Archive
Reuters blog archive
from Stories I’d like to see:
Newt’s new gigs, following the Sandy money, and hedge-fund matchmakers
1. Newt’s new gigs:
One of my favorite side stories of last year’s presidential campaign had to do with the details that emerged about all the money Newt Gingrich had been making in recent years from speeches, books and lobbying (which he insisted was merely consulting or “advocacy”). As I wrote at the time , Gingrich’s release of his tax returns (when he was taunting Mitt Romney to do the same) was so intriguing because most of his $3.1 million in 2011 income was derived from something called Gingrich Holdings Inc. This was the clearinghouse for his various activities, and it presented him ample opportunity to get tax breaks by routing all kinds of personal expenses through his private corporation. It was an only-in-Washington success story.
With his losing campaign having diminished whatever luster Gingrich might have had, it would be interesting to see whether and how he and his wife, Calista, have revived Newt Inc. Washington seems to be a place where even the politicians pushed furthest to the sidelines can make a good living off of who they once were, who they know and, in the case of books and speeches, their true believers. Gingrich post-2012 puts that theory to a new and interesting test.
What kind of gigs has the former speaker lined up? Where has he been making the rounds trying to land “consulting” retainers? Who’s turned him down and who’s signed him up?
And while we’re contemplating the fate of pols pushed offstage, can’t someone get the scoop on what Mitt Romney is up to?
from The Great Debate:
Boehner resurrects the antebellum South
Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) is now in Williamsburg, Virginia, meeting with his House Republican conference at their annual retreat. The GOP House members have likely gotten over the initial shock of the November elections – in which President Barack Obama won more than 51 percent of the vote and the Democratic majority swelled in the Senate.
Though the Republicans lost House seats and their candidates collected more than a million fewer votes than their Democratic rivals, the GOP retained a majority in the House of Representatives. This consolation prize has allowed Boehner to claim that House Republicans have a mandate every bit as compelling as that earned by the president. Conservative champions Grover Norquist and Representative Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) echoed this claim.
from Tales from the Trail:
Washington Extra – ‘Wild ride’ ends
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich (L) and his wife, Callista walk together after he suspended his bid for the GOP presidential nomination in Arlington, Virginia, May 2, 2012. REUTERS/Larry Downing
The sharpest debater in the 2012 field of Republican presidential candidates exited the race touting a hodgepodge of initiatives that made his failed race so colorful.
from Tales from the Trail:
Watch live: Gingrich officially bows out
Gingrich is expected to officially suspend his campaign with a speech at the Arlington Hilton hotel in Washington at 3pm ET.
Watch live:
from Tales from the Trail:
Washington Extra – Moonshot no more
U.S. Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich bows his head in prayer before speaking at First Redeemer Church while on a campaign tour in Cumming, Georgia, February 26, 2012. REUTERS/Tami Chappell
Earth calling Newt: When the biggest news of your presidential campaign is the penguin biting your hand at the zoo, it's probably time to pack it in.
from Tales from the Trail:
Romney’s small dollar disconnect
After his win in Illinois on Tuesday, Mitt Romney is looking to convince Republicans around the country that he's their ultimate nominee.
But despite his lead in the delegate count, Romney continues to lag behind his rivals in raising money from so-called small-dollar donors, supporters who donate less than $200. Donations from people who contributed less than $200 -- often viewed as a gauge of popular appeal -- are filed as "unitemized" donations with the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
from Tales from the Trail:
Washington Extra – Etch A Sketch
Ah, if life were only like an Etch A Sketch, a little shake would allow us to erase those mistakes and messy parts. But to invoke the magical toy to explain Mitt Romney's presidential hopes might have been a mistake, one worth erasing with a shake.
It seems that every Romney win is followed by a Romney gaffe. This time, after his Illinois victory last night, it was not the candidate who stepped in it, but rather his adviser Eric Fehrnstrom, who wanted to talk about what Romney would be like in a general election against President Obama.
from Tales from the Trail:
Newt’s home field advantage was among the weakest
Newt Gingrich faces some do-or-die primary contests in Dixie, his supposed home turf, over the next few days. Alabama and Mississippi hold their respective Republican primaries on Tuesday with Gingrich, the former U.S. House Speaker, and former Senator Rick Santorum expected to compete for, and potentially split, the conservative/evangelical vote.
Gingrich, though, didn’t do that well on his actual home turf – Georgia – during the Super Tuesday contests. Sure, the former history and geography professor at the University of West Georgia and 20-year representative of the state’s 6th Congressional district won 47.2 percent of the Republican vote in the Peachtree State. But according to political scientist Eric Ostermeier, that was one of the worst home-state primary performances by a Republican in decades.
from Tales from the Trail:
Pro-Gingrich Super PAC hits Romney in new ad
Winning Our Future, the Super PAC supporting Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, is back at it again -- animated advertising, that is.
The Super PAC has been on something of a TV hiatus since Gingrich's stunning South Carolina win in late January, in part because it appeared to be running out of money. The group has been almost exclusively funded by Las Vegas Casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, who we now know wrote a new "substantial" check to the group a few days ago.
from Tales from the Trail:
Gingrich offers “dream team” to supporters
For a $100 donation, this free poster of Newt Gingrich and his conservative "Dream Team" can be yours.
The poster -- featuring the Republican presidential candidate flanked by endorsers of his White House bid -- was offered to supporters Tuesday in a new fundraising appeal.
