Newt Is the Conservative Al Sharpton

He'll never run for office again; he just wants attention
By Wesley Oliver,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 4, 2009 8:00 AM CST
Newt Is the Conservative Al Sharpton
Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich speaks during the Texas Republican Party State Convention Friday, June 13, 2008 in Houston.   (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Trendy political predictions to the contrary, Newt's not "back," and he most certainly isn't going to run for president, writes Jason Zengerle in the New Republic. The former House speaker has maintained political longevity by dangling flirty intimations before story-hunting reporters. Given how he loves to talk, Gingrich is the go-to guy "on all things conservative," much as Al Sharpton is on black issues. But “the moment Newt actually runs for office, the jig is up,” says Zengerle.

Gingrich derives relevance from pontification, writes Zengerle, who dismisses the Times’ recent parallel to Nixon’s comeback after the implosion of Barry Goldwater. Gingrich is “about as un-Nixonian as a politician can get simply because, in the end, he doesn't crave power. He just craves attention. Which means that, unlike Nixon in the 60s, Newt will always be available to kick around.”
(More Newt Gingrich stories.)

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