Once every generation or so, there comes a man whose ideas are so big that his head must grow to accomodate them.
This generation, that man is Gingrich—Newton Leroy Gingrich.
When he first began to explore his options last May, Gingrich wasn't credited with much of a chance to become president; but by the end of the year, it was very hard to imagine him not being the GOP nominee.
The former housing historian's relentless attacks on the media, coupled with his plans to colonize the moon, sanitize elementary school bathrooms, and debate President Obama for 21 hours had propelled him to the top of the pack.
When the voting started, Gingrich's odds quickly began to diminish, but his resolve to stay in the race all the way to Tampa remained... until this week.
On Wednesday, team Gingrich announced that the candidate would suspend his campaign on May 1, and Thursday night he lost his Secret Service protection.
Now he's back to being at the mercy of zoo animals.
Morning lineup:
Meet the Press: Obama Campaign Strategist Robert Gibbs; Romney Campaign Strategist Ed Gillespie; Roundtable: Democratic Strategist Hilary Rosen, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Rachel Maddow (MSNBC) and Republican Strategist Alex Castellanos.
Face the Nation: Former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour (R); Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D); California Gov. Jerry Brown (D); Roundtable: Graham Allison (TIME), Author Peter Bergen, David Ignatius (Washington Post) and John Miller (CBS News).
This Week: White House Counterterrorism Adviser John Brennan; Roundtable: Former CEO of Hewlett Packard Carly Fiorina, Former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D), Paul Krugman (New York Times), Executive Chairman of Google Eric Schmidt, Former Comptroller General David Walker and George Will (Washington Post).
Fox News Sunday: White House Counterterrorism Adviser John Brennan; Pastors Joel and Victoria Osteen; Roundtable: Brit Hume (Fox News), Liz Marlantes (Christian Science Monitor), Kimberly Strassel (Wall Street Journal) and Charles Lane (Washington Post).
State of the Union: House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH); White House Counterterrorism Adviser John Brennan; Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer (D); Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R); Michael Duffy (TIME); Nancy Gibbs (TIME); Reliable Sources: Mark Jurkowitz (Project for Excellence in Journalism); Rachel Sklar (Change the Ratio); David Frum (Newsweek/Daily Beast); Anna Holmes (Jezebel.com); Maureen Ryan (Huffington Post); Author Clay Johnson.
The Chris Matthews Show: Helene Cooper (New York Times); David Ignatius (Washington Post); Rick Stengel (TIME); Katty Kay (BBC).
Fareed Zakaria GPS: Evan Osnos (The New Yorker); Former Pakistani Ambassador to the US Husain Haqqani; Former National Security Adviser Brent Scowcroft; Author Charles Duhigg.
Up with Chris Hayes: Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY); President of the American Federation of Teachers Randi Weingarten; Bill Fletcher (Center for Labor Renewal); Marina Sitrin (Occupy Wall Street Legal Working Group); Author Daron Acemoglu.
Evening lineup:
60 Minutes will feature: an interview with Jose Rodriguez, the former head of the CIA's Clandestine Service, about "enhanced interrogation techniques" (preview); and, an interview with the head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse about why it's not so easy to just say no to drugs or food (preview).
Virtually Speaking Sundays on Blog Talk Radio will feature: Marcy Wheeler and Culture of Truth discussing the corporate media's Sunday morning talk shows and their own observations from the past week.
On Comedy Central...
Jon Stewart used the process of self-elimination to figure out who Mitt Romney's running mate will be.
The Daily Show
Monday: Gay Rights Activist/AuthorZach Wahls
Tuesday: Evangelical Christian Minister/Author David Barton
Wednesday: Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK)
Thursday: Author/Journalist Peter Bergen
And Stephen Colbert joined Fox News and the RNC in being outraged about President Obama slow jamming the news with Jimmy Fallon.
The Colbert Report
Monday: Actress Diane Keaton
Tuesday: Author Carne Ross
Wednesday: Author Jonathan Haidt
Thursday: Actress/Writer/Director Lena Dunham
Elsewhere...
Mitt Romney's national security surrogates used a media conference call to warn that President Obama will lose the Cold War.
Romney and his surrogates have revealed an ongoing Cold War fixation. Former Reagan Navy Secretary John Lehman and former Bush administration Ambassador Pierre Prosper, on Thursday derailed Romney messaging in a conference call with reporters by raising the specter of the "Soviet Union" and slamming Obama for not protecting Czechoslovakia — a country that was peacefully dissolved in 1993 and now exists as the Czech Republic and Slovakia. [...]
One of the worst examples, according to Lehman, is happening at the top of the world.
"We're seeing the Soviets pushing into the Arctic with no response from us. In fact, the only response is to announce the early retirement of the last remaining icebreaker."
Prosper warned Obama was abandoning America’s eastern European allies — some of which haven’t existed for decades.
Meanwhile...
Romney tried to improve his patrician image by urging college students to take out low-interest loans from their parents.
Mitt Romney has some simple advice for students who want to start their own business: Just borrow money from your parents.
The presumptive Republican presidential nominee made the suggestion Friday during a pit stop at Otterbein University in Ohio. [...]
"We've always encouraged young people: Take a shot, go for it. Take a risk, get the education, borrow money if you have to from your parents, start a business," said Romney, whose wealth is estimated upwards of $250 million.
And those aren't the only quotes that could come back to haunt Mitt...
His new national security and foreign policy spokesman spent last weekend deleting hundreds of misogynistic tweets.
Richard Grenell, a former Bush administration official who joined the Romney campaign Thursday as national security and foreign policy spokesman, appears to have deleted more than 800 of his past tweets following scrutiny over numerous swipes aimed at the media, prominent Democratic women and the Gingriches. Grenell also apparently took down his personal site, which featured writing on politics, foreign affairs and the media. [...]
ThinkProgress noted Grenell's tendency to make cutting remarks about the appearances of prominent women in media and politics, including his tweet advising MSNBC host Rachel Maddow "to take a breath and put on a necklace," and another suggesting she resembled Justin Bieber.
In another tweet, Grenell wrote that "Hillary is starting to look liek Madeline [sic] Albright." He discussed First Lady Michelle Obama working out and "sweating on the East Room carpet." He also asked whether Callista Gingrich's "hair snaps on," and on another occasion, commented how Gingrich's third wife "stands there like she is wife #1." Politico flagged more examples and noted Grenell's "old pastime" of "ridiculing the Gingriches."
The internet never forgets.
- Trix