Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney appeared on FOX News’ “Special Report” Tuesday, following a rally in Miami where three Florida lawmakers endorsed the former Massachusetts governor. Romney made several remarks about former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, signaling that the Georgia businessman has become his closest competitor for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.
Romney pointed out that Gingrich has spent the last “30 or 40 years in Washington,” and compared his career in the private sector to Gingrich’s political career, characterizing the Georgia Republican as a Washington insider. The former Massachusetts governor has focused primarily on attacking President Barack Obama throughout his campaign, but shifted his focus to Gingrich Tuesday.
“He’s a lifelong politician,” Romney said referring to Gingrich. “I think to get President Obama out of office, you’re going to have to bring something to the race that’s different than what he brings. I think you have to have the credibility of understanding how the economy works. And I do,” Romney added.
Romney, along with Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann was critical of Gingrich after last week’s CNN National Security debate where Gingrich presented an immigration reform plan that would allow illegal aliens who have resided in the U.S. for over 20 years to gain citizenship, a plan that Romney called “a form of amnesty.”
“I can’t tell you what Speaker Gingrich is saying,” Romney said, adding, “If he’s going to do what I believe he said he was going to do for those people who would be allowed to stay permanently and become citizens, that would be providing for them a form of amnesty.”
He also addressed the ads released by the Democratic National Committee and Republican candidate Jon Huntsman categorizing Romney as a “flip-flopper” on key issues including abortion, immigration and healthcare. The former Massachusetts governor said anyone questioning his stance on those issues should read his book.
Gingrich, who finished with a 23 point lead over Romney in a Insider Advantage poll of South Carolina Republicans Tuesday, was also critical of Romney when he appeared on a Fox News radio station in South Carolina during a campaign stop.
“I don’t claim to be the perfect candidate. I just claim to be a lot more conservative than Mitt Romney,” Gingrich said.
“I wouldn’t lie to the American people, I wouldn’t switch my position for political reasons,” the former Georgia lawmaker added.
When asked about Romney’s comments Wednesday characterizing him as a “lifelong politician,” Gingrich called himself a “lifelong citizen.”
