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Newt Gingrich Secures Key New Hampshire Union Leader Newspaper Endorsement

by Tommy Christopher | 2:28 pm, November 27th, 2011

» 14 comments

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, the latest in a string of non-Romneys to seize the lead in Republican primary polls, has secured the endorsement of The Manchester Union Leader, the key conservative newspaper in New Hampshire. Although the endorsement itself is about as ringing as an underwater bell, it’s sure to kick off the week with some game-changing media buzz about Gingrich’s shot at the Republican nomination.

The Union Leader endorsement, with the Yoda-esque title “For President, Newt Gingrich” (begun, this Gingrich candidacy has…), reaches back to the Spice Girls‘ heyday for Newt’s accomplishments, and concludes with a paragraph that glows like the interior of a Saw movie set:

Newt Gingrich is by no means the perfect candidate. But Republican primary voters too often make the mistake of preferring an unattainable ideal to the best candidate who is actually running. In this incredibly important election, that candidate is Newt Gingrich. He has the experience, the leadership qualities and the vision to lead this country in these trying times. He is worthy of your support on January 10.

Even so, expect the political media to read a lot into this endorsement, and not just because we’re coming out of a holiday weekend, or because the liberal media wants an easier opponent for Barack Obama. The Union Leader endorsement fits nicely into the past-is-present narrative that self-fulfilling candidacies are made of.

Currently, Mitt Romney holds a commanding lead over the surging Gingrich in New Hampshire, at about 36% to 18%. At this same time in 2007, Mitt Romney led eventual nominee John McCain by an even wider 34%-13% margin. Then, McCain got the Union Leader endorsement, and went on to beat Romney in the New Hampshire primary by five percentage points, after losing Iowa to non-factor Mike Huckabee. The rest, as they say, is history.

Things are quite a bit different now than they were in 2007, but this kind of strong narrative-building can take on momentum of its own, and with mere weeks to go before voting begins, Gingrich might be able to avoid the kinds of implosions that have decimated his predecessors in this Republican field. On the other hand, six weeks is an eternity in 2011 time, and might allow on-deck hitter Jon Huntsman to capitalize on his all-out focus on New Hampshire.

In any case, the Union Leader endorsement will certainly make the media take Gingrich’s candidacy, once left for dead, much more seriously than it has.

2012 president, barack obama, John McCain, Mitt Romney, newt gingrich, The Manchester Union Leader, Union Leader

S R Karenova

Big boon for Gingrich. WhichMitt Romney is going to learn the hard way that not having any political core hurts you in politics. Gingrich is certainly flawed, but he presents a clear conservative voice; he’s not just a salesman trying to win votes.
Jay

“Endorsing the arrogant warmongering neocon Newt Gingrich is perfectly consistent for the Manchester Union-Leader, the biggest embarrassment of the Granite State. Read Kevin Cash’s ‘Who the Hell Is William Loeb?’ Manchester, NH: Amoskeag Press, for the disgraceful decades’ long background of the Manchester Union-Leader under the vicious publisher William Loeb.

“No one will forget his scurrilous front page editorials, ‘Kissinger the Kike,’ attacking Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, or ‘Jerry the Jerk,’ slandering President Gerald Ford. The paper hasn’t changed its tabloid attack journalism under publisher Joseph McQuaid. Newt will fit in perfectly with this crew of Muslim-hating, un-American fascists (and I don’t throw out that term carelessly).” (Source: Charles Burris, LRCblog)
Anonymous

They also endorsed Pat Buchanan twice. So much for their endorsement.
Kid Dynamite

A real journalist would point out how worthless a M U-L endorsement is.

When will Mediaite hire a real journalist?
Anonymous

Newt Gingrich as GOP nominee = 4 more years of Obama.
Anonymous

Let me be the first to call the New Hampshire Union Leader a RINO.
Anonymous

Why is that I think Insane Clown Posse when I see the Republican Party lineup of candidates running for President?

The whole lineup is either nuts, immoral, or stupid. With the exception of Jon Huntsman who does not have a snowballs chance in hell of winning the nomination.
Anonymous

Huntsman – bwahahahaha. You lefties are persistent, I’ll say that much for you.
http://genelalor.com Gene Lalor

Newt
Former Republican Speaker of the House Newton Leroy Gingrich lugs around almost as much baggage as a former candidate for the presidency lugged around before he won that office in 1992.
The chief difference between Gingrich and William Jefferson Blythe Clinton is that the former’s dirty linens will probably deny him the Republican nomination in 2012 and the latter’s less-fastidious Democrats elected him twice.
Both developments are damned shames.
Despite Democrat claims to be the Party of the People, which may have been true when they were led by FDR and the people were desperate and later involved in a war FDR manipulated, since at least 1964 the GOP has better reflected the dominant sentiment of Americans in all matters save failed social experiments.
Over the years, muddled-thinking wags have suggested that the best of all political worlds would see a Democrat in charge of domestic policy and a Republican conducting foreign affairs. Aside from the unconstitutionality of such a scenario, the country would be bankrupted by Democrats and so destitute we would be unable to function beyond our borders.
However, none of that speculation is relevant to a Newt Gingrich presidency since Republicans are more inclined to lose than to hold their noses and vote for a guy who isn’t perfect.
Newt is anything but perfect from a conservative point of view or from any other point of view, although he is nowhere near the insensitive ogre, the grinch the mainstream media has painted him . . .(Read more at http://www.genelalor.com/blog1/?p=7138,)
Anonymous

Most liberals and independents genuinely want there to be a viable two party system. But if one party is only running right wing fringe candidates, that leaves only one viable party.
Anonymous

Is this supposed to be newsworthy?
Anonymous

Jawohl! Wiederbetaetigung!
Anonymous

Tommy is a commentator. He gave up being a journalist A LONG TIME AGO!
Anonymous

The best quote of the day doesn’t belong to Gingrich, but to John Huntsman: In New Hampshire today, John Huntsman said that the
latest “bimbo eruptions” surrounding rival Herman Cain have damaged the quality
of the GOP race for the White House. What a choice of wording! “We’ve got real issues to talk about not the latest bimbo
eruption,” Huntsman said. My question is: What quality?