Newton Leroy "Newt" Gingrich (born Newton Leroy McPherson; June 17, 1943) is an American politician, historian, author and political consultant. He represented Georgia's 6th congressional district as a Republican from 1979 until his resignation in 1999, and served as the 50th person to be Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. In 2012, Gingrich was a candidate for the Republican Party presidential nomination.
Quotes
1970s
One of the great problems we have in the Republican Party is that we don't encourage you to be nasty.
- speech to College Republicans, Atlanta Airport Holiday Inn, June 24 1978.
- https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/newt/newt78speech.html
1980s
- I have enormous personal ambition. I want to shift the entire planet. And I’m doing it. I am now a famous person. I represent real power.
- Interview with WASHINGTON POST, January 3, 1985.
- The left-wing Democrats will represent the party of total hedonism, total exhibitionism, total bizarreness, total weirdness, and the total right to cripple innocent people in the name of letting hooligans loose.
- Harwood, John (27 July 1989), "Newt Gingrich: GOP's Bare-Knuckles Battler", St. Petersburg Times: 1A, quoted in Brock, David (2002-03-05). Blinded by the Right: The Conscience of an Ex-conservative (1st ed.). Crown. pp. 66-67. ISBN 9780812930993.; Rising, George (2010). Stuck in the Sixties: Conservatives and Legacies of the 1960s. Xlibris. p. 130. ISBN 9781456804848.
- The idea that a congressman would be tainted by accepting money from private industry or private sources is essentially a socialist argument.
- D. B. (October 1989), "The Real Ethics Debate", Mother Jones: 31, ISSN 0362-8841
1990s
Gingrich -- primary mission
Advocate of civilization
Definer of civilization
Teacher of the Rules of Civilization
Arouser of those who Fan Civilization
Organizer of the pro-civilization activists
Leader (Possibly) of the civilizing forces
A universal rather than optimal Mission
This retains a primary focus on
elected political power as
the central arena and fulcrum
by which a free people debate their
Future and govern themselves
- People like me are what stand between us and Auschwitz. I see evil around me every day.
- Atlanta Journal and Constitution, January 1994, quoted in Connor, Tom (2011-10-19). NewtWit!. Doubleday. ISBN 9780307804792.
- If this just degenerates after a historic election, back into the usual bologna of politics in Washington and pettiness in Washington, then the American people I believe will move towards a third party in a massive way.
- In appearance on CBS News (11 November 1994)
- It is impossible to maintain civilization with 12-year-olds having babies, with 15-year-olds killing each other, with 17-year-olds dying of AIDS and with 18-year-olds getting diplomas they can’t even read.
- As quoted in Newsweek, ‘Spiro Agnew With Brains’, (27 November 1994)
- If combat means living in a ditch, females have biological problems staying in a ditch for thirty days because they get infections and they don't have upper body strength. I mean, some do, but they're relatively rare. On the other hand, men are basically little piglets, you drop them in the ditch, they roll around in it, doesn't matter, you know. These things are very real. On the other hand, if combat means being on an Aegis-class cruiser managing the computer controls for twelve ships and their rockets, a female may be again dramatically better than a male who gets very, very frustrated sitting in a chair all the time because males are biologically driven to go out and hunt giraffes.
- Address, "Renewing American Civilization," Reinhardt College (7 January 1995)
- If you import a commercial quantity of illegal drugs, it is because you have made the personal decision that you are prepared to get rich by destroying our children. I have made the decision that I love our children enough that we will kill you if you do this.
- "Gingrich Suggests Tough Drug Measure", New York Times, 27 August 1995, ISSN 0362-4331
- Constant, Paul (12 December 2011), "Former Marijuana User Newt Gingrich Proposed the Death Penalty for Trafficking Marijuana in 1996", The Stranger
- regarding his "Drug Importer Death Penalty Act of 1996" (H.R. 4170) bill
- I'm not a natural leader. I'm too intellectual; I'm too abstract; I think too much.
