Gingrich: 'I Am as Good a Businessman as Mitt Romney'

Updated: December 8, 2011 | 6:44 a.m.
December 7, 2011 | 5:46 p.m.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, left, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney share a laugh during a break in the first New Hampshire Republican presidential debate at St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., Monday, June 13, 2011. (AP Photo/Jim Cole) (AP Photo/Jim Cole)

Far from running from the charge that he profited in Washington after leaving Congress more than a decade ago, Newt Gingrich on Wednesday took pride in the fact his varied business enterprises have netted as much as $100 million.

“I am as good a businessman as Mitt Romney,” Gingrich said during an interview with Wolf Blitzer on CNN. “I work very hard. We have good companies.”

Gingrich’s comment is a subtle rebuttal not only to charges he was just a mercenary to the highest bidder, but to the criticism from Romney that he lacks experience in the private sector.

The former House speaker, whose array of former businesses have been dubbed “Newt Inc.,” has argued that much of the money came from his numerous best-selling books as well as movies and speaking fees.

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