I was traveling and in meetings most of the day. So unlike most every other day, I was almost totally off the news grid. I caught a few headlines here and there on my iPhone about the unfolding Newt implosion. But, my God, I couldn't quite grasp the scope until I got back to my hotel room and started reading our stories. And now it comes out that this afternoon Newt was compelled to personally call Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) to apologize for questioning and criticizing Ryan's Medicare phase-out plan. His spokesman publicly stated that Newt apologized. Publicly. On the record. Voluntarily.And a fabulous take last night from Rachel Maddow, which shows that as much as anything, it is his reaction to the uproar which is doing him in as much as the attack itself. Blaming the liberal media? Really.
I mean, wow. Watching TV just now, I see that South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) is now lashing out at Gingrich as some sort of GOP health care policy traitor.
What's breathtaking about this isn't just the reckless ridiculousness. That's Newt's trademark. But I can only imagine Newt's mortification. This is a man of no little ego. Whatever else you want to say about Gingrich, he is a genuinely historic figure in the history of American politics. And he's called on the carpet and has to apologize to these newcomers who couldn't have been out of their 20s when he was in his early 90s heyday?
I can only imagine.
So, what is this all about? That you can't be an "ideas" guy in the Republican party, because after all to intellectualize public policy issues inevitably means stepping on toes? Is it about Newt's cluelessness? Simply about any Republican candidate needing to tow a particular party line, at any given moment?
This probably is indeed the nail in Newt's coffin. But frankly, he didn't have a shot to begin with. So there.
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