Romney Compares Gingrich to “I Love Lucy”

Written by - Geoff Earle
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/mitt_havin_ball_j1Dk106AkejBMYKri7vtPL

A week before the Iowa Caucus, Mitt Romney ridiculed fellow candidate Gingrich by comparing his campaign to an “I Love Lucy” episode. Gingrich’s campaign failed to get on the Virginia ballot because they could not come up with the required 10,000 valid signatures. Romney joked that the situation was comparable to an “I Love Lucy” episode where Lucy worked in a chocolate factory. She stuffed chocolates in her mouth and down her blouse in an attempt to keep up with the assembly line. Gingrich’s campaign director, Michael Krull, said that this was indeed a setback, but that the campaign would “regroup and refocus with increased determination, commitment, and positive action.”

                Mitt Romney and Ron Paul are the only candidates who qualified for the Virginia ballot. Romney didn’t stop with his “I Love Lucy” comment. He took it a step further by pointing out that Gingrich praised him five years ago for his Massachusetts health care plan, but then tried to criticize it on the campaign trail. Gingrich responded to these attacks by called Romney “Massachusetts Moderate” or “Moderate Mitt.” A spokesperson from the Gingrich camp also compared Romney to a socialist for considering consumption taxes. He said, “the fact that he’s willing to look at European socialism shows just how far out of the conservative mainstream he is.”

                Romney still remains at the front of the polls at the moment. Gingrich is not a frontrunner in the polls at this moment and he is also not on the Virginia ballot. This means trouble for his campaign. Voters may not see Gingrich as a good candidate for not being able to get on the Virginia ballot. They might wonder if this failure would ever translate into his work in office. The Gingrich campaign needs to pick up the slack if they have any of chance of seeking a win. In the political arena, this would be good news for the other candidates. Gingrich might seem like less of a threat now, which allows the other candidates to cover more ground and try to pick up steam. Only time will tell if Gingrich’s standings will improve.