Gingrich at the Capitol
Former House Speaker praises Ohio Valley's potential for growthBy CASEY JUNKINS Staff Writer
WHEELING - Newt Gingrich believes quality universities and hospitals - as well as close proximity to Pittsburgh International Airport - should allow the Ohio Valley's economy to grow over the next 20 years.
"Sooner or later, when you figure out the right marketing, the Panhandle is going to be where smart people live who don't want to waste their life finding their way through Pittsburgh," he said during his Friday speech before about 1,200 guests at Wheeling's recently-reopened Capitol Theatre.
Gingrich, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995-99, was a Republican representing Georgia's Sixth Congressional District. The Government Policy Research Center at West Liberty University sponsored Gingrich's appearance through grants provided by the Public Policy Foundation of West Virginia and BB&T.
Citing the attributes of West Liberty and Wheeling Jesuit University, as well as those of Wheeling Hospital and Ohio Valley Medical Center, Gingrich said there is strong potential for growth in the Wheeling area.
"If you talk together about the intellectual capabilities you have in these two universities, the capabilities of all the medical staff you have in these two hospitals, the potential you have being this close to the Pittsburgh airport - you suddenly get a whole new story about quality of life, economic opportunity, raising your kids in a safe area with good people and strong values. And you might be shocked 10 years from now how many folks have decided to come here, rather than live in more expensive, more heavily populated and ultimately not as morally strong, places," he said.
"You have the potential to become very attractive and very intriguing to entrepreneurs from all over the world," Gingrich added.
In order to achieve the economic growth of which he speaks, however, Gingrich said Americans must work to reverse current political trends.
"We have become a country whose litigation, regulation and taxation is crippling us. ... We have to rethink litigation, regulation, taxation, education, health, energy and infrastructure," he said.
Gingrich urged his audience to follow five basic principles every day:
- Dream big
- Work hard
- Learn every day
- Enjoy life
- Be true to yourself
"Dream big. Think in a positive way over the next 20 or 30 years in this region," he said. "One of the things I would urge you to think about is to build, almost, a science study group that just looks around, sits on the Internet and just scans for ideas and starts looking for entrepreneurs - and tries to figure out how to take some of these old buildings and tries to turn them into entrepreneurial spaces."
In terms of working hard, the former speaker cited golf champion Tiger Woods and professional football star Brett Favre as examples of those who give their best each and every day.
"I know that Brett focuses and he practices in a disciplined way all the time in order to be in good enough shape to continue to have the longest record of consecutive starts in the history of the NFL," Gingrich said of the former Green Bay Packers and current Minnesota Vikings quarterback.
As for learning every day, Gingrich said Vice Mayor Eugene Fahey informed him of Wheeling's unique history concerning the American Revolutionary War.
"He (Fahey) was pointing out to me that Fort Henry here was the last place to have a skirmish in the American Revolutionary War because word has not gotten this far west that they had signed a peace treaty," said Gingrich.
As for his "most important governmental slogan for the next 20 years," Gingrich said Americans should remember that "two plus two equals four."
"If the government tells you 'two plus two equals five' they are lying to you," he said.
"America is about your right to dream. The dream requires you to take risk," Gingrich added.
Gingrich is chairman of the Gingrich Group, a communications and consulting firm with offices in Atlanta and Washington, D.C. He serves as general chairman of American Solutions for Winning the Future, is a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C, a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., and is an honorary chairman of the NanoBusiness Alliance. He is also a news and political analyst for the Fox News Channel.
In 1995, Time magazine selected Gingrich as its "Man of the Year."
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rover1958
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10-18-09 8:06 PM
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And then Newt said, "A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage."
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beach1
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10-18-09 7:45 PM
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since you people only want to talk about morals, i think you alll know that clinton is the poster boy for the morals of the democratic party! nuf said.
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Graysongs
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10-18-09 7:34 PM
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Captain - I'm no fan of Newt's as a politician, but your post is the same lame idiot partisan crap as always. He's not holding forth as a spokeman for "family values" and his admission to Sheehy is more a confession of faults he's seen in himself that needed to be rectified somehow. Whether he has or he hasn't done so is his problem, but he has at least owned up to his shortcomings. How's "Silky Pony" Edwards doing on that? Still trying to deny he's this child's father? I hope his wife takes him to the cleaners in the divorce and leaves his vast estate to her children.
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Captain
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10-18-09 7:19 PM
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Newt is not to be taken seriously as a spokesman for family values. Regardless of Edwards, or the late Kennedy, Gingrich can also boast of being a dead-beat dad, being part of the House banking scandal (bounced 22 checks himself), using tax payer subsidized donations for his personal and politican purposes. "I think you can write a psychological profile of me that says I found a way to immerse my insecurities in a cause large enough to justify whatever I wanted it to" - Newt, speaking to Gail Sheehy.
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Graysongs
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10-18-09 6:26 PM
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RockE - 20% unemployment, declining value of the dollar, foolish "stimulus" spending, socialized medicine, our enemies laughing at us. No, there's no need to "search" for an idea, except for the mentally lame like yourself.
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RockEReputation
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10-18-09 5:09 PM
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"intentionally evil and destructive" Leaving another impression from amongst the barrage of pompous phrases moving over the boards in search of an idea.
