Order 50 flyers of The 21st Century Contract with America

Link on Newt.org.

A Newt 2012 supporter puts together a video on the 21st Century Contract with America

Link.

Peter Ferrara on 21st Century Contract with America

Peter Ferrara, who was in the Reagan White House, wrote a terrific article about Newt's 21st Century Contract with America. Some excerpts:

In the 1994 Congressional campaigns, Republicans not only rode Newt's Contract with America proposals to Republican majorities in Congress. They maintained their House majority for 12 years, after Republicans had only held a House majority for 2 of the previous 74 years.

Newt's 21st century contract is similarly a document on which the entire Republican Party can campaign next year, and win a generation of governing majorities.

Gingrich's economic recovery plan would also abolish the capital gains tax, because "At a zero percent rate, hundreds of billions of dollars in new investments would pour into the United States to create new firms and build new factories." By effectively double-taxing capital income, the capital gains levy discourages the venture capital that feeds start-ups and creates jobs. That is why 14 out of 30 OECD countries, plus China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and others, already enjoy zero capital gains taxes. Gingrich's Contract would further eliminate double taxation by abolishing the death tax and the Alternative Minimum Tax.

Art Laffer, a central architect of Reaganomics, says regarding Gingrich's economic recovery plan, "The combination of pro-growth tax reform, spending restraint, and sound money will restore robust economic growth with low unemployment and low inflation," and praises "the powerful effect it will have on the future growth path of the United States economy." Indeed, Gingrich has the formula for another generation long economic boom achieved by freeing a dynamic economy that is straining to break out of the bonds of Obamanomics.

Ferrara quotes from Newt what the former will push for after repealing Obamacare:

I will advocate for specific replacement health policies that will create a free market framework for health care, provide affordable, portable, and reliable healthcare coverage, and establish a health care safety net focused on those in need. This system will assure health care for all with no individual mandate or employer mandate of any kind. This alternative to Obamacare begins with patient power and localism and the many common sense ideas developed over the past eight years at the Center for Health Transformation.

Back to Ferrara:

The specific Contract proposals implementing this vision include "a voluntary option for younger Americans to put a portion of their Social Security contribution into personal Social Security savings accounts.

On Medicare, Ferrara again quotes from Newt:

My proposed legislation will offer seniors new choices in Medicare, as well. It will give them the option to choose, on a voluntary basis, either to remain in the existing program, or to transition to a more personalized system in the private sector with greater options for better care. If they select the personalized system, beneficiaries would receive support to cover their private sector premiums. Giving all seniors the option to choose their insurance provider will improve price competition and help lower costs for the program.

More Newt:

There are 184 other means-tested entitlement programs that can be block granted in a similar manner to our reform in 1996. One program alone -- Medicaid -- could save the federal government over $700 billion in the next decade, according to Congressman Paul Ryan's 2012 Republican Budget. Not only would these programs be more responsive and dynamic on a state level, but Americans would save hundreds of billions of federal tax dollars every year.

Ferrara concludes the piece:

Gingrich's Contract advances other path-breaking ideas, such as using Congress's powers to reorganize the federal judiciary and regulate the jurisdiction of the federal courts, including the Supreme Court, to rein in judicial activism, enforcing the Tenth Amendment, and unleashing the private sector to produce the maximum in American energy. Most exciting, Newt's Contract launches all of these ideas into the mainstream of the Republican Party.

While it probably seems like I quoted the whole article, there is a ton I didn't. I encourage you to read the entire article here.

Ferrara has wrote other pieces praising Newt's ideas -- here, here, and here.

The 21st Century Contract has been downloaded 36,000 times

So reports Kathie Obradovich of the Des Moines-Register. Not bad for the first week. (And the number of views, now just downloads, is most likely much bigger.)

Here is the link to it on Newt.org. The download link is here.

