COMMENTARY | Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich may be more conservative than former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney, but that does not seem to have impressed two of the most controversial radio talk show hosts in America -- Michael Savage and Glenn Beck.
Michael Savage relates the litany against Gingrich on his website, including his failed marriages, his relationship with Freddie Mac, and the curious and false accusation did he did not deliver on the Contract with America. Then Savage, who just spent some bandwidth accusing Gingrich of being, among other things, corrupt, offered to pay the former Speaker $1 million to get out of the race for the good of the country.
According to the Right Scoop, Glenn Beck suggested that he might support a Ron Paul third party run if Gingrich were the Republican nominee, despite the fact that Paul's Middle East policy is decidedly anti-Israel. The Right Scoop points out that this will mean the reelection of Barack Obama, which conservatives regard as an unmitigated disaster.
What is behind this disdain against Gingrich? Savage is known to scream at the microphone. Beck, while a great student of history, has had his own flights of fancy. But some serious people have some serious reservations about Gingrich as the Republican nominee, particularly people who were in the House during his tenure as Speaker.
The fear seems to be something like this: Gingrich is brilliant beyond all measure and has had great success in moving the conservative agenda. But he has personal and political baggage and he has a tendency toward instability. He therefore cannot win against President Obama, even in the teeth of an economic downturn that has turned off millions of people from Obama and the Democrats.
This hand-wringing has a familiarity to it. One remembers in 1980 another brilliant conservative who was too unstable, too burdened with baggage to win, even against a compromised Democratic president. One wonders whatever happened to that guy, Ronald Reagan?
Recent political history suggests that the safe bet is usually a bad bet when choosing a presidential nominee. Bob Dole was the ultimate institutional Republican, sound in his opinions and his career, not too very alarming. He lost in 1996 handily. John McCain was a moderate in policy, if not in temperament. He lost in 2008 as well.
It is the unsafe bets, Reagan in 1980 and even George W. Bush in 2000, who more often succeed than not. If Gingrich survives the crucible of the nomination process, which has just begun, he will do fine next fall.
Sources: Michael Savage.Com, Michael Savage, Dec 12, 2011
Glenn Beck: I'd consider Ron Paul as third party over Newt Gingrich, The Right Scoop, Dec 12, 2011
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