Is Newt Gingrich’s presidential campaign finished? A reported mass exodus of senior-level aides to the Gingrich campaign is leaving many politicos wondering if the failed former Speaker of the House is a viable candidate for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.
READ: 2012: Americans More Likely To Vote For Gay Candidate Than Newt Gingrich
“Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich’s campaign manager, senior strategists and key aides in early delegate-selection states all resigned on Thursday, a mass exodus that leaves his hopes of winning the Republican nomination in tatters,” the AP just reported.
“Rick Tyler, Gingrich’s spokesman, said he, campaign manager Rob Johnson and senior strategists had resigned, along with aides in the early primary and caucus states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
“Other officials said Gingrich was informed that his entire high command was quitting in a meeting earlier in the day. They cited differences over the direction of the campaign but were not more specific.”
Politico adds, “The mass resignation was, one source said, “a team decision.â€
“We just had a different direction in which we wanted to take the campaign,†said a second source.
“One official said the last straw came when Gingrich went forward with taking a long-planned cruise with his wife last week in the Greek isles.”
Gingrich has come under attack from the moment he floated the possibility of considering a GOP run. He has flip-flopped on many critical positions, had to backtrack, restate, and appeared several times on the Sunday morning talk shows to clarify statement he made earlier in the week or even on the previous week’s shows.
Additionally, earlier today, Salon reported that a “longtime Muslim American supporter of Newt Gingrich,” told Salon he “called the presidential candidate a few months ago to object to Gingrich’s statements about Shariah law and the ‘ground zero mosque’.”
“We have a Constitution and the First Amendment. Shariah law or any other religious law is not going to take over the Constitution,” says Dr. Malik Hasan, who, along with his wife, Seeme, has donated tens of thousands of dollars to Gingrich and has hosted receptions for one of his groups, American Solutions for Winning the Future. “The sentiment is based on lack of understanding of the issues on [Gingrich’s] part. It seems like to be a contender in the Republican race you have to take these positions.”
Gingrich’s anti-gay and strongly-religious positions are seen by many Americans as extremely hypocritical given his serial adultery, and other positions that don’t portray his lifestyle.
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Gingrich suffers from many weaknesses, including the often-forgotten fact that this is his first nation-wide campaign. Given this latest development, it may very well be his last.