The Story of Newt.....Connecting the Dots -- Jim Cleary

          What does going on a Mediterranean cruise have to do with the Florida Primary?  Political pundits often seem to be so focused on the last few days and minutes that they cannot make even the simplest connections. 

In the heated Florida Primary campaign, we have heard Newt Gingrich repeatedly say how hard it is to compete in a big state like Florida when he’s being outspent by Mitt Romney, 5-1. But not one commentator has asked this obvious question:  WHY does Newt have so little money and WHY is he so totally dependent on just one major donor?

          We only need to go back about six months to find the answer.   It was only last June that the former Speaker of the House of Representatives was explaining why almost all of his advisers and consultants had resigned.

          They just didn’t understand, he said.  His campaign would be a very different campaign, not waged in the traditional way.  It would be a campaign of ideas.  Some sources have said recently that he was privately telling some folks that he knew he didn’t have a good chance to win the Republican nomination, but that he could contribute to the debate. 

That’s why, he said, that it was okay to go on a cruise with his wife, instead of doing the not-so-fun basics of a real campaign: raising money and building an organization.

          Meanwhile, Mitt Romney had every intention of actually winning the nomination and the presidency and was prepared to do the grueling work necessary.  He raised money and built an organization in all of the key primary states.

          Then, during the months leading up to the Iowa caucuses, one candidate after another who wanted to be an alternative to Romney, self-imploded after rising in the polls.  And, after several good debate performances with a very positive message, Newt got to take a turn at the top of the polls.

          But now, it was close to an actual election, so the Romney forces moved to strike down Gingrich in Iowa, as they have in Florida.  Keep in mind that, yes, negative ads work, but they work a whole lot better when the attacks are basically true.  And, while many of the anti-Gingrich ads probably were exaggerations, the basic facts about Newt’s background were true.

          So here we are today.  Newt Gingrich, someone who has been in politics most of his adult life—and someone who voluntarily chose not to build an organization or to raise money, seems to be shocked—yes, shocked—that he is being outspent and being soundly defeated. 

          He now plays the role of the poor anti-establishment candidate fighting against “the elites.”  This is laughable from someone who was in Congress for nearly 20 years and was Speaker of the House.  Newt is endorsed by many Republican elected officials, who are de-facto parts of the “establishment.” Yet Newt tries to argue that those who back him are anti-establishment, but those who back his opponent are the real insiders?  That’s just not very credible.

          Campaigning is not always easy or fun work and successful candidates are required to do more than just the fun stuff—like giving speeches and debating the issues.  Newt Gingrich should have known that.  He didn’t deserve to win because he wasn’t willing to do the hard work.

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          The author is a former Omaha City Councilmember and is a political consultant in Nebraska, Colorado and Arizona.