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Murderers, cannibals -- lesbians!
By Jenn Shreve
America has a distinguished history of spreading scandalous rumors about its politicians, and the latest batch of White House gossip is nothing new
(05/01/98)
"It's time to speak out"
By David Corn
Re: the Clinton scandals, confidential GOP memo urges Republicans to go on the attack
(04/30/98)
Gingrich's impeachment scenario
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A veteran Washington reporter says the House Speaker visualizes the removal of both Clinton and Gore
(04/29/98)
Triumphant in death
By David J. Garrow
James Earl Ray is laughing all the way to hell, thanks to the King family's preposterous belief that he didn't kill Martin Luther King Jr.
(04/28/98)
American Spectator audit: Is the fox guarding the henhouse?
By Jonathan Broder
Theodore Olson, a close friend of Kenneth Starr's and a former attorney for David Hale, heads the embattled magazine's crucialinternal investigation
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THE TESTAMENT ACCORDING TO NEWT | PAGE 3 OF 3
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Are you saying that you have no plans to run for president in 2000?
I am currently only planning to be reelected as speaker of this hall and I currently am assuming that I will run for speaker again in 2000, but I'm not excluding any other option. I'm essentially an idea-oriented political leader and I believe the ideas matter more than the personalities.
But wouldn't there be more of a chance in the executive branch to generate and execute ideas?
Considering my background, who I am, where I came from, this has been the right job, because I needed at least three years in this job just to learn how to do it. Remember, no Republican had done this job since Nicholas Longworth in the 1920s. There were no role models. There was nobody to sit and talk with.
What lessons did you learn from the Republicans losing the presidential campaign in 1996?
We should have taken much more seriously the Democrats' September 1995 ad campaign, which was the initial launch of what was to be 120,000 negative ads; and I think we should have been much more aggressive in figuring out early on that they were breaking the law to do that. We kept saying, "They're going to run out of money," but they didn't because they broke the law. When you look back, it was the most illegal presidential campaign in history.
We also did not have an argument in 1996 that we were capable of winning, which would have defined the election on terms we could have won. That was a huge mistake. The central principal is always the same, and Margaret Thatcher said it better than anybody: "First you win the argument, then you win the vote." Every time we defined an argument and won the argument, we won the election. Every time we hide from the argument, we lose the election.
But don't you think the framers of the Constitution would be appalled at how much time politicians devote to raising money, rather than arguing over the issues?
Yes, and I think that the framers would point out that it's entirely an artifact of $1,000 campaign [contribution] limits which have not been indexed since 1974. Common Cause first created the problem and now complain about the problem they created and want to make it even worse by restricting free speech. We should have indexed the donations to Super Bowl TV commercials. Look at what it costs today for congressional races to buy a 30-second commercial. Now, you tell me which side is more obscene: those who charge that amount of money while editorializing piously against the cost of campaigning or those who raise the money to buy the ads? I think we should be honest about it. The information age is expensive. It ain't going to get cheaper, because you have to compete with Nike and Coca-Cola to get your message though.
If you could add one article to the Constitution, what would it be?
If I couldn't change the courts' mistaken interpretation of the religious liberties laws, I would be for a constitutional amendment to require the government not to infringe upon your right to practice religion. This was a country in which God was in the public arena, not a country which drove God out of it.
You are a religious man; you go to church --
I'm a person of faith more than I go to church.
You are also a devotee of science who wanted to be a paleontologist as a kid. Do you believe in the theory of evolution?
I think that a God that can raise a carpenter from the dead could also create a universe that's understandable in rational terms. In fact, if you talk to subatomic physicists, they are saying more and more frequently that some of their findings require them to have faith.
You are also a historian. As a historian, did you ever notice similarities between the Confederate Constitution and the Contract With America, which both espoused states' rights and lower taxes?
That's a new one to me (laughs). As a Pennsylvania-born son of a career soldier, the idea that I sat down late one evening and took out the Confederate Constitution (laughs more) ... That's good. That's creative.
If you had access to a time machine, which historic event would you have most liked to have influenced?
