[OnTheIce]

Bad news is, this turd will probably get voted in.

[raydan]

On the plus side, he was named the second most popular Newt, losing out only to this guy.

[Brenda]

OnTheIce OnTheIce:

Bad news is, this turd will probably get voted in.

Then Obama will have nothing to worry about.

[QBall]

He said it in Cocoa Beach area, an area hit hard financially from the large scale back of the space program. He pandered to the crowd in Florida, which is his immediate concern. Sure it makes him look like a fool in the rest of the country, but he has to take it one state at a time. Do I believe he was sincere? I don't think Newt believed he was sincere. He was just doing what politicians do best: campaigning. He'll probably promise to make Spanish an official language when he gets to Arizona and New Mexico and promise to make surfing the national sport when he gets to California.

[rickc]

QBall QBall:

He said it in Cocoa Beach area, an area hit hard financially from the large scale back of the space program. He pandered to the crowd in Florida, which is his immediate concern. Sure it makes him look like a fool in the rest of the country, but he has to take it one state at a time. Do I believe he was sincere? I don't think Newt believed he was sincere. He was just doing what politicians do best: campaigning. He'll probably promise to make Spanish an official language when he gets to Arizona and New Mexico and promise to make surfing the national sport when he gets to California.

Romney brought up this very point in last nights debate. Newt is making promises that he can not possibly deliver on at every stop. I know its what politicians do, but it was nice to see him get called on it.

[xerxes]

Not like Newt could have been bothered to look it up (or care) but his "plan" actually violates an international treaty or two:

$1:

Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States
in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including
the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies (1962)

The Outer Space Treaty was considered by the Legal Subcommittee in 1966 and agreement was reached in the General Assembly in the same year ( resolution 2222 (XXI). The Treaty was largely based on the Declaration of Legal Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, which had been adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 1962 (XVIII) in 1963, but added a few new provisions. The Treaty was opened for signature by the three depository Governments (the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States of America) in January 1967, and it entered into force in October 1967. The Outer Space Treaty provides the basic framework on international space law, including the following principles:

-the exploration and use of outer space shall be carried out for the benefit and in the interests of all countries and shall be the province of all mankind;
-outer space shall be free for exploration and use by all States;
-outer space is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means;
-States shall not place nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in orbit or on celestial bodies or station them in outer space in any other manner;
-the Moon and other celestial bodies shall be used exclusively for peaceful purposes;
-astronauts shall be regarded as the envoys of mankind;
-States shall be responsible for national space activities whether carried out by governmental or non-governmental entities;
-States shall be liable for damage caused by their space objects; and
-States shall avoid harmful contamination of space and celestial bodies.

[Caelon]

What about the possibility that Gingrich feels that providing a goal/dream that the American public can believe in will get him elelcted. Is there a pent up desire to reclaim the #1 position in the world and would a moon base be the representation of it?

Achievable or not, goals that appeal to a large poplulation base generate and equally large number of votes in the ballot box. Moon Base 2020 is a short statement that fits in headlines.

We can look at our own history to see some of the statements that had broad appeal with no follow through.

[Thanos]

I'd accept the premise if it weren't coming from someone who's spent most of the last two years claiming that the budget deficit and national debt (all President Obama's fault of course, no Republicans are to take any blame) wasn't going to destroy the United States from top to bottom. The planning and R&D for a moon base would probably cost about a trillion dollars before anything even got built up there. Where's the money for this idiotic idea going to come from? Kicking all the leeches and parasites off of Medicare and Social Security?

Gingrich: still proving with every speech that he's the dumb person's idea of what a smart person sounds like. The man is as empty as a old paper bag and he's genuinely rotten to his core.