- Bruck, Connie (9 October 1995), "The Politics of Perception", The New Yorker 71 (31): 51, ISSN 0028-792X
- I want to say to the elite of this country—the elite news media, the liberal academic elite, the liberal political elite: I accuse you in Littleton and I accuse you in Kosovo of being afraid to talk about the mess you have made, and being afraid to take responsibility for things you have done, and instead foisting upon the rest of us pathetic banalities because you don't have the courage to look at the world you have created.
- Crosswhite-Chigbue, Karla (12 May 1999), "Gingrich blasts administration, media and Hollywood on Kosovo and Littleton", CNN
- regarding the 1999 Columbine High School massacre and Kosovo War
2000s
- I'm not studying this, I'm not looking at it in great detail, but the last guy to announce on your show came in fourth.
- Response to Jon Stewart's request that he announce his candidacy for President of the United States in the 2008 election on The Daily Show (6 June 2005)
- Alan Colmes: You're calling "appeasers" people who disagree with the Bush policy administration —
- Gingrich: Look—
- Colmes: — comparing them to those who enabled Hitler?
- Gingrich: Yes.
- Colmes: That's an astounding comment —
- Gingrich: What's your — what's your — why? Why is it astounding?
- Colmes: — that's a very insulting comment —
- Gingrich: It's not an insulting comment.
- Hannity & Colmes, Fox News, 1 September 2006
- "Gingrich: "It's not an insult" to compare Bush administration critics "to those who enabled Hitler"", Media Matters for America, 5 September 2006, retrieved on 2011-03-30
- This is, by the way, the great— one of the great tragedies of the Bush administration. The more successful they've been at intercepting and stopping bad guys, the less proof there is that we're in danger, and therefore, the better they've done at making sure there isn't an attack, the easier it is to say "well, there was never gonna be an attack anyway". And it's almost like they should every once in a while have allowed an attack to get through just to remind us.
- Huntington, NY book tour televised on Book TV (CSPAN2), 2008-04-29
- Gingrich: Gov. Should Allow Some Terror Attacks To Remind Us, YouTube, 31 May 2008
- Look, I think there is a gay and secular fascism in this country that wants to impose its will on the rest of us, is prepared to use violence, to use harassment. I think it is prepared to use the government if it can get control of it. I think that it is a very dangerous threat to anybody who believes in traditional religion. And I think if you believe in historic Christianity, you have to confront the fact. And, frank— for that matter, if you believe in the historic version of Islam or the historic version of Judaism, you have to confront the reality that these secular extremists are determined to impose on you acceptance of a series of values that are antithetical, they're the opposite, of what you're taught in Sunday school.
- The O'Reilly Factor, Fox News, 15 November 2008
- "Gingrich: "[T]here is a gay and secular fascism in this country that wants to impose its will on the rest of us"", Media Matters for America, 17 November 2008, retrieved on 2011-03-30
- discussing protesters against a California ballot initiative banning same-sex marriage
2010s
- The president of the United States, the most radical president in American history, has now thrown down the gauntlet to the American people. He has said, "I run a machine, I own Washington, and there's nothing you can do about it." Now, that's where we are.
- Coverage of Southern Republican Leadership Conference, CSPAN, 2010-04-08
- "Gingrich: Obama is "the most radical president in American history"", Media Matters for America, 9 April 2010, retrieved on 2011-03-30
- The goal that the Obama team has is to fundamentally replace the historic America of self-reliance, independence, the work ethic, the people who go out and achieve because they spend their lifetime doing the right things. And they want to replace it with a politician-dominated redistributionist bureaucracy. Which in the essence would mean the end of America as it has been for the last 400 years.
- The Glenn Beck Program, Premiere Radio Networks, 17 May 2010
- "On Beck's radio show, Gingrich says Obama admin. is trying to "end … America as it has been for the last 400 years"", Media Matters for America, 17 May 2010, retrieved on 2011-03-30
- We have to frankly break the back of the secular-socialist machine, elect people committed to representing the American people, and then methodically rip the system apart.
