9/27/2007

Gingrich: "20-percent chance I am in..."


Newt Gingrich said on Hannity and Colmes tonight that he was getting a great deal of encouragement from people he meets across America to enter the race for the Republican nomination and that one week, possibly two weeks from Monday he would announce his intentions once and for all. I have always held the opinion that Newt is the most qualified and capable of all potential candidates, however until now it never seemed as if he was taking the possibility of getting in the race very seriously.

What makes me think that the former-Speaker is leaning toward getting in is the detail he gave when queried by Sean Hannity on how he would announce, saying, "I would probably announce early in the morning on C-SPAN and then come on your program later in the evening". These are the words of a man who has probably dreamed about that morning since high school, and will likely kick himself for the rest of his life if he passes on this, what might be his last real opportunity to make a run for the Oval Office.

It is entirely possible, based on Newt's past statements, that he thinks the GOP is doomed regardless of who they put up against the Clintons. If that is the case, he is unlikely to volunteer to be a sacrificial lamb, and might be the only sly fox left on the right, angling for the front-runner position to challenge the incumbent Hillary in a midterm election in 2012. This is just a thought, but Newt's willingness to at least acknowledge that he is still seriously considering a life in elected office can only leave one to conclude that the old Newt is likely back and as usual he is probably 5-10 steps ahead of everyone, pundits included.

Fred Thompson has been a joke in my opinion. I cannot understand why anyone has been excited by his lackluster campaign and uninspired demeanor on the trail. Perhaps I have misjudged the former-Senator and he may yet prove to be a formidable and exciting candidate. However, I have little faith that he is going to stand up in next week's GOP debate in Detroit, next to Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, Duncan Hunter and John McCain, and actually impress anyone who was not predisposed to support him because they are fans of Law and Order. Gingrich had previously indicated that as long as someone, with strong insinuation that Thompson was his preferred choice, entered the race to champion the conservative ideas and innovative solutions he has been promoting himself since leaving the House. I have little doubt that Gingrich is deeply disappointed in Thompson's showing thus far, and he is either going to take a more active role in his friend's campaign, or he is going to toss his hat into the ring and put the fate of the GOP on his shoulders as it takes on its most formidable opponents in 50 years, the Clintons.

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