Newt Gingrich using energy, power of tea party movement

Romney has renewed his efforts to undercut Gingrich’s claim of outsider status, hammering home his work for the mortgage giant Freddie Mac, describing the former House speaker as a “Washington insider” who “peddled influence” on behalf of his clients.

On Tuesday, Romney addressed a crowd in front of a house in Fort Myers with a red “foreclosed” sign in the yard.

Graphic

GOP PRIMARY TRACKER: The race for delegates

Gallery

January: The GOP presidential race moves to Florida following Newt Gingrich’s win in the South Carolina primary.

More on this Story

• Full State of the Union coverage
• Read full text of Obama’s address
• Obama: Wealth gap threatens middle class
• In Obama’s address, a gift of timing

View all Items in this Story

• Quiz: Test your knowledge of the speech
• Economy will be major factor in election
• Giffords, pairings elicit unity in Congress
• Task force on mortgage misdeeds proposed
• Zandi: Obama’s plan would boost economy
• Wonkblog: A look at the policies in SOTU
• The Fix: Confrontation mixed with Kumbaya
• GOP reactions to address vary in tone
• TV review: Obama’s address was real enough
• Interactive: Breaking down the State of the Union
• Buffett’s secretary sits with first lady during SOTU
• Main Street’s hottest topic? Not the SOTU.
• Romney goes on attack in SOTU 'prebuttal'
• Transcript: Robert Kaiser’s SOTU analysis
• A look back at memorable SOTU moments
• In the Loop: How to travel like a spy
• Gingrich uses momentum of tea party movement
• Romney’s offshore holdings complicate debate
• Romney tax returns make him part of key debate
• Pro-Gingrich super PAC builds shadow campaign

“One thing I know he was doing is he was standing up as the former speaker of the House and someone many people respected as a conservative leader. He was standing up and defending Freddie Mac,” he told the gathering of a few hundred people. “And so conservatives in Congress and conservatives around the country, instead of arguing to get rid of these entities, to scale them back and let the free market work, they said, ‘Well, if Newt Gingrich thinks it’s a good idea, then we ought to go along with it.’

“You get paid, and then you go out and say things that influence other people,” Romney continued. “That’s the nature of what’s been going on in this country. It is wrong. We can’t have influence peddlers leading our party.”

As the tug-of-war over outsider status continued, advisers to Gingrich pushed hard on the comparisons between Romney and Crist, saying their similarities speak to the overall dynamic of the race — and will resonate in Florida.

“Charlie Crist was the establishment candidate,” Mallea said. “He was well-funded. He had all the high-profile endorsements.”

But Gingrich, like Rubio, “has a bold agenda and wants to go to D.C. and shake things up,” he added.

Not every voter agrees. Bob Ide, 60, a retired insurance man from Cape Coral, said the Freddie Mac contract proves that Gingrich is not the outsider he has portrayed. “It was basically a kickback. It was that kind of money, basically just to be their friend.”

“He’s no outsider — he’s been running for president for years,” said Ide, who supports Romney. He said the tea party will play a role, “but the election is bigger than them.”

“Republicans are charged, Democrats are charged,” Ide said. “It’s going to be wild.”

Staff writer Philip Rucker in Washington contributed to this report.