Kyle Bell

After a moderately tame primary season things are starting to heat up. Newt Gingrich decided to not go negative in Iowa after being nuked with vicious ads from Mitt Romney paid for with secret donors. The result was a stunning reversal of fortunes. Within a matter of weeks Gingrich plummeted from first in the polls to a decidedly weak fourth place finish. Take a look at one of the ads that Gingrich was running before Iowa:

This next ad is running in South Carolina after Gingrich lost in Iowa and New Hampshire:

Of course Gingrich’s ad is softball compared to what George W. Bush did to John McCain in South Carolina during the 2000 Republican primary. McCain was accused of fathering an illegitimate black child and it cost him big time. The Arizona senator lost by 11 points after having pulled off a major New Hampshire upset. Can Gingrich manage to derail Newt with similar negative attack ads? The tightening polls certainly indicate that he could. Of course this time, unlike with McCain, Romney will deserve the verbal beating on television.