Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney slammed former House Speaker Newt Gingrich on Wednesday, tying the Georgia Republican to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.
Mr. Romney’s campaign released a web video on Wednesday titled “Newt and Nacy,” which focuses on the 2008 ad that Mr. Gingrich tapped with Ms. Pelosi, part of a campaign to promote former Vice President Al Gore’s climate change initiative.
“With friends like Newt, who needs The Left?” the video asks.
The ad comes as Mr. Romney, speaking in an interview with the Washington Post, slammed Mr. Gingrich’s past support for curbing global emissions and installing a cap and trade system.
“Let’s look at the record,” said Mr. Romney. “When Republicans were fighting for cap and trade and needed a leader to stand up against cap and trade, he did an ad with Nancy Pelosi about global warming.”
The Massachusetts Republican added that Mr. Gingrich is “an extraordinarily unreliable leader in the conservative world — not 16 or 17 years ago but in the last two to three years.”
“And even during the campaign, the number of times he has moved from one spot to another has been remarkable,” he noted. “I think he’s shown a level of unreliability as a conservative leader today.”
Mr. Romney, who is facing his most stringent attack of his status as the Republican front-runner, has increased his criticism of the former House speaker in recent weeks. Speaking Wednesday, Mr. Romney downplayed speculation that his bid for the 2012 nomination could face a long, drawn out affair that could persist well into mid-2012.
“Speaker Gingrich was at single digits for a long time, suddenly jumps to a lead — that doesn’t suggest a very thorough examination led to that level of support, rather an expectation of an ideal candidate, and he may or may not be able to fulfill that expectation,” said Mr. Romney.
The former Massachusetts governor also downplayed criticism that his campaign could hinder Mr. Gingrich’s chances of securing the 2012 nomination by attacking the Georgia Republican. Mr. Romney said his campaign remains committed to securing the nomination, while avoiding attack ads that could threaten the party’s chances of defeating President Obama in the 2012 general election.
“I said I was not a bomb thrower. I don’t think I would’ve said that he is a bomb thrower,” said Mr. Romney. “I don’t think I would’ve said that. What I would’ve said is that I am a person of sobriety, steadiness, patience, and act in a deliberate way to protect America’s interests and that of our allies.”
