Gingrich Explain-ogizes For "Racist" Comment

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Jun 3 2009, 8:47 am by Marc Ambinder

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich concedes that his tweet calling Judge Sonia Sotomayor a "racist" was "perhaps too strong." In an e-mail to supporters, Gingrich writes that "The word "racist" should not have been applied to Judge Sotomayor as a person, even if her words themselves are unacceptable (a fact which both President Obama and his Press Secretary, Robert Gibbs, have since admitted)." He then devotes more than a thousand words to an an essay about how Sotomayor's remark about wise Latinas "reveal[s] a betrayal of a fundamental principle." Still, Gingrich admits that "[]n fairness to the judge, many of her rulings as a court of appeals judge do not match the radicalism of her speeches and statements. She has shown more caution and moderation in her rulings than in her words."