DOVER, Del. – Newt Gingrich said on Thursday he would “probably not” accept a Cabinet position under a Mitt Romney administration but would be happy to advise the former Massachusetts governor on policy.
Asked the question in an interview with local radio station WILM at the Hollywood Diner, Gingrich, one of three contenders left in the race for the GOP presidential nomination, said he wouldn’t be interested in joining likely nominee Romney’s Cabinet, but added—“not because I am opposed to Mitt.”
“Look, if the choice does end up being Romney versus [President] Obama, I can be very, very enthusiastic for Romney; that is a huge choice,” the former House speaker said. “But I had a very good life doing a lot of fun things: I’m a grandfather, I’ve got two grandchildren I want to spend time with, Callista has got me into being a really bad golfer. I would like to move up from bad to mediocre.”
That doesn’t mean Gingrich wants to disappear completely. He said he would be “very happy to be an adviser. I did a lot of that in the Bush administration, both on health care and national security, and I put in thousands of hours just offering strategic advice and looking at specific programs.”
Gingrich said in light of a “disappointing and frustrating” finish in the Southern states where he had hoped to revive his flagging campaign, he’s banking on states like Delaware and North Carolina to hoist him into the position of conservative alternative to the more moderate Romney, a slot left vacant by Rick Santorum’s recent exit from the race.
“I think now that they’re down to two of us. I think you’re gonna see a lot more clear communication,” Gingrich said. “I’d like to give people the chance to see these are the two major alternatives to Obama and which one is the better alternative and which one, forgetting Obama for a second, which one would be better for America’s future.”
Want to stay ahead of the curve? Sign up for National Journal’s AM & PM Must Reads. News and analysis to ensure you don’t miss a thing.
Leave A Comment