Congress a substantive and indefinite power, and in which I communicated my views of the introduction and occasion of the terms, as precluding that comment of them; and you express a wish that I would repeat those views in the answer to your letter.

                            In tracing the history and determining the import of the terms "common defence and general welfare," as found in the text of the Constitution, the following lights are furnished by the printed journal of the Convention which formed it:

                            The terms appear in the general propositions offered May 29, as a basis for the incipient deliberations, the first of which "Resolved, that the articles of the Confederation ought to be so corrected and enlarged as to accomplish the objects proposed by their institution, namely, common defence, security of liberty, and general welfare." On the day following, the proposition was exchanged for, "Resolved, that a Union of the States merely Federal will not accomplish the objects proposed by the Articles of the Confederation, namely, common defence, security of liberty, and general welfare."

                            The inference from the use here made of the terms, and from the proceedings on the subsequent propositions, is, that although common defence and general welfare were objects of the Confederation, they were limited objects, which ought to be enlarged by an enlargement of the particular powers to which they were limited, and to be accomplished by a change in the structure of the Union from a form merely Federal to one partly national; and as these general terms are prefixed in the like relation to the several legislative powers in the new charter as they were in the old, they must be understood to be under like limitations in the new as in the old.

                            But admitting the distinction as alleged, the appropriating power to all objects of "common defence and general welfare" is itself of sufficient magnitude to render the preceding views of the subject applicable to it. Is it credible that such a power would have been unnoticed and unopposed in the Federal Convention? in the State Conventions, which contended for, and proposed restrictive and explanatory amendments? and in the Congress of 1789, which recommended so many of these amendments? A power to impose unlimited taxes for unlimited purposes could never have escaped the sagacity and jealousy which were awakened to the many inferior and minute powers which were criticised and combated in those public bodies.

                            “The distinction between a pecuniary power only, and a plenary power "to provide for the common defence and general welfare," is frustrated by another reply to which it is liable. For if the clause be not a mere introduction to the enumerated powers, and restricted to them, the power to provide for the common defence and general welfare stands as a distinct substantive power, the first on the list of legislative powers; and not only involving all the powers incident to its execution, but coming within the purview of the clause concluding the list, which expressly declares that Congress may make all laws necessary and proper to carry into execution the foregoing powers vested in Congress.”

                            But admitting the distinction as alleged, the appropriating power to all objects of "common defence and general welfare" is itself of sufficient magnitude to render the preceding views of the subject applicable to it. Is it credible that such a power would have been unnoticed and unopposed in the Federal Convention? in the State Conventions, which contended for, and proposed restrictive and explanatory amendments? and in the Congress of 1789, which recommended so many of these amendments? A power to impose unlimited taxes for unlimited purposes could never have escaped the sagacity and jealousy which were awakened to the many inferior and minute powers which were criticised and combated in those public bodies.

                            http://tinyurl.com/rduzz3

                              #42.2 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:40 PM EST

                              Larry Robinson, you mean to tell us that you're a historian just like Newt the Hoot?

                              • 1 vote
                              #42.3 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 9:52 AM EST
                              Reply

                              3 tries at being a decent husband, 3 tries at scamming the retardicans into selecting him for their shining hero! LOL What a piece of feces this guy is!

                              • 1 vote
                              Reply#43 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 6:17 PM EST

                              When you have NO ideas, NO solutions, and NO answers, NOTHING positive to offer – you talk about such import things like, birth certificates, Teleprompters, college transcripts, auto-pens, czars, rounds of golf, worthless garbage like that. Then you throw in even more garbage with words and phrases like “socialist” and “Marxist” and "communist" and “he’s not one of us” – all that kind of crap. But the bottom line is more and more Americans are realizing that the right has NOTHING to offer and that’s why President Obama will be reelected in November.

                              • 3 votes
                              Reply#44 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 6:29 PM EST

                              WTG Charlie,,,,MILLIONS AND MILLIONS of us agree ! Obama 2012

                              • 2 votes
                              #44.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 6:37 PM EST
                              Reply

                              Wow Larry -- you have a degree in history, you've been an executive in the defense industry, you're a minister, you're a Vietnam vet, you're an expert on the constitution and the Bible, and you've worked in politics. You're just all kinds of things aren't you!! No doubt you're also a Super Bowl MVP, have your name on Lord Stanley's cup, have traveled on the space shuttle, won both the Masters and the US Open and have served as an adviser to Ronald Reagan, Dick Cheney as well as both Bush 41 and Bush 43.

