Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was called out for a notable early campaign gaffe in a new ad released by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. Called, “With Friends Like Newt,” the video recaps Gingrich’s Meet the Press attack on the Paul Ryan’s budget plan.
The Ryan plan approached reforming entitlements and eventually getting the budget balanced, something that Gingrich called “right-wing social engineering”. Ryan said of Gingrich, “With friends like that, who needs enemies?”
Gingrich called Ryan and apologized quickly thereafter, and he has said that he deeply regrets making the comment.
While Romney is going hard after Gingrich’s comments on the Ryan plan, Romney started off a bit tepid himself, mentioning that he would have his own plan. He said though, that he would fully embrace the Ryan proposal if he was the president and it came to his desk.
