Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has made no secret of his interest in a 2012 presidential bid, but now he seems to be edging closer to making it official.
The Atlanta Journal Constitution is reporting that Gingrich has made a pilgrimage to his home state in hopes of locking up support from Georgia's big-name politicians, and that he's shopping for campaign office space in the city's upscale Buckhead neighborhood.
Gingrich represented a suburban Atlanta district for 20 years, but more recently has been living in Virginia. Not all of the Peach State's politicos are ready to clamber aboard the Gingrich bandwagon, writes the AJC's Jim Galloway.
Take, for instance, Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., who served with Gingrich in the House. Galloway quotes him as saying: "Newt is my friend. He's been a mentor, in some respects . . . but it's a different world right now, and we've got to be sure that whoever the nominee is, that he can win in November."
Chambliss goes on to say that Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., has also talked to him about running for president. "I'm doing to keep my powder dry," Chambliss tells Galloway.
Gingrich spokesman Rick Tyler says the former congressman plans a decision about creating an exploratory committee next month and one about entering the race in March, Galloway reports.
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