                              • 3 votes
                              Reply#45 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 6:40 PM EST

                              Charlie, At least I can back up everything I claim. I also know many people like myself who have equally accomplished and diverse backgrounds. It's just lazy liberals like yourself Charlie who live pathetic lives complaining about all of us who actually go out and accomplish something in our lives.

                              I'm nearly 63 and I've started 25 businesses here and overseas in the past 18 years. I'll probably create at least 6-10 more before I die.

                                #45.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:35 PM EST

                                Charlie, I gotta love you! I've enjoyed you on this thread (I hate to say this I've enjoyed Larry also, he's nut's!). There's nothing like a fantasy life is there?

                                • 2 votes
                                #45.2 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 10:05 AM EST
                                Reply
                                kimb54Deleted

                                NO hope for you NEWT, remember palin endorsed you. She has no clout and you should have asked her NOT to endorse you...LOL

                                • 1 vote
                                Reply#47 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 9:35 PM EST

                                I dunno. Next, he should ask for an endorsement from George W. Bush... talk about the kiss of death!

                                LOL

                                • 1 vote
                                #47.1 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 11:24 PM EST
                                Reply

                                people in h— — l wish for a cold glass of water too newt the grinch

                                  Reply#48 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:16 PM EST

                                  Charlie, At least I can back up everything I claim.

                                  Sure you can Larry -- everyone can prove everything they say on a computer message board. Tell you what -- I'm 65 (for real) and I've started 37 businesses. And I'll probably create anther 50 over the next ten years. So top that and prove me wrong.

                                  "lazy liberals like yourself Charlie "

                                  Another thing I've found to be true Larry -- people who constantly call others "lazy" or stupid" more often than not are describing themselves rather than the other person. So you go on and tell us all about your life as a big time operator, call anyone who challenges you all manner of names, do whatever you want. But remember -- it's easy to be a hot shot on a computer message board.

                                  You remind me of a guy who used to be on the AOL golf board. This clown called one person after another stupid, lazy, you know the drill. He was constantly trying t hustle bets. He talked about the times he played with Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, all the money he won on the PGA tour, just one BS story after another. Well -- somebody figured out who he actually was and he was a pro golfer. But his best finish was a tie for 35th place on the European seniors tour. His lifetime earnings on any tour was under 50 grand. He was as phony as the year is long. So -- computer message board big wheel --- nothing to it. You can be anything you want.

                                  But of course we all believe you Larry. No doubt you're everything you say you are -- and probably more. Nobody ever lies on a computer.

                                  OK Larry -- time to go. I have an appointment with the Pope and I don't want to be late.

                                  • 3 votes
                                  Reply#49 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 10:57 PM EST

                                  Charlie/Larry, Charlie, there's something seriously wrong with you. On your post 45.1 you give a different age for yourself and yet and still post 49 you have a different fictitious number of business's that you supposedly started and a different age. That in and of itself says that there is something wrong.

                                    #49.1 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 10:12 AM EST

                                    "Charlie, there's something seriously wrong with you. On your post 45.1 you give a different age for yourself and yet and still post 49 you have a different fictitious number of business's that you supposedly started and a different age."

                                    Read them again. I didn't write post 45.1 --- Larry did.

                                      #49.2 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 12:53 PM EST

                                      Charlie, oops! Please forgive me, I was still working on having my coffee...

                                        #49.3 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 2:58 PM EST

                                        Allison --- no problem --- we all make a few mistakes --- except of course for Larry.

                                          #49.4 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 3:14 PM EST
                                          Reply

                                          Why doesn't this silly old man back down, disappear into the sunset with his plastic wife, and give the Republican party a chance to get rid of Obama and his boys.

                                          • 1 vote
                                          Reply#50 - Wed Feb 15, 2012 11:25 PM EST

                                          Mitt Romney should get the nomination, after all it was Mitt who saved the auto industry. Right after he was against it.

                                            Reply#51 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 1:11 AM EST

                                            Guess he has never heard the saying about beating a dead horse....

                                              Reply#52 - Thu Feb 16, 2012 3:02 AM EST
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