Gingrich is just about the perfect choice for Romney. He's got federal leadership experience, so Romney could still claim he is an outsider, but has someone with Congressional experience to help him out. Gingrich might appeal in the South where Romney is going to have some issues (though so will Obama, obviously). Gingrich's strength as an intellectual "idea man" could still hold true as VP, but his adultery scandal would be much less relevant as VP nom.
I think being a kingmaker is about the best Gingrich could hope for. I'm assuming the race ultimately boils down to a Romney-Palin showdown and Gingrich could help where Romney is weak (the South). A well timed Gingrich endorsement could wipe Palin out and give Romney the edge.
Romney stands for the nomination on his own merits, record, accomplishments, experience, intellectual status, and business savvy, whereas the reason, and the only reason that anybody is even discussing Palin as a potential candidate is, obviously, because she was plucked out of obscurity by a desperate Presidential nominee who believed that bringing her onto the ticket would energize the party because of her youth and attractiveness. McCain failed to recognize that Palin was in fact a lightweight airhead far out of her league and far out of her capabilities as a national candidate.
McCain tried desperately to pass Palin off as an energy expert , totally laughable, and as a maverick who would shake up Washington, whereas in reality she turned out to be not much more than the brunt of jokes, lampooned by late night comedy shows, and the pathetic subject of internet
stories, some true, some not.
McCain proved a failure as a nominee for President by miserably failing his first major test as the nominee, that being to pick a credible, viable, capable, knowledgeable, and competent Vice Presidential candidate.
What do you know? Palin is a virtual expert on energy. Have you read her book? Heard her speak on the issue? That's by far her strongest suit.
She'd only be the brunt of jokes because liberals HATE conservative women because it shreds the image they promote of the Republican party as a "white man" party.
As for weakening the McCain ticket, just the opposite. McCain only did as good as he did because of her. You think conservatives would have voted McCain/Lieberman? Hell to the no.
