Gingrich Compares Obama to Carter: 'Can't Get Reelected in a Clean Direct Honest Campaign'

In an interview with Fox News's Sean Hannity Wednesday, Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich made a powerful criticism of the current White House resident.

"Obama can't get reelected in a clean direct honest campaign" (video follows with transcript):

NEWT GINGRICH: The other part of the mud, though, comes from a different thing. And it's a sense what the reverse side of what you tried to tell all of us in '07 and `08. Obama can't get reelected in a clean direct honest campaign. Chicago politicians say, OK, let me have this straight. I can destroy my opponent with whatever it takes and win or I can be a good citizen and lose. I pick destroy my opponent. They're not raising a billion dollars using the power of the White House in order to run positive ads.

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: This raises a question. Recently, the President said that republican plan is for dirtier air and dirtier water. And fewer people having healthcare. There's been recent attack by his surrogates. You had a congressman that literally said, conservatives want blacks hanging from trees, Maxine Waters, the Tea Party, they can go straight to hell. This is the rhetoric that's been coming out. And, of course though, you got the image of Paul Ryan throwing grandma in a wheelchair over a cliff. How bad is it going to get and how do you counter a billion dollar attack ad that is against you or whoever the nominee is?

GINGRICH: I think it depends on your opinion of the American people. I think a billion dollars in lies in the end becomes a billion dollars in lies. And this is why they have a big problem. You know, Ronald Reagan thought very long and hard about the degree to which Jimmy Carter and today by the way, Obama has approval drop below Carter. And so, he knew Carter would lie. And it goes, there's a whole style of politics Carter represented, to sort of surround you with lies. And Reagan had to think through, how do you take on an incumbent President that doesn't get you sucked into fighting over the lies? And they came up with the very brilliant simple phrase.

HANNITY: There you go again.

GINGRICH: There you go again.

HANNITY: Yes.

GINGRICH: And every time Carter would say something, it was false. Reagan would just go, there you go again, and within seconds the entire country got it.

HANNITY: If Reagan's line was, are you better off than you were four years ago, if you get the nomination, what would your line be about Obama?

GINGRICH: Can you really stand four more years of this?

HANNITY: Good line.