From today's Washington Times comes this report:

Newt Gingrich is moving closer to a presidential nomination bid in a severely divided Republican Party.

"I will decide based on whether I have about $30 million in committed campaign contributions and whether I think it is possible to run a campaign based on ideas rather than 30-second sound bites," the former House speaker told The Washington Times yesterday.

Democrats ought to have a one-word response to this news: Puh-lease! For them, it would be happy days for Gingrich to have to explain his personal foibles: leaving sick wives, engaging in an extramarital affair during the Clinton impeachment. What a candidate for the supposed party of family values.

The article also goes on to say,

Mr. Gingrich has proposed an informal committee of congressional lawmakers from both parties "to meet every two weeks with the next president" that would foster far less partisanship.

That's funny, coming from a fellow who used to routinely advise his fellow Republicans to call Democrats "traitors," "sick," "bizarre," and betrayers. Name-calling partisanship was essential to Gingrich's rise to power in the 1990s. Perhaps he's mellowed with age. Does he renounce the Newt of the 90s?

Regarding his possible presidential bid, The Washington Times reports,

Mr. Gingrich figures he would need at least $30 million to conduct competitive television-ad campaigns in the first five primary and caucus states--Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and perhaps Florida or Michigan.

This is the give-away that Gingrich is just yanking the chain of the Moonie newspaper. A candidate cannot collect $30 million in commitments, as Gingrich suggested he might do. The most an individual can give to a presidential contender for a primary election is $2300. That means Gingrich will have to collect promises from 13,000 folks (assuming they max out) in order to know he can bank the $30 million he assumes he needs.

Collecting such promises is probably about as tough as collecting the actual money. And if he hasn't started banking all these IOUs (or I-will-gives) already, there's no way he can do so in time to make a timely entry.

He's blowing smoke. He just wants the attention. But if it will make a difference, I promise to give him fifty bucks if he enters the race. I'd be delighted to see him discuss the "sick," "shallow," "selfish," "permissive" acts of "hypocrisy" from his past.

Posted by David Corn at September 12, 2007 12:29 PM