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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: JDN who wrote (168704)	6/6/2006 12:38:03 PM
From: Neeka	Respond to of 793838

Former House Speaker Gingrich top vote-getter in Minnesota GOP straw poll Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who engineered the Republican takeover of Congress a dozen years ago, got a boost tonight from Minnesota conservatives who want him to run for president in 2008. Gingrich was the top vote-getter in a straw poll of G-O-P activists at the state party convention. But the vote is at best a limited reflection of Republican sentiment in the state -- the ranks of the 12-hundred-plus delegates had thinned down considerably by the time the poll was taken, and 540 valid votes were cast. That was about ten hours into the second day of the convention, hours after the day's marquee event -- the endorsement of Governor Pawlenty. Gingrich got 210 votes in the straw poll, or almost 39 percent. That's more than twice as many as Senator George Allen of Virginia, who came in second. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was third, followed by Arizona Senator John McCain, Florida Governor Jeb Bush and Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. kare11.com

To: JDN who wrote (168704)	6/6/2006 12:40:04 PM
From: Neeka	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793838

Gingrich is delegates favorite of 2008 presidential race McCain and Giuliani seen as too moderate in straw poll. Dane Smith, Star Tribune Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was the easy winner of a straw poll Friday night that tested 2008 presidential candidate support at the Minnesota Republican Party state convention. Gingrich got about 40 percent of the 540 votes cast, putting him far ahead of Virginia's Sen. George Allen, who got about 15 percent. Next were Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Arizona Sen. John McCain, each with about 10 percent. "This shows activists think that Gingrich has the cachet to help set and drive the conservative agenda, just as he did when he led the Republican takeover of the House in 1994," said Tony Sutton, a Gingrich supporter and secretary-treasurer of the party. "He and Ronald Reagan were the two most important conservatives in the last 30 years." The results also confirm once again that party activists are considerably more conservative than Republican voters and the public in general. McCain and New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, who are considered moderates, typically lead in public opinion polls. Delegates received a two-page letter warning that McCain is widely viewed as the front-runner, creating "a significant risk that a moderate candidate will get the Republican nomination in 2008." The letter was signed by some of the state party's most influential leaders, including National Committeeman Brian Sullivan, former chairman Chris Georgacas, former National Committee member Jack Meeks, and Mike Wigley, a founder of the Taxpayers League of Minnesota. While both McCain and Giuliani have been "steadfast supporters of the war on terror," the letter said, "between them they have supported tax hikes, free speech restrictions, amnesty for illegal immigrants, gay marriage and abortion." While "some say that Speaker Gingrich has too much baggage," he has national stature and "no one can articulate a Republican vision for America better," the letter said. Gingrich has some personal ties to Minnesota Republicans. He was a close ally of former Congressman Vin Weber in the early 1980s, and Annette Meeks, Jack Meeks' wife and a former top officer of the Center of the American Experiment, a conservative think-tank in Minneapolis, was deputy chief of staff for Gingrich when he was speaker Although Gov. Tim Pawlenty and U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman have both been mentioned as possible presidential or vice-presidential candidates, delegates were not allowed to vote for "native sons." startribune.com Dane Smith • 651-292-0164