Possible 2012 presidential candidate Newt Gingrich tells The Brody File that President Obama should borrow a page from Ronald Reagan's playbook and leave the Beltway behind for an extended period to, "reflect on what happened" during the Midterm Elections.
Gingrich says, "I think it'll be really healthy for him if he could take off from Thanksgiving through most of December and really think. I mean walk on the beach or walk in the woods or whatever he likes doing, but get away from the daily business and try to reflect on what happened. Why did it happen? What is it that the American people want?"
Watch the clip of my interview with the former Speaker of the House below. Transcription also provided.
PLEASE VIDEO COURTESY CBN NEWS/THE BRODY FILE. IN ARTICLES, COURTESY: "On CBN's The Brody File Show"
Newt Gingrich will be part of next week's Brody File show.Also on the show: Live in studio with George Allen and Tim Phillips, president of Americans for Prosperity.
David Brody: Not that the President is necessarily going to call you for advice as to how he should pivot, but what should be the smart play here by this President in terms of how he moves forward…What should he do here in 2010?
Newt Gingrich: Well, I think it's very important that the president slow down. Callista (Gingrich's wife) and I did a movie called, "Ronald Reagan: Rendezvous with Destiny" and we spent time filing at the Reagan ranch. And it was kind of surprising to realize that he spent one year out of eight at the ranch. Every eighth day he was at the ranch during his presidency, and the reason was he wanted to get perspective from Washington. He wanted to get out of the gossip, get out of the daily news media. He wanted to be able to look back and think.
President Obama has had an amazing career. He's gone from state senator to U.S. senator to Democratic nominee to president with amazing speed. Now in this election, he's had his first really big decisive defeat. I think it'll be really healthy for him if he could take off from Thanksgiving through most of December and really think. I mean walk on the beach or walk in the woods or whatever he likes doing, but get away from the daily business and try to reflect on what happened. Why did it happen? What is it that the American people want?
Presidents can only lead as far as the American people will support them and a president without the American people is surprisingly weak. And so he's got to think about, he's got to hear the American people, and then come back and negotiate with Congress.
I think it's very dangerous for him to try and negotiate with Congress as a way of moving the American people and I don't think that approach will work.