Newt Gingrich returned Friday to the one place polls say he's still the front-runner and vowed to fight to win his former state.
Gingrich rallied more than 300 supporters in Peachtree City to kick off a two-day swing through Georgia, the state he represented for 20 years in Congress as a backbencher, firebrand and speaker of the House.
"The primary in Georgia is very important, and I need your help and no one should take it for granted," Gingrich said from the stage in a hangar at Falcon Field. "This is a wide-open race."
He urged his supporters to spread the word.
"Go home and put this on Facebook, tweet it and call your friends," he said. "And in an old-fashioned way, maybe even see people. With your help we’re going to win the primary, we’ll win Super Tuesday and, for the first time, we’ll be moving back to front-runner status with your help."
But if Gingrich, who now lives in Virginia, is to win his former home state in the March 6 Super Tuesday primary, it apparently won't be without a challenge from two of the remaining three candidates. A super PAC supporting former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney on Friday purchased nearly $1 million worth of television advertising time in Georgia for spots to run the final two weeks of the campaign, beginning Tuesday.
The size of the buy, paid for by the Restore Our Future political action committee, is considered moderate, although it's the largest splurge the state has seen in the presidential primary.
Meanwhile, CBS News reported that the super PAC supporting Gingrich, Winning Our Future, was infused by an additional $10 million from Las Vegas casino owner Sheldon Adelson. The network quoted an unnamed source for the report. Former Gingrich aide Rick Tyler, who helps run Winning Our Future, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution he could not confirm or deny the report. Efforts to reach Adelson were unsuccessful.
Adelson had previously given Gingrich's PAC $11 million, and CBS reported he was prepared to add a final contribution of $4 million.
Tyler told the AJC that Gingrich's PAC has made no buy in Georgia and is not ready to announce any buys, but he denounced the Romney super PAC he refers to as "Destroy Our Future."
“Everywhere they’ve run ads they’ve repressed the vote," Tyler said. "Their scorch-the-earth strategy is destroying our party, destroying our candidates and destroying Romney. By the time they’re through there won’t be anybody left to vote for to defeat [President Barack] Obama.”
Gingrich could use the help. He trails Romney and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania in Arizona and Michigan, two states that vote Feb. 28. Gingrich also saw an opportunity slip away Thursday, when Romney and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas bailed out of a planned March 1 debate in Atlanta that prompted CNN to cancel the entire affair. Santorum had also signaled he was unlikely to participate.
Their decision did not sit well with Steve Thaxton, a Peachtree City Republican who said he's still undecided. He attended the Gingrich event to help him make up his mind.
"I"m terribly disappointed with the news the debate here was going to be canceled," Thaxton said, noting that it is a mark against the other candidates in his mind. "I'm sure there was a political calculation behind it."
Gingrich, too, took aim at his rivals' decision. Noting that two people in the audience were wearing chicken suits and shirts for Santorum and Romney, Gingrich said it was an appropriate metaphor.
"If you’re afraid to debate Newt Gingrich," he said, "you sure can’t debate Barack Obama."
Gingrich added, "There's something wrong when someone tries to buy their way to the presidency with negative ads and won't stand out in the open to defend them."
If Gingrich has a firewall in a campaign that has seen his fortunes wane, it's Georgia and other Southern states that vote on Super Tuesday. And while two polls released last week show him having a healthy lead in Georgia, other candidates have shown signs of challenging him here.
Santorum will campaign in Georgia on Sunday and has launched a round of television advertising. The buy is small, $55,000 for a spot that will run only on Fox News.
Gingrich has made no secret that his campaign doesn't have the resources to dominate the airwaves like Romney's does. But he said Friday that he remains confident his message will get out.
In addition to Friday night's rally, Gingrich has a full day of events planned Saturday. He will hold town hall events with voters in Forsyth and Gwinnett counties and rally supporters in Cobb County. He also has another Georgia swing planned Feb. 28 through March 1.
Gingrich is focused on the South, and his campaign says that of the 10 states voting on Super Tuesday, Georgia, Tennessee and Oklahoma provide the best opportunities for victory.
Cheryl Epsy-Dalton, the GOP's 13 District vice chairwoman, said Gingrich is not a perfect candidate -- but none of them are.
"Against a bulldog, you have to have a bulldog," Epsy-Dalton said. "And our bulldog is tougher than their bulldog."
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