The man most associated with the GOP's last Congressional takeover in 1994, Newt Gingrich, says recent developments in two House special elections set the stage for some Republican Revolution deja vu in 2010. Speaking before a group of GOP state party chairs this morning, Gingrich said recent developments in two Democratically held districts currently holding special elections -- Hawaii's First and Pennsylvania's Twelfth -- raise expectations of for a good Republican year even higher. What's more, he said, they could put embattled GOP chairman Michael Steele in some pretty select Republican company. "With your help, and the help of the American people, Chairman Steele stands on the edge of being the most successful RNC chair since Haley Barbour in 1994," Gingrich said after Steele introduced him to the audience at this year's GOP national state party chair meeting in Maryland.
Gingrich said that developments in the races to replace the late Rep. Jack Murtha (D-PA) and fill the open seat left by Rep. Neil Abercrombie's (D-HI) resignation, both of which will be decided this month, bode well for big GOP gains in November.
"If we are competitive in Congressman Murtha's district in Western Pennsylvania and we are successful in Hawaii, we are doing very well," Gingrich said.
He pointed to the DCCC's decision to abandon the Hawaii race in advance of a May 22 vote tally that many say will leave the Republicans on top after a split Democratic vote as evidence that Democrats are being forced to cede ground to popular GOP candidates.
"In my experience, that's not a good sign," he joked when describing the DCCC's decision to pull out of the race.
Gingrich urged Republicans to get behind businessman Tim Burns, who's battling former Murtha aide Mark Critz in the PA-12 race, which will be decided on May 18. Gingrich said a win in Murtha's district would be tantamount to the Republican capture of Sen. Ted Kennedy's seat in Massachusetts in January, and could serve to fire up the base as the 2010 general election race kicks off in earnest.
Polls have shown the race to be essentially a dead heat heading into the final week. Gingrich said the district "has really moved dramatically to the right" in recent years and is ready to elect a Republican.
"That election is a great opportunity for us," Gingrich said. "Burns could be the next Scott Brown."
Later in his speech, Gingrich said that the 2010 elections -- and the 2012 presidential race for which he is rumored to be a contender -- "are among the most consequential in American history." He said Republican victories in the near term would allow the party to make "fundamental changes" to the way the country operates that could be felt for generations to come.
