The Voice

The Voice

The Voice

myVoice: Three ways for Gingrich to get more delegates

myVoice%3A+Three+ways+for+Gingrich+to+get+more+delegates
Joe Cristo, Managing Online Editor

“Come to Jesus!”

The doughy faced Newt Gingrich, who is currently polled at 15 delegates according to RealClearPolitics.com, could use some of that divine intervention.

Since early August, Gingrich’s campaign has constantly been relying on the connection between religion and state to garner support for his wavering fan-base. Behind Rick Santorum and Mitt Romney in all of the primaries thus far, Illinois, according to some political pundits, could be Gingrich’s last chance at coming back in this election. And if he really wants to come back into this primary as a dead wringer, there are three things he and his supporters need to do:

  1. Remove religion from his campaign

Among his rove of fans (about 200 elderly locals), roars can be heard connecting Gingrich’s opinions to that of Jesus Christ. The connection is blatant and upsetting; how can one connect two things that are supposed to be specifically separated by the Constitution?

Some things heard in the crowd:

“Jews run the media!”

“Send Barack back to the devil!”

Obviously these are not the sentiments of Gingrich himself. The stout former Speaker of the House does not say, or presumably think, that “Jews run the media.” But the issue with this comment from his fan-base is that it makes him less capable of gaining a broader range of support from other conservatives.

In fact, another person in the crowd told him it was hurting the campaign; that these kinds of statements hurt Gingrich’s credibility.

But when a candidate begins to get associated with people who are less willing to tame their social prejudices, it makes it more unlikely that people will look longingly on the Gingrich campaign and say, “That’s what I am missing; a little more anti-Semitism.”

  1. Stop Biting the Hand That Feeds You

“Don’t believe the liberal media!”

The primary buttons passed out claimed that the media in itself is spewing “hateful liberal lies.” No, Gingrich did not pass out the buttons and neither did anyone in his campaign. Instead, it was a private third party endorser. Nonetheless, the damage had been done. Many moderate conservatives see Gingrich this way.

The media is undoubtedly one of the most important aspects of a campaign. It points to who the clear front-runner is and, in many ways, can decide the election.

This attitude towards the media only sets to distance himself even further from the media itself. This type of separation does not help him gain any type of recognition or support and can only hinder his ability to move in the right direction.

Gingrich seems to believe that if he pushes the media away, that anything they say about him can be seen as null and void.

And biased.

And lies.

Unfortunately, the media is so powerfully important that saying things like the media is “unfair,” will only further separate you from the people who can decide the future of your career.

“Demand the liberal media [to] tell the truth!” (Yes, there was a grammatically incorrect statement on an official campaign bumper sticker)

  1. Stop Focusing on Obama and Romney

“Romney is a part of the machine!”

One of the biggest gripes that people have with politics and politicians in recent years is that the constantly insulting and malicious attacks create a sort of smear campaign.

Gingrich cannot beat President Barack Obama in the upcoming election if he thinks that the only way he will get further is through attacking him. Yes, most conservatives do not like Obama, and yes, many liberals are fed up with him as well.

Still, most people think that he is the front-runner and don’t have as many gripes with him as they have with other presidents in past elections.

Insulting Obama is one thing, but to attack other conservative nominees is where the line needs to be drawn if he wants to win the primary.

Mitt Romney is the indisputable front-runner in the race to become the Republican nominee for President. As such, Gingrich is trying to knock the front runner from the top of his game.

Let this be a warning: you cannot win that way.

Romney is winning because he focuses less on carefully chosen, argumentative rhetoric and more on his ability to refute the opposition’s attacks at republican debates. He focuses less on smearing the enemy, and more on his ability to express is opinion eloquently.

If Gingrich wants to truly get further in this election, he must cut the rhetoric and get to the point: “This is what I can do for the country. Elect me.”

Still, the best quote of the day was on a pin with a large picture of Obama on it being sold by Gingrich’s supporters.

“Does this a** make my butt look big?”

No Newt, but it does make your head look huge.

Leave a Comment
About the Contributor
Joe Cristo, Author

Comments (0)

All The Voice Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *