MANCHESTER, N.H. – Republican presidential contender Newt Gingrich on Wednesday sought to dispel the growing perception that his candidacy has already peaked, going after Granite State front-runner Mitt Romney in Romney’s political backyard.
Rolling out the endorsement of New Hampshire House Speaker William O’Brien, Gingrich conceded that his standing has diminished somewhat but attributed his recent decline to a wave of negative advertising from outside groups backing Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts.
“The last three national surveys show me tied with Romney,” he defiantly told reporters. “You can’t have 7 or 8 or 9 million dollars of falsehoods thrown at you without any impact.”
Gingrich and the New Hampshire front-runner engaged in a turf war Wednesday, with Romney saying, “If you can’t stand the heat in this little kitchen, wait until the Obama Hell’s Kitchen turns up the heat.”
The former House Speaker countered by calling on Romney to denounce anti-Gingrich ads being run by a political action committee that backs Romney. And Gingrich, despite vowing to run a positive campaign just moments earlier, ripped into the candidate who maintains a double-digit lead over his nearest rivals in New Hampshire.
“I don’t think he can say enough positive things to win,” Gingrich said, challenging Romney to a debate in Iowa next week, just days before the Hawkeye State votes on Jan. 3. “Ask Gov. Romney if he’d like to play in the kitchen. I don’t think so.”
Gingrich asked how many in the crowd gathered in a downtown Manchester hotel were “refugees from Massachusetts” and suggested hosting a “Massachusetts-reminder rally” prior to New Hampshire’s Jan. 10 primary in a not-so-veiled jab at Romney.
Gingrich’s plea for a civil campaign is also shaped by his campaign’s bottom line. He simply doesn’t have the financial means to contest the ads.
The debate challenge issued to Romney — and President Obama repeatedly on Wednesday — highlights why Gingrich has surged to the top of polls nationally. His ascent has coincided with a series of strong debate performances in which he has acted as the party’s elder statesman, forcefully challenging Obama.
Yet, Gingrich also worries establishment Republicans who question whether he has the temperament and self-control to win the White House. Gingrich has dropped as low as fourth place in Iowa polling and third in New Hampshire at a time when candidates are essentially making the closing arguments to voters.
Still, some New Hampshire voters said they preferred Gingrich, saying he wouldn’t wilt under pressure from a well-funded incumbent president.
“This country isn’t looking to elect a Boy Scout to the White House,” said Tom Banks, a construction worker from nearby Freedom. “I don’t think people are sold on Romney and I think Gingrich is more capable of taking them on and getting things done.”
The current state of the Gingrich campaign, however, worried even New Hampshire elected officials who showed up on a dreary day to support Gingrich.
“Quite honestly, I don’t know; he may have seen his best days,” said state Rep. Duane Erickson, a Republican from Nashua. “That’s a really great question.”
