Gingrich: Being Speaker Was Too Stressful, So I Should Be President

Former and failed Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, forced to resign after his policies led to a major 1998 Democratic overthrow of the House, now attempting a 2012 presidential run, has now explained his previous multiple affairs and his previous two marriages  — he’s now on his third — on the stress of the job and his “passion” for the country.

“There’s no question 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,” said the self-proclaimed repentant Roman Catholic convert in a recent interview with CBN.

Speaking last month in front of an audience of mostly college students, Gingrich said, “There’s no question 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.”

Journalist and former Bush speechwriter David Frum yesterday tried to examine “Newt’s Family Values Problem,” writing, “It’s not the infidelity. It’s the arrogance, hypocrisy, and – most horrifying to women voters – the cruelty.”

“Anyone can dump one sick wife. Gingrich dumped two.”

Frum points to Peter Wehner’s piece, “On Infidelity and Presidents,” quoting Wehner:

“Many of the rest of us are on a continuum when it comes to deciding how much infidelity should matter in the selection of a president. Facts and circumstances are crucial. Was the infidelity an isolated instance or a chronic pattern? (chronic pattern) Were the transgressions long ago or recent? (His third and so far last marriage was in 2000) What levels of deception and cover-up were involved? (Extensive deception and cover up) What was the position of authority the person held when the infidelity occurred? (Speaker of the House, had an affair with a House of Representatives staffer — whom he later married — while prosecuting the impeachment of the president for infidelity) Was there an alarming degree of recklessness on display? (Reportedly had sexual relations with a woman not his wife in a car mere feet away from his young children) What evidence is there that this person has changed his ways? (He made a movie about the Pope) Has this person shown other worrisome signs when it comes to character and trustworthiness? (Absolutely, including this quote: “It doesn’t matter what I do,” he answered. “People need to hear what I have to say. There’s no one else who can say what I can say. It doesn’t matter what I live.”)”

(Phrases in bold are mine.)

One would hope that a President Gingrich would have even more passion for the country than a Speaker Gingrich, and if his passion for the country was the reason “things happened in my life that were not appropriate,” it’s time now to close up the presidential exploratory committee.

America does not want or need an anti-gay serial adulterer who claims to have “God’s forgiveness.”