Perry endorses Gingrich
Article added on January 19, 2012 at 19:09 Swiss time
  
Today's good news: Rick Perry is dropping out of the GOP presidential race. The not so good news: Perry endorses Gingrich.

Rick Perry had lost all his chances quite some time ago. Not only could he not count to three, more importantly, he had no clue about foreign policy and, therefore, was totally unfit to became America's next president. His last blunder were his comments about Turkey: Perry saw Turkey run by Islamic terrorists; he also questioned Turkey's status as a member of NATO.

Instead of clearing the field, Rick Perry decided to endorse Newt Gingrich, another loose cannon in the GOP field. Whether you like his ideas or not, Newt Gingrich is surely a brilliant mind. Unfortunately, Gingrich has shown poor judgment more than once.  As co-author of the famous “Contract with America”, he was a key-architect of the 1994-GOP success in the 1994 congressional election. He pushed President Clinton to the center, with positive effects for the United States economy. However, as Speaker of the House, Newt overplayed his hand, giving a second life to Bill Clinton.

As Speaker of the House, some 80 ethics charges were filed against Newt Gingrich. In 1998, Gingrich became the first speaker in history to be sanctioned for ethical wrongdoing; he was fined $300,000 by a 396 vs. 38 vote in the House of Representatives.

During the impeachment of Bill Clinton, Newt Gingrich “distinguished” himself by his monumental hypocrisy: he was having an extramarital affair himself while accusing the president of the same. Newt Gingrich's  mishandling of the unpopular impeachment led to an important Republican election loss and forced Newt not only to step down as speaker, but to leave the House altogether.

Newt Gingrich is a notable thinker and an excellent debater. A key part of his “Contract with America” was the idea of a balanced budget. But he has never held an executive office. Because of all the reasons mentioned above, Newt Gingrich is less suited than Mitt Romney to become the next U.S. president.

Perry said about Gingrich: “I believe Newt is a conservative visionary who can transform the country.” Maybe Newt should first transform himself and gain executive experience before applying for the top job.

Instead of just stepping down quietly, Perry endorses Gingrich, the wrong man. This could mean that the GOP battle will continue for a few more rounds, maybe damaging the Republican presidential candidate even more through vicious attacks. Romney is not flawless, far from that, but he is better suited for the office of the president than both Gingrich and Obama.

Gingrich books from Amazon.com - Romney books from Amazon.com