Tony Lee of Human Events sent out two tweets about the Contract last week:

The strongest section of Newt's 21st Century 'Contract' is the jobs/prosperity section, specifically the optional flat tax section. (link)

Newt's Contract not just good bc of the outlines but bc of the explanations/arguments. Think many candidates will study up on it. (link)

Justin Arnold of iowa.conservativereader.com, who attended the Des Moines event last week, wrote an article about Newt's Contract.

I recommend reading the whole thing here, but I will quote the ending:

The bottom line politically is that Newt stacks up well to the rest of the field in many categories while largely lapping them in depth and substance. As the race wears on he, oddly enough, finds himself with many advantages to gain from and plenty of time to do it…and he certainly doesn’t have to worry about peaking too soon!

In terms of the release of the new contract and the impact it will have on his campaign the analysis is fairly simple. The concept of a contract with the American people was a great idea and a brilliant political vehicle in 1994…and it still is in 2011.

(Video) Newt on campus of Iowa State University from 9/30/11

Link.

(Video) Newt speaking in Dawsonville, Georgia, on new Contract

Link.



Thanks to William Wade, who I have quoted before on this blog, for helping set this up.

Newt himself gave a shout-out to Will on Twitter:

@Newt2012HQ we just had a great event in dawsonville hosted by will wade and focused on the 21st century contract with America

(Video) Newt at Iowa GOP Headquarters Thursday

This was the day the 21st Century Contract with America was unveiled. (These are just portions of the event.)

Thank you to the Urbandale GOP for providing the video.

Link to Part 1.



Part 2.



Part 3.

Newt's speech outlining the 21st Century Contract with America

So I am late posting this, but here is Newt's speech laying out the 21st Century Contract with America:

(Video) Newt with press after Contract event Thursday

Link via TheIowaRepublican.com.

My Thursday with Newt 2012

I wasn't able to blog during the day because I drove up to Iowa this morning. I attended the event unveiling the 21st Century Contract with America. It was great. A lot of excitement in the room. My role was to pass around the sign-up sheets, and a good number of people signed up for updates from the campaign.

I finally got to meet Jeremy Danilson, the President of the Drake Law Republicans, after talking with him online for months.

From there, we went to lunch. Then I finally checked into my hotel, was there a minute, and back on the road to the Iowa Republican Headquarters. Here I helped pass out copies of the Contract to those entering. I started talking to a couple whose son is returning tonight from Afghanistan. She was obviously proud of her son -- rightfully so, of course -- so that was the main focus, but we did discuss Newt. Her and her husband are both big fans. We had talked before the speech, but afterwards, she came up and made a point of praising Newt's argument about military spending. Newt argued that when the United States slashes spending on our armed forces, we project weakness and invite hostile actions toward us. She was in complete agreement.

I will have more about the trip later, but I am going to try to catch some sleep. Early start tomorrow.

Fnd for those who haven't seem them, here are the two posts I wrote back in July after coming up to Iowa the first time:

http://newtgingrich360.com/profiles/blogs/my-trip-to-iowa-with-the-gingrich-campaign-with-pictures

http://newtgingrich360.com/profiles/blogs/a-saturday-night-at-the-dallas-county-fair-in-adel-iowa-with-the


Exciting times. Thanks everyone for helping make this site a success.

Tony Lee of Human Events on Newt's big day Thursday

Tony Lee of the conservative weekly wrote an article today previewing Newt's rolling out of the 21st Century Contract with America tomorrow.

I recommend reading the whole thing, but here are some excerpts:

Newt Gingrich​ will unveil a new Contract With America in Iowa on Thursday, and it seems as if it will allow him to both unleash his ideas while also corralling them into a grander campaign theme and strategy for his revived presidential campaign.

Gingrich, who has polled as high as third in national surveys after a string of impressive debate performances, spoke in Doylestown, Pa., on Tuesday at a packed event organized by the founders of the Kitchen Table Patriots, a local Tea Party organization.

In the last week, Gingrich has said his new contract will be an evolving document that will be formed by his ideas and those of voters.