- The Mark Levin Show, ABC Radio Networks, 24 June 2010
- "Gingrich: We have to "break the back of the secular socialist machine … and then methodically rip the system apart"", Media Matters for America, 25 May 2010, retrieved on 2011-03-30
- I assume that somewhere after he attacked Arizona; engaged in what I think was a racist dialogue to try to frighten Latinos away from the Republican Party; stood next to the president of Mexico and said, "Borders don't matter because we have strong bonds"; had the President of Mexico get a standing ovation from Democrats for attacking an American state, and has his own State Department apologize to the Chinese for the Arizona law.
- On the Record, Fox News, 26 May 2010
- "Gingrich: Obama "engaged" in "racist dialogue to try to frighten Latinos away from the Republican Party"", Media Matters for America, 26 May 2010, retrieved on 2011-03-30
- What if [Obama] is so outside our comprehension, that only if you understand Kenyan, anti-colonial behavior, can you begin to piece together [his actions]? That is the most accurate, predictive model for his behavior.
- I think he worked very hard at being a person who is normal, reasonable, moderate, bipartisan, transparent, accommodating — none of which was true. In the Alinksy tradition, he was being the person he needed to be in order to achieve the position he needed to achieve … He was authentically dishonest.
- Greta Van Susteren: What would you do about Libya?
- Gingrich: Exercise a no-fly zone this evening, communicate to the Libyan military that Gaddafi was gone and that the sooner they switch sides, the more likely they were to survive, provided help to the rebels to replace him. I mean, the idea that we're confused about a man who has been an anti-American dictator since 1969 just tells you how inept this administration is. They were very quick to jump on Mubarak, who was their ally for 30 years, and they were confused about getting rid of Gaddafi. This is a moment to get rid of him. Do it. Get it over with.
- On the Record, Fox News, 7 March 2011
- I'm opposed to giving people money for doing nothing.
- "Newt Gingrich, serious this time, mulls a bid for president", Los Angeles Times, 19 December 2010, ISSN 0458-3035, retrieved on 2011-03-30
- on unemployment benefits
- There's no question that at times of my life, partially driven by how passionately I felt about this country, that I worked far too hard and things happened in my life that were not appropriate. And what I can tell you is that when I did things that were wrong, I wasn't trapped in situation ethics, I was doing things that were wrong, and yet, I was doing them. I found that I felt compelled to seek God's forgiveness. Not God's understanding, but God's forgiveness. I do believe in a forgiving God. And I think most people, deep down in their hearts hope there's a forgiving God. Somebody once said that when we're young, we seek justice, but as we get older, we seek mercy.
- 2011-03-09 interview with David Brody of the Christian Broadcasting Network, quoted in Kleefeld, Eric (9 March 2011), "Gingrich: Past Adultery 'Partially Driven By How Passionately I Felt About This Country' (Video)", Talking Points Memo, retrieved on 2011-03-31
- Matt Lauer: Do you think Muammar Gaddafi has to go as a result of this military intervention?
- Gingrich: I think that now — let me draw a distinction. I would not have intervened. I think there were a lot of other ways to affect Gaddafi. I think there are a lot of allies in the region that we could have worked with. I would not have used American and European forces, bombing Arab and that country.
- Today Show, NBC, 23 March 2011
- I have two grandchildren: Maggie is 11; Robert is 9. I am convinced that if we do not decisively win the struggle over the nature of America, by the time they're my age they will be in a secular atheist country, potentially one dominated by radical Islamists and with no understanding of what it once meant to be an American.
- 2011-03-27, quoted in Marr, Kendra (27 March 2011), "Newt Gingrich talks faith — not affairs — at Cornerstone Church in Texas", Politico, retrieved on 2011-03-30
- Give the park police more ammo.
- Wright, James D.; Donley, Amy M. (2011-03-31). Poor and Homeless in the Sunshine State: Down and Out in Theme Park Nation. New Brunswich: Transaction Publishers. p. 290. ISBN 9781412842211.
- asked what should be done about homelessness
- You want to be a country that creates food stamps? In which case, frankly, Obama is an enormous success — the most successful food stamp president in American history. Or do you want to be a country that creates jobs?
