No, the guy's name is Newt Gingrich, and he was the Speaker of the House back in 1999 -- when you were nine years old. (But those were all good guesses, and I can tell you've been paying attention in your American history classes -- A+!)
That's my first reaction to Newt Gingrich's announcement -- the '90s relic is not just yesterday's news; he's the day before yesterday's news. And is anyone under the age of thirty going to even notice?
My second reaction is -- never mind the three marriages and all that -- if people do take notice of the former speaker, what will they think of his incendiary language? You know, like how he called Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, "a Latina woman racist." Or how about, "Democrats want to impose a secular-socialist machine" on America. Or my favorite, "What if [Obama] is so outside our comprehension, that only if you understand Kenyan, anti-colonial behavior, can you begin to piece together his actions? That is the most accurate, predictive model for his behavior."
Now, for those of us who remember the '90s, we can just chuckle, shake our heads and say, "Oh, yeah, that's Newt. He's really something, isn't he?" But younger people must be horrified by such zaniness. Kind of makes Michele Bachmann look ... mainstream.
If a genie would grant me the wish, I'd like to ask each of the candidates just one question -- all alone in a room, with no tape recorders or anything. And my question for Newt would be, Do you really think all this crazy talk of yours is going to appeal to independents? Really? Because that's who you need to convince if you're serious about running for president. (Or are you just in it to sell more books?)
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