Newt Gingrich, SL Fan, Likely to Be GOP's 2012 Candidate

Newt Gingrich, who once visited Second Life as an avatar flanked by a Qaddafi-esque squadron of female bodyguards, declaring it "the beginning of a very different kind of system that let's exactly what you see in front of you happen, which is people from all over the world, can come together, and be together, and share ideas", won the Republican primary in South Carolina last weekend, handily beating Mitt Romney. And as my friend Andrew Leonard noted, since 1980 the Republican nominee who wins South Carolina goes on to win the GOP primary for President. And in any case, Newt is way ahead of Romney in the next primary contest, in Florida. So prepare to hear a lot more in the mainstream media about the Second Life of Newt Gingrich soon.

Update, 11:25AM: By the way, just to make sure no casual readers interpret this post as an endorsement of Gingrich (a notion that makes me throw up in my mouth a little) let me also note that the Obama Administration, through Beth Noveck, President Obama's former deputy chief technology officer for open government (an early SL innovator), has also done some outreach into SL of its own. (But in my opinion, leveraging the platform much more realistically than Gingrich.)

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Comments

[Scarp Godenot]

Enough of the love for this crook already.

So what if he knows Second Life exists? This amounts to less than nothing in the real world.

Don't forget he wants to be the leader of the Anti Science party...

[foneco zuzu]

I rather prefer to see and know who was the candidates to China next Government!

[Lyrical Popstar]

If SL people start rallying for him because he has an SL presence, I just won't want to live on this planet anymore.

[Ignatius Onomatopoeia]

What attracted Newt to Second Life? Having a wife and a mistress is possible, even likely.

I'm still waiting for Newt's big slip, when he mistakes RL for SL by showing up at a debate as a Babyfur, diapers and all. One can but dream.

Hamlet, enough of this tired connection. And "likely" candidate? Wait until after Super Tuesday for that prognostication.

Meanwhile, Newt can self-destruct on his own, thank you.

[Ziki Questi]

SL "fan"? Fan? The guy visited once, years ago, probably because people on his staff told him to. Why do you continue to recycle a story from 2007?

There are so many more interesting things going on -- striking new builds around the grid, a burst in creativity in third party viewers, interesting applications of mesh -- why not spend some time inworld to see what's going on?

[Pussycat Catnap]

Hamlet's got something weird going down with regards to the Grinch...

Know each other in RL or something?

As for this:
"I rather prefer to see and know who was the candidates to China next Government!"
- Just look at who gets lined up in front a ditch and shot in the back of the head. Anyone who's family is -not- there, is ruling China next.

[shockwave yareach]

Any politician pushing these antiFreedom bills needs to come into SL so we can pummel them with Pe**ses. We have put the court fools in charge of the kingdom and they don't let little things like not knowing how things work dissuade them from telling experts how to change things to suit them.

I detest griefers. But I must admit, for idiots like SOPA pushers, nothing but a flaccid one in the face suffices to express my contempt for their ignorance and corruption.

[Eddi Haskell]

I still think Romney -- or someone else -- will pull this out in the end simply because the Republican establishment knows that Newt has way too much dirty baggage in his background.

However, President Obama will be reelected in 2012. I am sure of this. And I am guessing that Hillary Clinton just may be his running mate, and Biden will move to her job of Secretary of State, something he has always wanted. Its just a guess, but it makes too much sense.

As a Gay American, and someone who is not in the top 1%, the idea of a Republican President scares the hell out of me.

[Kim]

Ha! Newt Gingrich is no more "likely" than Mitt Romney to get the nomination. Sure, the winner of SC in the past has always gone on to win the primaries. But also, never in Republican history have we had three different winners in the first three states. If SC is wrong, it will be far from the first unprecedented event in this primary. The volatility of this race makes it impossible to nail a "likely nominee" at this point. But Hamlet's not a political wonk, so we'll forgive the error.

But, assuming Newt Gingrich is a "SL fan," what are the ramifications for it really? More than likely it would give SL an even worse name, as most Americans (and most establishment Republicans) have VERY negative associations with this erratic, angry politician.

[Arcadia Codesmith]

I would not want Newt Gingrich to be president. Of anything.

But I would very much like for him to be the Republican nominee for President.

Pull!

[foneco zuzu]

I'm glad I'm not Usa citizen at this moment, cause the choices, from both sides, seems so....well lack of words but one, poor!
Where are the Reagan's , Clinton's, Roosevelt's???
When World most needs a Leader for the, till now, most powerful nation, is that all you can show?

[Emperor Norton]

Considering what a horn dog Newt is I am not surprised he would be a fan of Second Life.

[Emperor Norton]

Kim @ "Ha! Newt Gingrich is no more "likely" than Mitt Romney to get the nomination."

Newt a sure thing for Florida and out polling Mittbot 2.0 nationally. While the GOP primaries are all over it the place one thing is clear, conservatives don't like the Mittbot 2.0.

[Pussycat Catnap]

Romney is a Mormon, and if there's one thing you can always bank on with Republicans, its bigotry. Ever since 'The Southern Strategy' of Nixon, "that camp" has switched to the party that was originally formed to wage war on them, and vice versa. So the Grinch is the likely winner.

[elizabeth (16)]

is a bit of a worry that mr gingrich not know how to edit his tie