Newt’s out
Posted on September 29th, 2007 by ecthompson
I’m kind of surprised but, then again, Newt has been sniffing around the Presidential race for over 6 months. I don’t think that he ever got any significant ground swell of Republican support.
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From WaPo:
Former U.S. House speaker Newt Gingrich on Saturday decided against running for president in 2008, less than a day after the Republican indicated publicly that he would spend the next month exploring the viability of a White House bid.
Gingrich said the last-minute change of heart, which came as aides readied the NewtNow.org Web site and prepared to file campaign papers, was the result of legal advice that running for president would require stepping down as chairman of his nonprofit organization, American Solutions. (more…)
The only Speaker of the House to become President was James K. Polk of Tennessee. Polk was President from 1845-1849.
Speaker John Nance Garner of Texas was Vice President under FDR from 1933-1941. Garner was to the right of FDR and ran for President against Roosevelt in 1940. He did not get much support.
Gerald Ford was a long time House Minority Leader who very much wanted to be Speaker. Though Ford ended up with a better gig.