Republican presidential candidate, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich speaks in New York. Mitt Romney faces some serious hurdles in trying to slow Newt Gingrich’s surge. Time is running short, with three weeks before the Iowa caucuses and just one before many voters tune out for the holiday season. And a new Associated Press-GfK poll shows that Republicans aren’t buying Romney’s Outsider-vs.-Insider pitch.By CHARLES BABINGTON and NANCY BENAC
WASHINGTON – Mitt Romney says his business background makes him a better presidential candidate than Newt Gingrich, who has spent decades in Washington. But the argument is not moving Republicans his way, underscoring Romney’s challenge in finding a way to stem Gingrich’s rise three weeks before the Iowa caucus, a new Associated Press-GfK poll finds.
Republicans are evenly divided on whether a Washington insider or outsider is best-suited to be president. That’s a problem for Romney, who cites his private-sector experience as the biggest difference between the two front-runners for the GOP nomination.
The poll also found a significant drop in satisfaction with the overall field of Republicans vying to challenge President Barack Obama next year. In October, 66 percent of Republican adults were satisfied with the field, and 29 percent unsatisfied. Now, 56 percent are satisfied and 40 percent unsatisfied.
Except for four years as Massachusetts governor, Romney, 64, has spent his career in business and management. He ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in 1994 and for president in 2008.