Newt: The Real Maverick

Back in 2000, John McCain scored points on being the “maverick” who would “criticize his own party” when standing on firm principles.

As his funding numbers continue to prove, John McCain is no longer that maverick.

Sure, he still criticizes Republicans, but now it seems more like a mechanical impulse rather than true principle.

Newt Gingrich, however, is beginning to take the shape of the true 2008 maverick.

Consider the recent McCain-Kennedy immigration plan. Newt heavily criticized the bill for being “amnesty” and for being out of touch with the American people. He has called immigration the issue where “Congress and the American people are the furthest apart on”.

McCain, on the other hand, dismissed opponents as being “anti-immigration” and claimed they represented a “small minority of Republicans”. This is not a “maverick” type move, this is a man out of touch with the country- and his base.

This is not the only area where Newt has been a maverick on. When it comes to Iraq, healthcare, schooling, Katrina and the environment, Newt has been quick to criticize famous Republicans. He clearly doesn’t do it for political points, but rather because he’s right.

Newt said we were on the wrong track in Iraq in 2003. He criticized the President’s former plan of “staying the course” and advocated that victory can only be achieved by changing course.

The Speaker has spent years working on conservative solutions to healthcare to help Republicans battle against the movement for socialized medicine.

He has traveled around the country talking about the failure of inner-city schools saying “liberals don’t want to challenge their own institutions and conservatives don’t want to talk about it”. Oprah even said that she has lost hope in educating American blacks, opting to build a school in South Africa while Newt rallies for real change in schools.

When Katrina hit and Bush was under heavy criticism, Newt recognized the political reality. You can’t explain to people who’ve just lost their homes the concept of federalism, you need to offer something substantive. However unjust the attacks on Bush were, we needed a leader to point out that inaction is unacceptable.

While conservatives fight the botched science of global warming, Newt recognizes we need to offer solutions to an overwhelming movement. Believe me, I’m disgusted with the global warming science, but we as conservatives need to offer something rather than nothing in 08.

While candidates start campaigning at record early times, Newt works on bi-partisan American Solutions and advocates real change.

Republicans won’t win if we offer what we did in 2006, so unless you want our soldiers saluting to a President Clinton, we need to get a real maverick into the race.


Posted by Kurt Sorensen at 12:32 AM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Comments

NEWT / FRED ?
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FRED / NEWT ?


Id vote for that.

Posted by: Ida Newtman | July 6, 2007 9:55 PM

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