{"id":12304,"date":"2013-12-12T08:06:37","date_gmt":"2013-12-12T08:06:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/praag.org\/?p=12304"},"modified":"2013-12-12T08:06:37","modified_gmt":"2013-12-12T08:06:37","slug":"backlash-from-newt-gingrichs-supporters-over-his-praise-of-mandela","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/praag.org\/?p=12304","title":{"rendered":"Backlash from Newt Gingrich’s supporters over his praise of Mandela"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Newt<\/a>
Newt Gingrich<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) said Sunday he was “very surprised” at people who were critical of his decision to praise Nelson Mandela this week, standing by his admiration for Mandela’s “very long, deep commitment to freedom.”<\/p>\n

On Thursday, upon hearing of the former South African president’s death, Gingrich put up a post on Facebook, expressing his condolences.<\/p>\n

“President Nelson Mandela was one of the greatest leaders of our lifetime,” he wrote. “When he visited the Congress I was deeply impressed with the charisma and the calmness with which he could dominate a room. It was as if the rest of us grew smaller and he grew stronger and more dominant the longer the meeting continued.”<\/p>\n

Gingrich’s statement, however, was met with backlash from many of his followers.<\/p>\n

“Newt, I was rooting for you to win the primaries and become the next president; please tell me your joking!! Mandela was a commie murderer!!” read one comment that was popular with other users.<\/p>\n

“You’re forgetting Mandela’s extreme racism! There are YouTubes of Mandela singing songs about murdering the white man. I spit on his grave….,” read another.<\/p>\n

When asked about the criticism in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, Gingrich replied, “I was very surprised by it. [My wife] Callista posted my statement on her Facebook page and was amazed at some of the intensity — some of whom came back three, four and five times repeating how angry they were.”<\/p>\n

In response, on Saturday, Gingrich put out a new statement and video to his supporters, challenging critics to put themselves in Mandela’s shoes.<\/p>\n