Gingrich, as he said again on Tuesday, has also been asking voters to be "with him" and not just "for him." Gingrich said that if people were just for him, then they would just vote for him, go home, and expect him to clean up the country's mess. Instead, Gingrich asked the audience to be with him not just through November, but for eight years after that to help return power back to the citizen from czars and bureaucrats in a big government run amok.

This framing strategy potentially allows citizens to be stakeholders in a Gingrich campaign and potential presidency, while giving him a way of organizing all of his ideas and potential supporters around one fundamental theme of returning power back to the citizen.

He jabbed Gov. Rick Perry's Texas DREAM Act, which gave instate tuition rates to illegal immigrants, by joking about how, if citizens want cheaper tuition, they should attempt to cross the border, come back, and declare themselves noncitizens.

He also praised the spirit of the FairTax, but said he would be leery of the federal government imposing a national sales tax and an income tax because it would give Congress two methods in which to further tax Americans.

In doing so, he differentiated himself from businessman Herman Cain​'s "9-9-9" plan that calls for a 9% flat tax on income, a 9% corporate tax and a 9% national sales tax.

Gingrich also spoke, as he brilliantly does, about why America is exceptional. He said he has been shaped by Gettysburg, Valley Forge, and the events leading up to the writing of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

"Freedom survives one generation at a time," Gingrich said. "You are the land of the free if you are the home of the brave." Gingrich's task ahead is to get enough people to join him in finalizing a contract that becomes an eight-year blueprint that can be used to return more freedom to individuals and, in so doing, strengthen and restore the country's foundation.

Cain's plan, while catchy and a good step forward, does leave the door open for future Presidents and Congresses to both raise income and sales tax. If the FairTax ever is to be implemented, the 16th Amendment -- which allows for an income tax -- needs to be overturned first.

Newt's schedule in Iowa on Thursday and Friday

Writes Jennifer Jacobs of the Des Moines-Register:

Here’s his schedule, according to his campaign:

THURSDAY:

Noon: Gingrich town hall meeting with employees of the Principal Financial Group, 711 High St. Des Moines. [This is when Newt will be unveiling the 21st Century Contract with America.]

6 p.m., Gingrich will meet with grassroot activists at the Republican Party of Iowa headquarters, 621 East 9th St., Des Moines.

FRIDAY:

8 a.m., Breakfast with local grassroot activists at the Best Western Starlite Village, 1518 3rd Avenue NW, Fort Dodge.

11 a.m., Gingrich will host a town hall meeting on creating jobs in science and technology. The meeting will be on the campus of Iowa State University. Gingrich will tour the Virtual Reality Application Center after the town hall meeting.

(Video) Newt previews 21st Century Contract with America at FL CPAC

Link.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Newt's newsletter on the 21st Century Contract with America

Newt opened this week's newsletter:

Seventeen years ago next Tuesday, on September 27, 1994, House Republican candidates signed the Contract with America.

The debt we owed President Ronald Reagan was captured in the Washington Post’s headline “GOP Offers a 'Contract' To Revive Reagan Years."

As the Post reported:

"More than 300 Republican lawmakers and candidates yesterday pledged that if they take over the House next year, they will resurrect the Reagan agenda that drove the party's success in the 1980s -- promises of balanced budgets, tax cuts and defense buildups.

"House Minority Whip Newt Gingrich (Ga.), poised to become Republican leader in the next Congress, proclaimed the photogenic rally on the Capitol steps "an historic event" that would change the government as much as the New Deal did. The 10-point agenda, he said, gives Republicans a positive platform and a response to charges that their only message is opposition to President Clinton​."

We ran an ad in TV Guide that was two full pages. It had no pictures and no attacks on President Clinton or the Democrats. It was totally positive and issue-oriented. The ad outlined the ten bills we pledged to vote on in the first 100 days if we were given a majority.

The result:

The American people liked our positive focus on issues enough to give us the greatest vote increase in American history for any party in an off year. Republicans gained 9 million more votes while Democrats lost a million votes.

