Newt and Callista to be in Chicago Sept. 4 to screen Nine Days that Changed the World

Here is the Facebook event page.

From that link: "Speaker and Mrs. Gingrich will screen 'Nine Days that Changed the World'. A book and DVD signing will be held prior to the screening."

Looking ahead, the two will also be screening A City Upon a Hill in conjunction with the Tampa Bay Young Republicans September 13.

A week later, on September 20th, they will be in Sioux City, Iowa, to screen Mine Days that Changed the World with KFHC Catholic Radio.

On October 4th, with the Columbia (S.C.) Tea Party, A City Upon a Hill will be shown.

Video of Newt on Boston FOX's Affiliate

Link on Newt.org.

Newt and Callista screened their documentary about Pope John Paul II, Nine Days that Changed the World, tonight.

Callista tweeted: "Thanks to Catholic Citizenship in Lexington, MA for a great evening!"

Picture of the brick with Newt and Callista's name outside John Wayne's home

For those who read the daily e-mail, I realized that the picture yesterday did not show up.

So I will include the link this time.

Link to picture.

Sorry for not catching it earlier.

Newt to visit Iowa 12 days in July; Reagan lost 13 staff in 1980

(Update: the July 4th parade starts at 10 A.M. Monday. "Iowa House Majority Leader Linda Upmeyer, who has served as state chairwoman of Gingrich’s presidential campaign, said Gingrich will be in the parade and then spend the rest of the day enjoying the sights in Clear Lake," writes Peggy Senzarino.)

-- Lost behind all the media reports the last day is a story that will actually be important to the nomination process: Newt will be in Iowa twelve days in July. That is in addition to the Tea Party Bus Tour event he will be taking part of this weekend.

Politico with a few details of the July swing: "a July 4 parade in Clear Lake (schedule of July 4 events) and a visit to Luther College in Decorah at the end of July. That's the alma mater of Callista Gingrich and she'll play in an alumni band there."

-- Another bit of information no one in the media wants to bring up: Ronald Reagan's staff in his 1980 campaign was in a constant state of flux. (Just read Craig Shirley's Rendezvous with Destiny.)

Reuters writes of Newt's trip to Atlanta today:

Gingrich, a former history professor in Georgia, said 13 of Ronald Reagan's aides quit during his 1980 presidential primary campaign. Reagan went on to win the nomination and the U.S. presidency.

"If I had to choose Reaganomics or 13 staffers quitting, I think for the average working American, Reaganomics was a much better deal," Gingrich said, referring to Reagan's policy of cutting taxes and reducing government regulations.

Not many are paying close attention to the race right now; hardly anyone is paying attention to staff news.

The voters who will decide who wins the GOP nomination are concerned about what a candidate will do to reduce the tax burden, to get the federal budget balanced, to get job creation, to make energy more affordable. Not the inside baseball coverage the D.C. media loves to drone on and on about.

-- Speaking of D.C. media: Am I supposed to take the Washington Post serious on other stories about Newt when they can't even get Newt's birthday right? Note to WaPo: it was June 17. Which you could have found out by searching for "Newt Gingrich birthday."

Newt "leaning toward a a yes"; the announcement could be in Philadelphia in May

"In a conference call Wednesday with former staffers and supporters former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said 'we are leaning toward a yes' on a presidential run, CNN has learned."

The story on CNN.com also says, "He revealed he hopes to announce a presidential bid in late May at noon in front of Philadelphia's Independence Hall. He asked the group for help building a national audience for that event on the internet and through local media."

Also from the story:

In an apparent reference to the Contract with America that helped make him speaker in the 1990s he told the group 'the campaign I want to build would have a contract in late September of 12' and help 'build the party across the board.'

...

Several times Gingrich pointed out that 'for legal reasons' he can't say too much -- 'we are still in the exploratory phase,' but he has lined up the beginning of a campaign rollout. He expects former Georgia Democratic Senator and Governor Zell Miller to be a co-chair 'once we put the campaign together.' He says his campaign would be headquartered in Atlanta.

He also said he is talking to and trying to recruit supporters in key states, such as he did in Iowa earlier this week. A Gingrich aide said he's planning direct mail solicitations starting next week and telemarketing efforts beginning this week.

In addition to doing well in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, Gingrich said he hopes to 'seal off Georgia as a favorite son.' He added that given the way primary timing may shake out 'Florida may suddenly loom very, very large.'

One aide on the call said they've seen 'enormous excitement' in response to the Newtexplore2012.com website setup last week. And Gingrich himself said donors who can't afford to give too much up front are committing $50-$100 a month. He explained about 25 percent of the initial donations came from Carroll County, Georgia but 'it is gradually changing' with donors from all over the country.

...

He asked the group on the call for fundraising support and assistance building enthusiasm for his kickoff announcement online and in local media markets. He also invited feedback when there are missteps -- for example, last week's announcement of his plans to start an exploratory phase in his potential run.

Gingrich said, 'I concede last week's announcement got cluttered in ways that were pretty foolish, but we've moved beyond that.'

As he does during public events, the would-be candidate consistently mentioned his wife, Callista. She spoke briefly on the call to thank the group saying 'we can't do this alone.'