If you could see one historical event, you would want to be there when Christ ascended; however you wouldn't influence the event because God preempted you. If you believe single events can change history, and they probably can, then you would like to be in a truck running over Adolph Hitler in 1920 as he crosses the street. No other single event, except doing the same thing to Stalin and Mao, would have quite the same impact on the history of the human race.
If you could have any job in the world besides speaker, what would it be?
Any job in the world? Probably one of two: chief general collector for the American Museum of Natural History or field observer at the San Diego Zoological Society.
Why?
Childhood emotions. I love the American Museum of Natural History. There you get Barnam Brown and Roy Chapman Andrews and the great tradition of collecting. It would be such a thrill to stand in their shadows and go out occasionally and collect. San Diego is probably the greatest zoo in the world. Every time I go to their wild animal park I am overwhelmed, and I think going on field expeditions with them would be just remarkable. If I retire in 2002, Marianne [Gingrich's wife] and I have talked about spending half the year collecting and half the year writing and teaching.
If you could cast yourself in any movie role, what would it be, and who would play opposite you?
(Long pause) The psychiatrist played by Robin Williams in "Good Will Hunting." If you could play opposite one actress, you would want to play opposite Katharine Hepburn, just for the experience of having been onstage with one of the greatest actresses in American history.
If an extraterrestrial landed in Washington, D.C. -- let's say it was attracted by Al Gore's 24-hour earth channel -- what message would you want it to beam back?
If you saw "Men In Black," you know that I am conflicted in answering this question. The message I've sent back so far is, "Still studying, be patient." On bad days I've sent back, "Less hope, be more patient." On no day have I sent a message that said, "Good times to come." All I'll say is that I have no memories earlier than being in New Mexico in 1948. But I don't want you to interpret from that -- and I will reject out of hand, and we have no controlling legal authority that suggests -- that you can define me as an alien for that answer.
SALON | May 4, 1998
David Wallis is a New York writer whose interviews appear regularly in Salon.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
R E L A T E D+ A R T I C L E+
Gingrich's impeachment scenario?

T A B L E+T A L K Are hate groups on the Web scary or harmless? Join the discussion of online radicals in the Politics area of Table Talk D A I L Y+Q U O T E This suicide brought to you live R E C E N T L Y Murderers, cannibals -- lesbians! By Jenn Shreve America has a distinguished history of spreading scandalous rumors about its politicians, and the latest batch of White House gossip is nothing new (05/01/98) "It's time to speak out" By David Corn Re: the Clinton scandals, confidential GOP memo urges Republicans to go on the attack (04/30/98) Gingrich's impeachment scenario By Jonathan Broder A veteran Washington reporter says the House Speaker visualizes the removal of both Clinton and Gore (04/29/98) Triumphant in death By David J. Garrow James Earl Ray is laughing all the way to hell, thanks to the King family's preposterous belief that he didn't kill Martin Luther King Jr. (04/28/98) American Spectator audit: Is the fox guarding the henhouse? By Jonathan Broder Theodore Olson, a close friend of Kenneth Starr's and a former attorney for David Hale, heads the embattled magazine's crucialinternal investigation (04/27/98) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Browse the Newsreal Archives - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
		THE TESTAMENT ACCORDING TO NEWT \| PAGE 3 OF 3 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Are you saying that you have no plans to run for president in 2000? I am currently only planning to be reelected as speaker of this hall and I currently am assuming that I will run for speaker again in 2000, but I'm not excluding any other option. I'm essentially an idea-oriented political leader and I believe the ideas matter more than the personalities. But wouldn't there be more of a chance in the executive branch to generate and execute ideas? Considering my background, who I am, where I came from, this has been the right job, because I needed at least three years in this job just to learn how to do it. Remember, no Republican had done this job since Nicholas Longworth in the 1920s. There were no role models. There was nobody to sit and talk with. What lessons did you learn from the Republicans losing the presidential campaign in 1996? We should have taken much more seriously the Democrats' September 1995 ad campaign, which was the initial launch of what was to be 120,000 negative ads; and I think we should have been much more aggressive in figuring out early on that they were breaking the law to do that. We kept saying, "They're going to run out of money," but they didn't because they broke the law. When you look back, it was the most illegal presidential campaign in history. We also did not have an argument in 1996 that we were capable of