Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s presidential campaign is handing out Conservative Political Action Conference speaker schedules to event attendees, with not-so-subtle jabs at his GOP rivals included.
The handouts, which carry a “Paid for by Newt 2012” stamp, refer to former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum as “Congressman Rick Santorum.” The Gingrich campaign handout says Santorum’s speaking topic at CPAC is “In Defense of Big Labor.” Santorum was a U.S. congressman for four years in the early 1990s before serving two terms in the U.S. Senate.
On the handout, the Gingrich campaign offers no formal title for former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, referring to him simply as “Mitt Romney.” Gingrich’s handout describes him as the “Author of Obamneycare.” Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty coined that term — Obamneycare — in the early days of the 2012 Republican presidential primary contest. Pawlenty has since dropped out of the race and endorsed Romney.
The Gingrich handout also swipes at conservative columnist Ann Coulter, who has been openly supportive of Romney in the primary. The handout describes Coulter’s CPAC speaking topic as “Three Cheers for Romneycare!”
The Santorum campaign, the Romney campaign, and Coulter did not immediately return TheDC’s requests for comment. A spokesperson for Gingrich’s campaign, which refers to him on the handout as “The Honorable Newt Gingrich, Former Speaker of the House,” also did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
SEE THE NEW(T) CPAC SCHEDULE:
