Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Gingrich's Wife Drove Off Staff

And his Mediterranean cruise was the last straw

By Kevin Spak, Newser Staff

Posted Jun 10, 2011 9:35 AM CDT

(Newser) – What drove the entire Gingrich 2012 senior staff to simultaneously resign in protest? Two words, says Fred Barnes of the Weekly Standard: Callista Gingrich. Barnes doesn’t cite any sources—not even anonymous ones—but he says the aides were fed up with the amount of control Gingrich gave his wife, who essentially pushed for a part-time campaign. The final straw, apparently, was the Gingrichs’ just-concluded two-week Mediterranean cruise, which Callista insisted on despite the staff’s objections.

In a New York Times profile last month, Callista was described as lukewarm about the prospect of a White House run. But Barnes says she had nonetheless supplanted Newt's oldest allies—including aide-de-camp Rick Tyler and Sam Dawson, who's been with Gingrich for more than thirty years—to become Newt's foremost adviser. With fundraising down, the staff believed Gingrich could not win without a vigorous campaign, so while he was away at sea, they planned their mutiny.

Newt Gingrich and Callista Gingrich pose for photos during a December function in Washington in this file photo. (Getty Images)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

CLICK BELOW TO VOTE

83%

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Broke Gingrich Renting Out Donor List

Campaign is $4.5M in debt

(NEWSER) - Newt Gingrich has reached new levels of desperation: To raise cash, he's started renting out his campaign's donor list for up to $26,000. Gingrich's campaign is $4.5 million in debt, and apparently those $50-a-pop pictures with Newt weren't helping to close the gap. Insiders tell Politico that Gingrich and wife Callista insisted on continuing to use private jets, top-level security, and other perks despite the diminishing popularity of the campaign. “They overspent to keep up the appearances of being a top-tier candidate,” says one former campaign aide. “If you have a campaign bus and you’re flying in on a chartered jet, but you do not have the money for that, you end up sacrificing your ground game." More»

De Niro: First Lady Joke Wasn't Meant to Offend

He responds to Newt Gingrich attack

(NEWSER) - Robert De Niro has responded to a raging Newt and anybody else offended by his quip that America may not be "ready for a white first lady," made while he introduced Michelle Obama at a fundraiser on Monday. "My remarks, although spoken with satirical jest, were not meant to offend or embarrass anyone—especially the First Lady," he tells Talking Points Memo . Gingrich called the joke "inexcusable," and said the president should apologize. A spokeswoman for the first lady said De Niro's quip was "inappropriate." (Click to find out the unlikely supporter De Niro has on his side .) More»

Gingrich Lambastes De Niro for 'White First Lady' Joke

Comment at Obama fundraiser 'inexcusable,' says candidate

(NEWSER) - Watch out, Robert De Niro, you're on Newt Gingrich's bad side: Gingrich slammed the actor today after De Niro made a joke about first ladies last night at an Obama fundraiser. De Niro, speaking before Michelle Obama at the New York event, wondered, "Callista Gingrich. Karen Santorum. Ann Romney. Now do you really think our country is ready for a white first lady?" As the crowd cheered, he continued, "Too soon, right?" More»

Newt and Callista: A 'Narcissistic Blastoff'

But Callista's surrogate ambition a double-edged sword: Maureen Dowd

(NEWSER) - Blame Newt Gingrich's third wife Callista for his relentless, Quixotic quest for the presidency, writes Maureen Dowd in the New York Times . Where other politicians' spouses often appear beside them, looking on dutifully and quietly, Callista's "frozen attentiveness" is something entirely new, perfectly reinforcing her husband's "delusions" he can be president. “She’s a transformational wife,” says one Republican strategist. “She’s the wife who makes the candidate think he is destiny’s gift to mankind, born to greater things.” More»

Marianne Gingrich: Newt Wanted Open Marriage

Ex-wife spills the dirt in ABC interview

(NEWSER) - The first clip in Marianne Gingrich's "explosive" interview is out, and with ex-husband Newt surging two days before South Carolina's primary , she's hitting hard at his moral compass. She describes the moment he confessed his six-year affair with current wife Callista: "I said to him, 'We've been married a long time.' And he said, 'Yes, but you want me all to yourself. Callista doesn't care what I do.'" Prompted by ABC's Brian Ross to clarify, Marianne says, "He was asking to have an open marriage ... that I accept the fact that he has somebody else in his life." How did she respond? "No. No. That is not a marriage." More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Gingrich's Wife Drove Off Staff

And his Mediterranean cruise was the last straw

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Newt Gingrich • Newt Gingrich 2012 • Callista Gingrich

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Broke Gingrich Renting Out Donor List

Campaign is $4.5M in debt

De Niro: First Lady Joke Wasn't Meant to Offend

He responds to Newt Gingrich attack

Gingrich Lambastes De Niro for 'White First Lady' Joke

Comment at Obama fundraiser 'inexcusable,' says candidate

Newt and Callista: A 'Narcissistic Blastoff'

But Callista's surrogate ambition a double-edged sword: Maureen Dowd

Marianne Gingrich: Newt Wanted Open Marriage

Ex-wife spills the dirt in ABC interview

About Us

Site

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?