Shots on the House

This morning I was invited to a breakfast briefing with Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. The food was delicious and on the house, so that already solidified the event as a solid win, but it was listening to Speaker Gingrich that really made it an excellent briefing. He emphasized his 12 American Solutions for Jobs and Prosperity, which are tri-partisan (supported by Democrats, Republicans, and Independents when polled) solutions that will revitalize the American economy. My three favorite are from the middle of the plan:

5. Control Spending So We Can Move to a Balanced Budget.  This begins with eliminating Congressional earmarks and wasteful pork-barrel spending.
6. No State Aid Without Protection From Fraud.  Require state governments to adopt anti-fraud and anti-theft policies before giving them more money.
7. More American Energy Now. Explore for more American oil and gas and invest in affordable energy for the future, including clean coal, ethanol, nuclear power and renewable fuels.

I specifically like the emphasis on American energy solutions because they would create American jobs and put us in a better place in regards to national security. Newt, Saul Anuzis, and Rick Berman, who talked about the Union Facts website, then talked about the movement to oppose the Employee Free Forced Choice Act. I’ll have more on the card check debate later. Newt then started taking questions. Here’s a video example:

Following his response to that question and a few others, he fielded a question from me about taking on liberals on campus, especially on issues like energy. He said that we need to start actively debating the other side, we need to engage them at every opportunity, and we need to demand equal funds from school programs that give money to bring in speakers. Following his model, I think we can radically change the way we operate and we can win the argument.

Others Blogging About This:
James Joyner of Outside the Beltway (who is sitting diagonal from me on the row)
Melissa Clouthier of Right Wing News (who is sitting across from me on the row)