- 2011-05-13 speech to Georgia Republican convention, quoted in Meet the Press, NBC, 15 May 2011, retrieved on 2011-05-19
- I don't think right-wing social engineering is any more desirable than left-wing social engineering. I don't think imposing radical change from the right or the left is a very good way for a free society to operate. I think we need a national conversation to get to a better Medicare system with more choices for seniors.
- 2011-05-15 interview on Meet the Press, NBC, 15 May 2011, quoted in Gingrich Calls GOP Budget 'Right Wing Social Engineering', PBS, 16 May 2011, retrieved on 2011-05-28
- I want to make sure every House Republican is protected from some kind of dishonest Democratic ad. So let me say on the record, any ad which quotes what I said on Sunday is a falsehood. Because I have said publicly those words were inaccurate and unfortunate and I'm prepared to stand up and — When I make a mistake — and I'm going to on occasion — I want to share with the American people "that was a mistake" because that way we can have an honest conversation.
- On the Record with Greta Van Susteren, Fox News, 17 May 2011, quoted in Hall, Colby (18 May 2011), "Newt Gingrich: ‘Any Ad Which Quotes What I Said On Sunday Is A Falsehood’", Mediaite, retrieved on 2011-05-19
- Really poor children in really poor neighborhoods have no habits of working and nobody around them who works. So they literally have no habit of showing up on Monday. They have no habit of staying all day. They have no habit of "I do this and you give me cash", unless it's illegal.
- I believe the kids could mop the floor and clean up the bathroom and get paid for it and it would be OK.
- Iowa fundraiser dinner, quoted in West, Paul (1 December 2011), "Newt Gingrich expands on his support for child labor", Los Angeles Times
- suggesting poor children be given paid jobs in the schools they attend
- But I think all of us would also agree that there's a very central part of your faith in how you approach public life. And I, frankly, would be really worried if somebody assured me that nothing in their faith would affect their judgments, because then I'd wonder, where's your judgment — how can you have judgment if you have no faith? And how can I trust you with power if you don't pray? Who you pray to, how you pray, how you come close to God is between you and God. But the notion that you're endowed by your creator sets a certain boundary on what we mean by America.
- Republican debate 2011-10-18
- Remember, there was no Palestine as a state. It was part of the Ottoman Empire. I think that we've had an invented Palestinian people who are in fact Arabs and who were historically part of the Arab community.
About Newt Gingrich
- Yes, it takes a brave man to randomly accuse someone of something horrible based on no evidence and then demand they refute the evidence you don't have. So tonight, I am accusing Newt Gingrich of being a baby-eating werewolf. There it is. It's out there now. Do I have evidence? No. But someone has to stand up to him. Where do I find the courage?
- Stephen Colbert, The Colbert Report, Comedy Central, 9 August 2012
- regarding Gingrich telling Wolf Blitzer on The Situation Room (2012-08-08), "First of all, behind McCarthyism, there were real spies. People tend to forget this... But there were a lot of guilty people who would never have been uncovered if some people didn't have the courage to take them on."
- "He's a stupid man's idea of what a smart person sounds like"
- Krugman, Paul (20 November 2011), This Week with Christiane Amanpour, ABC News
- Krugman attributed an nearly identical quote to Ezra Klein regarding Dick Armey in "Delusions of Mobility", The New York Times, 18 November 2011. Similar statements have been made about others as far back as Elizabeth Bowen writing of Aldous Huxley in the Spectator, 1936-12-11, "He is at once the truly clever person and the stupid person's idea of the clever person."
- (Gingrich is) clearly in the last throes of his political career. You can make a decision whether to go out with some shred of dignity or say these irresponsible reckless things, and he's clearly chosen the latter."
- Plouffe, David (25 March 2011), Obama aide: GOP comments on shooting 'reprehensible', USA Today
External links
- Newt.org, the official home page of Gingrich
- Transforming the State Department
- Newt Gingrich: Defeat of Terror, not Roadmap Diplomacy, Will Bring Peace, Middle East Quarterly