After discussing President Obama's plea that "if you love me, you've got to help me pass the bill -- go and read that part please -- Newt continues:

As President Clinton noted on Sunday talk shows this week, we were able to work together through divided government to balance the budget, reform welfare, cut taxes and bring unemployment down to 4.2 percent.

It took real maturity and discipline, and a focus on doing what was best for America, to get a Republican Congress and a Democratic President to do that much despite divided government.

Here is the link to the full newsletter again.

A terrific newsletter and a great lead-in to a week from Thursday when he unveils the 21st Century Contract with America.

This Thursday -- either tomorrow or later today, depending on when you're reading this -- is the Fox News Debate. Hopefully Newt knocks it out of the park two Thursdays in a row and continues the momentum. We're just about 4 months out of Iowa.

#withNewt

New Rasmussen 2012 Poll: Newt has moved into third place in another poll

Just as with every poll but one from last week, Newt has moved into third place in another poll. (The one poll Newt was in fourth place last week was one that Ron Paul polled ahead of him, and Paul has no chance to win the nomination.)

There is another debate Thursday for Newt to keep the momentum going. To help Newt win the future, please consider contributing either money or your time to the campaign.

(I am assuming most reading this blog are signed up to receive e-mails from Newt.org, but on the off chance you aren't, Newt sent out an e-mail today with this promotion:

Between now and September 27th, if you donate $19.94 or more at Newt.org, you will be entered into a contest to get a first glimpse at the new 21st Century Contract with America before we officially unveil it in Iowa. The winner will also receive an autographed copy of the original Contract with America and a call from me.

You can enter to win without contributing money by clicking here.

More details on the 21st Century Contract with America

From Jennifer Jacobs of the Des Moines-Register:

Newt Gingrich promised to lay out a “very visionary” new Contract with America during a speech next week in Iowa.

It “will be 10 times deeper and more comprehensive than 1994,” he told an audience of about 40 people Monday night in Council Bluffs. “Because the truth is, while we changed the system some … we didn’t fundamentally change the underlying system.”

The new “21st Century Contract with America” will, he said.

Gingrich said his ideas, which he will unveil Sept. 29 in Des Moines, are “very big, and they’re exactly what Abraham Lincoln would have campaigned on.”

Monday night’s campaign stop, at Bent Tree Golf Club, centered on a screening of “A City Upon a Hill,” a documentary Gingrich and his wife, Callista, helped create about the concept of American exceptionalism.

Afterward, Gingrich spoke and answered questions for an hour, flexing his intellectual muscles and calling his campaign “the antithesis” of the other campaigns.

“One of the major themes of next year if I’m the nominee is going to be that (President Barack) Obama is the best food stamps president in American history and I’ll be the best paycheck president in American history,” he said.

“And I will be happy to debate Obama on any university campus in the country, including Harvard and Berkeley. I’m not afraid to debate this president anywhere, any time, on any topic.”

Gingrich had the audience laughing multiple times with quips and stories about his personal life, including his childhood ambition to be either a paleontologist or a zoo director.

After the 2½-hour event, Sam McManus, 58, of Council Bluffs said Gingrich’s pitch “changed my whole perception of him” from a has-been to a serious contender.

McManus’s wife, Anna, a railroad official, went even further. She said she was previously leaning toward Mitt Romney or Rick Perry, but “it’s going to take a lot to get me to go anywhere else now. Mitt is good, but he’s not going to have ideas like this.”

The original Contract with America presaged today’s tea party movement with its calls for smaller government, lower taxes and greater public accountability.

...

Gingrich’s two-day Iowa campaign swing continues today with a town hall meeting at Morningside College in Sioux City at 2 p.m.

Newt to unveil outlines of new Contract with America next week

Newt appeared on 630 WMAL this morning, and their website quotes him:

"I'm developing a new approach with a new set of ideas. Next week we will unveil the outlines of the 21st century Contract With America," Gingrich told the WMAL Morning Majority.

He said the new Contract With America will do what the Obama administration has not.

"It's going to be very bold, it's going to be... the scale we need to fix the country," said the former speaker of the House.

Here is the full interview: