Gingrich Tops Romney In National Polls By Double Digits

Newt Gingrich’s resurgence in the GOP presidential field has been fueled partially by his own political sentiments (which are often just as likely to hurt him as help him), and a renewed Tea Party support that has propelled him, in the most recent polling, into a double-digit lead over previous front-runner Mitt Romney. According to the most recent NBC/WSJ GOP poll, Gingrich enjoys a 40% approval rating of potential Republican voters over Romney’s 23% nationally. This is now the largest margin that anyone has had over Romney, who has been stuck in roughly the same place throughout the year, in the entire race.

Gingrich’s brand of fiery rhetoric mixed with calm, almost patronizing policy advice, has made for a candidate that is able to not only consolidate Tea Party favor, but appeal to a portion of the Republican establishment as well. One issue helping Gingrich is that he has been a Washington insider in the past and can pull from those experiences. However, the same things that may hurt him as a possible nominee for the general election is also what’s bolstering his resurgent success in the primary race. He says things that upset people, but that also appeal to a more extreme crowd.

It’s not the same kind of rhetoric that Michelle Bachmann and Rick Perry became famous for (and were ultimately undone by), but a kind of “outsider” series of proclamations that are not always characteristically “Republica”. His statement that Rep. Paul Ryan’s May budget proposal was an example of “right-wing social engineering”. This comment showed his willingness to break with the Republican establishment, but has also become a campaign talking point for opponent Mitt Romney, who ahs recently gone on the offensive.

Romney, on the other hand, has been stagnant throughout the race, alternately seeing the top of the polls as his opponents all slipping in approval, and falling below the kind of meteoric resurgences (and subsequent declines) of opponents like Rick Perry and Herman Cain. However, Romney’s consistency may also be the quality that distinguishes his campaign from Gingrich’s, which has been characterized by its instability. Romney has a strong foundation to run in the general election, and there’s little disagreement about that. Gingrich’s campaign was actually predicted to fall apart back in June, when a series of media black eyes and an exodus of top staffers had pundits and bloggers doubting his legitimacy. Romney will continue to attack Gingrich on his lack of dependability. At this point Romney has never seen the support of the Tea Party base that is helping Gingrich, so he’s not concerned about alienating those voters in coming at Gingrich.