WASHINGTON — Newt Gingrich’s long political record and ties to Washington are coming back to haunt him four weeks before Iowa’s leadoff Republican presidential caucuses.
In a radio interview Tuesday, the former House speaker was pressed to explain his past support of health care mandates, his belief in human- caused climate change and his advocacy for certain government regulations — positions that irk many conservatives.
A rival for the GOP nomination, Ron Paul, is rolling out a TV ad in Iowa that uses Gingrich’s own words to accuse him of “serial hypocrisy.” Mitt Romney weighed in too, telling Fox News that Gingrich is “the right guy” if voters want someone who has been a Washington insider for 40 years.
Gingrich dismissed Paul’s ad during an evening interview on CNBC.
“He’s got to make up a lot of lost ground,” Gingrich said. “He’s got to say something.”
