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But there were signs, in Iowa, that Gingrich's personal and professional background was starting to become an issue in the campaign. A group called Iowans for Christian Leaders in Government is circulating a new Web video reminding Republicans that Gingrich once appeared with then House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to advocate action on climate change. Pelosi, a Democrat, is widely loathed among Republican activists, many of whom do not believe there is proof that human activity has caused climate change and oppose many efforts to regulate carbon emissions. The same group circulated fliers earlier in the year criticizing the thrice-married Gingrich for his divorces. Elsewhere, Gingrich's organizational struggles to catch up with his rivals were coming to light. He has already missed the deadline to appear on the ballot in Missouri, which holds its primary Feb. 7. He insisted Monday that he did not plan to compete in that contest because it does not award delegates. Missouri Republicans have set a caucus in March to confer delegates. The troubles are perhaps most urgent in Ohio, where candidates face a Wednesday deadline to submit between 50 and 150 signatures from registered Republicans from each of the state's 16 congressional districts.
"Newt Gingrich will not be on the Ohio Primary ballot in 2012 unless we take immediate action," read a Saturday email with the subject line, "Emergency" from a Gingrich organizer to Ohio Republicans. The message gave potential delegates just 24 hours to travel to the Gingrich headquarters to sign required forms. And there's no indication that Gingrich's team has begun to gather signatures to meet deadlines in such states as Virginia, Illinois and Indiana, all of which are due in the next several weeks. In New Hampshire, which hosts the nation's first primary Jan. 10, Gingrich's newly assembled team last month failed to submit a list of 20 supporters to serve as potential delegates to the GOP's national convention. It was largely a symbolic submission, but one that candidates take seriously to reward top local supporters. Gingrich's staff, however, rounded up just 14 names scratched on state forms in messy handwriting. The other serious candidates submitted typed forms with a full slate of delegates. And former state GOP chairman Fergus Cullen suggests the incident "could signal a lack of basic organization." On Monday, Gingrich defended his bare-bones approach as one that reflects efficiencies that businesses have adopted to make them run more efficiently over a consultant-heavy approach that's "slow, cumbersome and expensive." His approach could be more from necessity; as of Sept. 30, his campaign was in the red.
[Associated
Press;
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