Andy Card: Newt Gingrich is not 'helpful'
Former White House chief of staff Andy Card said Monday that Newt Gingrich’s recent claim that Barack Obama has a “Kenyan, anti-colonial” worldview is not “helpful” to Republicans trying to win in November.
Gingrich floated the birther-like suggestion on Saturday in an interview with the National Review.
“What if [Obama] is so outside our comprehension, that only if you understand Kenyan, anti-colonial behavior, can you begin to piece together [his actions]?” the former GOP House speaker posited. “That is the most accurate, predictive model for his behavior.”
Asked about the comment on Monday during an appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Card first tried to dodge the question before conceding that Gingrich’s rhetoric is harmful to the party.
“I don't think they help,” he said of the comments. “I don't think the statements that Newt Gingrich made are helpful, no.”
Card tried to credit Gingrich with providing other good ideas to Republican politics, but when asked if he was “disappointed” by the former speaker’s comments, the former Bush hand said, “Yes, I’m disappointed.”
“I don't think I'm surprised because Newt has lots of opinions and he's not afraid to express them,” Card said.
Gingrich's aide's later attempted to clarify the former House speaker's comments, noting the answer was in reference to a story in Forbes on Obama's father's anti-colonial views.
