2012 Election Part 1

The presidential election is over two years from now. However, potential candidates have been positioning themselves to run since before the 08 election in some cases. These are a few of the people that are likely to run, followed by some of their main strengths and weaknesses. The following is the first part of a multipart series presenting people who I'm sure you'll be sick and tired of hearing about by the time the election actually begins.

1. Newt Gingrich
From 1995 to 1999 Newt served as Speaker of the House of Representatives. He was largely responsible for the Republicans gaining control of congress in 1994. During his tenure, congress passed balanced budgets for the first time in many years. Newt has a Ph.D. He is a brilliant man that understands politics as well as having the ability to articulate policy. As an intellectual heavyweight he can debate ideas better than John McCain, who fell flat attempting to do so. Newt has also done a good job raising money and maintaining a public profile. American Solutions, a 527 started by Gingrich, has raised over 40 million dollars since 2006. This ability to raise resources would no doubt be one of his key assets in taking on Obama in '12.

On the other hand, Newt's track record does not show much in the way of being able to break the partisan logjam that currently consumes Washington. He is sometimes seen as a bit of a hot head that tends to be hyper-partisan at times. An issue that would be sure to resurface would be his personal life. Newt has been married three times. This includes him leaving his first wife for a woman with whom he was having an extramarital affair, while his first wife was recovering from a battle with cancer.