winning, which would have defined the election on terms we could have won. That was a huge mistake. The central principal is always the same, and Margaret Thatcher said it better than anybody: "First you win the argument, then you win the vote." Every time we defined an argument and won the argument, we won the election. Every time we hide from the argument, we lose the election. But don't you think the framers of the Constitution would be appalled at how much time politicians devote to raising money, rather than arguing over the issues? Yes, and I think that the framers would point out that it's entirely an artifact of $1,000 campaign [contribution] limits which have not been indexed since 1974. Common Cause first created the problem and now complain about the problem they created and want to make it even worse by restricting free speech. We should have indexed the donations to Super Bowl TV commercials. Look at what it costs today for congressional races to buy a 30-second commercial. Now, you tell me which side is more obscene: those who charge that amount of money while editorializing piously against the cost of campaigning or those who raise the money to buy the ads? I think we should be honest about it. The information age is expensive. It ain't going to get cheaper, because you have to compete with Nike and Coca-Cola to get your message though. If you could add one article to the Constitution, what would it be? If I couldn't change the courts' mistaken interpretation of the religious liberties laws, I would be for a constitutional amendment to require the government not to infringe upon your right to practice religion. This was a country in which God was in the public arena, not a country which drove God out of it. You are a religious man; you go to church -- I'm a person of faith more than I go to church. You are also a devotee of science who wanted to be a paleontologist as a kid. Do you believe in the theory of evolution? I think that a God that can raise a carpenter from the dead could also create a universe that's understandable in rational terms. In fact, if you talk to subatomic physicists, they are saying more and more frequently that some of their findings require them to have faith. You are also a historian. As a historian, did you ever notice similarities between the Confederate Constitution and the Contract With America, which both espoused states' rights and lower taxes? That's a new one to me (laughs). As a Pennsylvania-born son of a career soldier, the idea that I sat down late one evening and took out the Confederate Constitution (laughs more) ... That's good. That's creative. If you had access to a time machine, which historic event would you have most liked to have influenced? If you could see one historical event, you would want to be there when Christ ascended; however you wouldn't influence the event because God preempted you. If you believe single events can change history, and they probably can, then you would like to be in a truck running over Adolph Hitler in 1920 as he crosses the street. No other single event, except doing the same thing to Stalin and Mao, would have quite the same impact on the history of the human race. If you could have any job in the world besides speaker, what would it be? Any job in the world? Probably one of two: chief general collector for the American Museum of Natural History or field observer at the San Diego Zoological Society. Why? Childhood emotions. I love the American Museum of Natural History. There you get Barnam Brown and Roy Chapman Andrews and the great tradition of collecting. It would be such a thrill to stand in their shadows and go out occasionally and collect. San Diego is probably the greatest zoo in the world. Every time I go to their wild animal park I am overwhelmed, and I think going on field expeditions with them would be just remarkable. If I retire in 2002, Marianne [Gingrich's wife] and I have talked about spending half the year collecting and half the year writing and teaching. If you could cast yourself in any movie role, what would it be, and who would play opposite you? (Long pause) The psychiatrist played by Robin Williams in "Good Will Hunting." If you could play opposite one actress, you would want to play opposite Katharine Hepburn, just for the experience of having been onstage with one of the greatest actresses in American history. If an extraterrestrial landed in Washington, D.C. -- let's say it was attracted by Al Gore's 24-hour earth channel -- what message would you want it to beam back? If you saw "Men In Black," you know that I am conflicted in answering this question. The message I've sent back so far is, "Still studying, be patient." On bad days I've sent back, "Less hope, be more patient." On no day have I sent a message that said, "Good times to come." All I'll say is that I have no memories earlier than being in New Mexico in 1948. But I don't want you to interpret from that -- and I will reject out of hand, and we have no controlling legal authority that suggests -- that you can define me as an alien for that answer. SALON \| May 4, 1998 David Wallis is a New York writer whose interviews appear regularly in Salon. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - R E L A T E D+ A R T I C L E+ Gingrich's impeachment scenario?