Politics: If I Were King ...

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Politics If I Were King ... Newt Gingrich is the only candidate who knows what he'd actually do as president. By John Dickerson Posted Thursday, Dec 01, 2011, at 12:39 AM ET When a presidential candidate makes a promise, it's always useful to ask: How are you going to pull that off? There usually isn't an answer. Health care will be repealed, the budget balanced, and 15-minute brownies made in 10. Newt Gingrich is the only candidate who talks about how he would actually enact some of the promises he makes and the changes he would bring to the office of the presidency. Whether you agree with him or not, this is a useful and laudable thing. Candidates should be able to show that they have some concept of how to engage the massively complex organization they hope to take hold of. This would tell us something about them, and force those of us casting votes to be more realistic about what presidents can accomplish. Gingrich, for his part, has shown that he is occasionally willing to be a realist even when it gets him in trouble with his own party. On the issue of illegal immigration he has made the obvious point that the government does not have the resources to round up 11 million illegal immigrants, and, perhaps more important, from a moral standpoint it is unlikely Americans would support deporting model citizens who have lived in their communities for 25 years. In May, Gingrich criticized Rep. Paul Ryan's budget plan as "right-wing social engineering" that was too aggressive to win the support of the public. "If you're dealing with something as big as Medicare and ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Gingrich Is the Only Candidate Who Talks About How He'd Govern the Country. Good for Him. The Artist Is Slight but Enormously Likable and Destined To Win Awards Siri Gives Terrible Answers When You Ask About Abortion or Birth Control	Advertisement
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