Newt Gingrich gives esoteric civics lesson

Adeimantus

Have you always wanted to know what your first job as an American is? Your high school civics class may not have covered this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0Fho...layer_embedded

Is this a new role for Newt?

Cyrus

Newt is a pompus bozo (and that comes from me!). This video is disturbing because at one time this guy was speaker of the house!

LowlyPion

Looks like the same old Newt to me. Praying for votes? He was in the right venue anyway.

Though these days he needs to ask for people to overlook his baggage train trailing from behind him. For someone that has himself lived less than an exemplary life perhaps if he had embraced what he is so eager to now lecture on - ethics - he could be taken more seriously?

russ_watters

If we could only separate him from his religion (frankly, I don't remember him being that overt about it when he was Speaker) and ego, he'd be regarded as one of the best House speakers we've ever had and a high-end conservative strategist/theorist. Unfortunately, these things make him harder to stomach.

Ivan Seeking

He is a right-wing nut who went right over a cliff with Limbaugh et al in calling Sotomayor a racist - that is called "bearing false witness" in religious circles, which also makes him a hypocrite. The only reason he recanted his statement is that even the Republicans objected! He was forced to resign his position as Speaker due to "unethical practices". He also stands as a great example of why the Republicans have failed miserably.

The best speaker of the House in recent years was Tip O'Neill. Why? Because he was truly bipartisan and worked closely with Reagan. He was more interested in helping the country than being a mouthpiece for ideologues.

Gokul43201

Not from everything I've heard about him (O'Neill), but then, my 'everything' isn't a whole lot.

Ivan Seeking

At that time I was a die-hard Reagan fan. So while I probably disagreed with Tip about many or most things - no doubt he ticked me off frequently - it was also the last time we saw "civil" politics in this country. I remember that even then I held him in high regard. Back then, being on different sides of the political arena did not autmatically make THEM the bad guys [or racists].

He and Reagan were close friends.

From my point of view, Gingrich was the first of the neo-cons to come into power. Everything went to hell from there.

swat4life

Why is there so much bias against republicans here? I'm just trying to understand it. Now I haven't even looked at the vid because I know I'd probably agree with what is said about Newt.

But I just think it can get a bit dangerous to allow such strong opinions to color everything one sees in politics - it means that the politicians one agrees with can often get away with shady you know what.....

EDIT:
I want to give an example. I often watch the Rachel Maddow show on MS/NBC. A couple of days ago, she was talking about how Newt had "changed his mind" about the strong comment he made about Sotomayor. Well she gave it a negative slant. She quoted something he said (ironically I had cut and paste the same quote in a previous thread here....). Only she ended up doing THE SAME THING the republicans did with Sotomayor's speech - take it out of context. I knew from having read the CNN story (once again someone here had posted it....thanks again) that what she had quoted was taken out of context.

I turned to my mother who I had been watching the story with at the time and said, "DID YOU SEE THAT?! That was totally a FOX NEWS MOVE!!" (NB:yes I am biased against Fox).

The point is, this sort of thing happens all the time. It's easy to let false/misinformation slip by when one is very attached emotionally to a certain perspective. Of course I am one to talk because I often blow my top. But still - isn't that the standard that those of us who really, truly value the objectivity that science strives for...want to reach?

Of course we aren't vulcans but you get my point....

sorry if this is a bit off topic.....

Ivan Seeking

See the last eight years.

Are you kidding? I used to be a Republican and even I can't stand them any more. They allowed a President to run amok and they have betrayed every core American value. If you really have to ask the question, then I have to wonder what planet you've been on. Many of us would like to see Bush and his pals prosecuted for war crimes.

That they would put up Sarah Palin as VP shows that they have hit the bottom of the barrel. The fact that we see a struggle for power between moderate Republicans, and the nuts, shows that even respectable Republicans like Powell have a problem with Republicans.

I am now an Independent.

Al68

Didn't she brag publicly about being a racist?Back then we had less people on internet forums spewing hatred with nonsensical unsubstantiated claims, using absurdities as givens in every statement.

swat4life

Um, the last time I checked - I was on the 3rd rock. But that's just me. For your information, I was a democrat for the last THREE elections.

However, when last I checked, this was no dictatorial democracy. There were plenty of democrats that went along with Bush and THAT IS WHY I AM AN INDEPENDENT NOW.

I don't think my point should be obfuscated. It's easy to attach labels and get emotionally involved with things then lose sight of what's really going on.

The fact of the matter is that there were democrats who sided with Bush (or helped to vote him into office) and they are just as much "to blame" as the Republicans. Failure to critically assess or question them is just as dangerous as what happened under the previous administration.

Perhaps I am idealistic in taking to heart as much the scientists' code "question everything" - because this means both the things we agree with and DON'T agree with....

swat4life

You're being silly here - really....

Al68

This is a good point. People obviously don't notice bias in their favor. There are many that don't notice any bias in ABC, CBS, NBC, etc, just because the bias is in the underlying assumptions, assumptions that they take for granted, and look over the fact that the biased assumptions are made despite the fact that they are not only in dispute, but provably false.

swat4life

Besides the fact that you are seriously nullifying the point I was trying to make to Ivan about being open-minded towards the "other side" being proven naive by this sordid comment that's the quintessence of an unsubstantiated statement as of late...

Ivan Seeking

I think the Democrats who turned Constitutional yellow should be tossed out on their cans as well. But the fact is that the Republicans were the ones who held power, and there was nothing the Democrats could do to stop them. What I have seen over the last eight years has not been politics. It has been a travesty that I will NEVER forget. We have engaged in the very sort of activities that once defined the enemy.

Not to mention that the core Republican economic philosophy - more deregulation is better - is what nearly destroyed the global economy.

It is time for a respectable conservative party to replace the Republicans.

Al68

That wasn't a statement at all. That was a question. I heard that she said people of one race would be better judges than people of another, but it may not be true. Looks like I will do a little research now.

swat4life

OK - well, that's settles that!

Just make sure the democrats don't end up doing what the Republicans did.....