On Sunday’s “Meet the Press” on NBC, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich dismissed the possibility that we might see him on the ticket with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.
But first he had some advice for advice for his co-panelist Democratic Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley on running for president.
“Raise a lot of money,” Gingrich said. “It’s the entry-level problem. You have got to be prepared and second, just understand you’ll spend two or three years on the road. Mark Warner is a great guy to talk to because he went out, he looked at it a lot and he ran for the Senate.”
Then he added he wasn’t discouraged over the GOP nominating process, even though he had a very tough go at it himself.
“No, this has been a brutal, tough process at least since 1800 and it hasn’t gotten less brutal and probably shouldn’t,” he continued. “If you’re not tough enough to get to the presidency, you’re not tough enough to be president. So I have no regrets. It’s a wonderful, amazing experience. Callista says she learned two big things: People are overwhelmingly nice even if they don’t agree with you and money matters. Those are her two lessons.”
And as for being on the ticket with Romney, Gingrich dismissed his prospects.
“I think that’s highly implausible,” he said. “I’ve learned the hard way to never say no, but I find that as implausible as you find it.”