Gingrich issues statement about conservative platform on night of losses

by Josh Lederman - 04/04/12 2:40 AM ET

Newt Gingrich didn’t give a speech or hold a rally on Tuesday after losing primaries in Wisconsin, Maryland and the District of Columbia, but did take on President Obama, Mitt Romney and the GOP in a statement circulated to the press.

“To defeat President Obama and change Washington, our party must commit itself to a bold, conservative platform,” Gingrich said.

{mosads}“We cannot win on an Etch A Sketch platform that shows no principle or backbone,” he said, riffing on a gaffe recently made by a top Romney aide during a television interview.

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Gingrich has substantially scaled back his presidential campaign, but he still promises to stay in the race until the Republican National Convention this summer. He has described his new goal as being to pull Romney to the right by holding him to conservative positions, even if he can’t defeat him to become the GOP nominee.

Gingrich has had a lighter schedule on the campaign trail in recent days; his wife, Callista, has more events Wednesday than he does.

“The Washington establishment wants to declare this race over, but I am committed to carrying the banner of bold conservative colors all the way to Tampa to ensure the Republican Party never abandons the timeless conservative principles of Ronald Reagan and the Contract with America,” he said.

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