In Murky Republican Contest, the Clearest Target Is Gingrich
A furious and sustained barrage of criticism aimed at Newt Gingrich appears to be reshaping the volatile Republican nomination contest once again with just two weeks left before voters begin weighing in.
Attack ads are blanketing Iowa, fueled by millions of dollars from his rivals and a group supporting Mitt Romney. Mailboxes are filling up with anti-Gingrich leaflets. And on the stump, his rivals have stepped up their assault on Mr. Gingrich’s time in Congress and his commitment to conservative causes.
Mr. Gingrich, the former House speaker, emerged in early December with a strong lead in some national polls and with commanding leads in Iowa and South Carolina. But new surveys suggest that political gravity could be dragging him down, opening the race up again and highlighting once more the fickle search among conservatives for an alternative to Mr. Romney.
“It’s definitely a full frontal assault,” said John Stineman, a Republican strategist who managed the 2000 presidential campaign of Steve Forbes in Iowa. He said the criticism of Mr. Gingrich has been impossible to avoid in Iowa. “The fact is, he’s getting killed,” he said.
full: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/20/us/politics/gingrich-attacked-by-campaign-rivals.html?pagewanted=all