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Graysongs
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10-18-09 2:46 PM
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l8ibralady - One way or another, we are going to be starting over. The only thing that remains to be seen is how far down into chaos and destruction we will be driven by delusion before patriots act. Some think ObaMao's stupid or incompetent. I don't. I see him as intentionally evil and destructive - and very competent at it.
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libralady1973
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10-18-09 11:51 AM
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Hey Graysongs...we agree on getting rid of BOTH parties and starting over. Sadly, with lobbyists, earmarks and having to compromise beliefs to get things done, I'm afraid whomever would replace those currently in power would end up just as corrupt. It is very sad.
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formerohvalleyresident
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10-18-09 11:30 AM
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So you liberals liked Joe Biden’s speech better when he came to Zanesville and said “Coal Power? Are you nuts, we’re never gonna have another one of those polluting messes in this country. What? I’m in “coal country”? Heck, I love coal …..”
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Graysongs
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10-17-09 7:43 PM
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librallady - By the way, I don't care about "whitewashing" Newt. I want BOTH parties completely nuked, destroyed, blown out of existence. Both are so totally compromised with corruption that they're worthless. Actually, worse than worthless. If the 2nd Amendment existed as the Founders intended, we'd be able to drop 1,000 pound bombs on both the RNC and DNC headquarters buildings.
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Graysongs
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10-17-09 7:37 PM
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libral lady - And, of course, blind to the various tax cheats and frauds who REALLY want to tell you how to live by taking your money while they don't pay their own taxes.
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wvhoopie
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10-17-09 7:13 PM
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Gingrich is an airhead. He spoke in such broad terms that he looked foolish. Old outdated regurgitated rethuglican ideas is all he has in his bag of tricks. He won't be the nominee for the rethugs and if he is he will lose in a landslide no matter what Obama does.
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libralady1973
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10-17-09 7:02 PM
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No, I am not an utter fool. I see the negative side of the left as well. But, John Edwards is not part of the party who praises themselves for being the party of "Family Values." He is just as guilty, if not more than Newt, but just because Edwards is a Louse, it doesn't make what Newt did right. You can't whitewash Newt just because Democrats do the same thing. Very sad that another poster made this whole discussion ridiculous by calling Elizabeth unattractive and excusing her husband's behavior.
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AlexanderShulgin
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10-17-09 6:42 PM
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Firstly, John Edwards’ wife is not attractive and she comes across as a real pain in the a ss. One could look at the situation this way: she is/was sick, on chemotherapy- he saved her the discomfort of coitus. In that light he was kind of doing her a favor.
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Graysongs
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10-17-09 5:44 PM
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Ell8is - "Silky Pony" John Edwards is probably going to sue the gal for getting knocked up. I hope his wife divrces him, takes everything imaginable from him and leaves it in trust for her children when she passes. Let that bum chase a few more ambulances to eke out a living.
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Graysongs
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10-17-09 5:37 PM
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librallady - Could you possibly be any stupider? Your left Democrats are just as bad on matters of that sort. Worse, since they want to take your money and tell you how to live while Charlie "Da Kingfish" Rangel tells you his unpaid - and falsely filed - income taxes are "none of you god--- business". You're an utter fool.
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EllisWyatt
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10-17-09 5:22 PM
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librallady Yes, I guess Newt is far worse than John Edwards, who had an affair and fathered a********child with a woman who worked for him-WHILE HIS WIFE WAS UNDERGOING CHEMOTHERAPY FOR ADVANCED CANCER. Double standards abound, do they not?
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libralady1973
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10-17-09 4:51 PM
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Lovely picture of Mrs. Gingrich singing with the choir. Is she the one that Newt left his cancer stricken wife for? Nice family values guy who tells his wife, in the hospital undergoing cancer treatment, that he is dumping her for another (probably younger) woman. Until these conservatives stop trying to tell everyone else how to live their lives, while being so hypocritical, I don't listen to their whining.
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Graysongs
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10-17-09 1:53 PM
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former - No, Ted was born a Catholic - sadly enough. Converts take it much more seriously.
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formerohvalleyresident
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10-17-09 1:48 PM
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Gray, yep forgot, Ted became a Catholic because he liked all that wine they had for Communion!He picked the religion with the best Happy Hour (hic)!
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USMCDeathPimp
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10-17-09 1:24 PM
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what? well..if ANYONE tells me 2 plus 2 is 5 .....i know they are lying to me....what wisdom...he should write a book...oh he did that ...nevermind.
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USMCDeathPimp
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10-17-09 1:22 PM
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So basically newt sez "cleanup these dumps you call houses and people who work in a real city will rent or buy them cause whatcha have here is a suburb not a metropolitan area'.
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Graysongs
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10-17-09 1:02 PM
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former - Old Ted was never a Baptist. That drinking thing would have been a serious impediment.
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formerohvalleyresident
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10-17-09 12:50 PM
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26003, Ted Kennedy would NEVER run as a GOP and besides he is dead! Oh sorry, you mean the adulterer who didn't kill women?
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Graysongs
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10-17-09 11:32 AM
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It seems that Gingrich's wife sings with this group which was scheduled for a local church appearance. He set up a speaking engagement to coincide with that. It is only a big deal because there's so litle else going on in a town of shrinking population.
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