Politics: Sweet and Sour Newt

Now playing: Slate V, a video-only site from the world's leading online magazine. Visit Slate V at www.slatev.com.
Politics Sweet and Sour Newt Why Newt Gingrich is full of scorn for almost everyone except his rivals for the Republican presidential nomination. By John Dickerson Posted Tuesday, Nov 15, 2011, at 04:06 AM ET Newt Gingrich, who may be on his way to becoming the Republican front-runner, is going to find this piece stupid. Fundamentally stupid, frankly. It might be the biggest abomination since Chamberlain's appeasement. That's the way the former speaker sees most things. Talk of tax increases is "maniacally stupid," he said in Iowa today, where he also called the deficit supercommittee "one of the dumbest things" he's ever seen in Washington. In the (10 and counting) Republican presidential debates, Gingrich has routinely treated the moderators the way Oliver was treated when he asked for a second bowl of mush. This is all in character for a man who built his career in part by dismantling opponents of both parties. He didn't just do battle with Democrats—he dethroned their leader, Jim Wright. Among his own party, Gingrich also criticized those lawmakers he considered too accommodating of the other side, such as then-House Minority Leader Bob Michel. When he was speaker, Gingrich's treatment of his fellow Republicans led to a failed coup attempt. But as a presidential candidate, Gingrich has been sweet as pie to his rivals. In Saturday's debate he was given a chance to attack Mitt Romney and he refused. He was given a second chance and he didn't take it, calling Romney "a friend who is a great business manager." He not only has resisted attacking his opponents on the debate stage, he has praised almost all of them. In the Las ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Gabby Giffords' Recovery Demonstrates the Brain's Incredible Ability To Reconstruct Itself Dickerson: Newt Gingrich Switches From Scoundrel to Sweetheart ... and Back Again How Rex Ryan Created the New-Look Patriots	Advertisement
Manage your newsletters subscription: Unsubscribe | Forward to a Friend | Advertising Information
Ideas on how to make something better? Send an e-mail to slatenewsletter@nl.slate.com. Copyright 2011 The Slate Group | Privacy Policy The Slate Group | c/o E-mail Customer Care | 1350 Connecticut Ave NW Suite 410 | Washington, D.C. 20036