FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
There are a couple ways to drop out of a political race.
A candidate can withdraw gracefully.
Or there's Newt Gingrich.
The guy just can't take a hint. And at this point he's likely hurting not only the Republican Party, but his own political legacy.
As Politico describes it, "the former House Speaker has decided to cap off a historic career by spending the final weeks of the campaign in a sort of political purgatory."
But that won't stop Newt. He's pledging to stay in the race all the way to the convention in Tampa. He's hoping against hope for some extraordinary situation where Mitt Romney can't get enough delegates and Rick Santorum is seen as unelectable.
The problem is he's out of money. His big Super PAC donor Sheldon Adelson - who has donated more than $15 million - says Gingrich is "at the end of his line."
There are no debates left to boost Gingrich, he can't afford to travel, he's fired much of his staff and even the media attention is dwindling.
People are using words like "laughingstock" and "delusional" to describe the former Speaker of the House. Sad really.
For his part, Gingrich insists he's staying in the race to shape the political conversation. And talk about his ideas like $2.50 a gallon gas. But no one is listening anymore.
CNN estimates Gingrich has 134 delegates compared to Romney's 559 and Santorum's 262.
A CNN/ORC Poll shows 6 out of 10 Republicans say Gingrich should drop out of the race. Also, a majority of Republicans say their party's nomination should be determined by the primaries - not the convention.
Here’s my question to you: Why won't Newt Gingrich face reality?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
JD in New Hampshire:
Gingrich does not live in a reality-based world. He lives in Newtville. It's an imaginary place on the far side of the moon where commoners throw offerings at his feet.
Ed:
He does face reality, it’s just his version is different than most.
Everett in Princeton, Texas:
Newt shows signs of borderline personality disorder. One of the primary behaviors exhibited by such people is the need to create chaos. He does not feel normal until everyone around him is in chaos and he is getting all the attention because of the chaos he has created.
Oliver in El Paso, Texas:
Ambition can blind a man.
Paul in North Carolina:
He is facing reality, Jack. It's all about future speaking engagements and selling books. His political legacy is not much to speak of anyway and as for the Republican Party, they have so many self-inflicted wounds no one will notice a few more
Ken in Seattle:
Newt Gingrich is a megalomaniac. In his greatly distorted view of reality he is indispensable to the future of the party, the country, the world and probably the universe. Or at least the future of the moon. He thrives on the attention he is getting and probably has nightmares of the moment in time it all goes away and he is forced to face his irrelevance.
Mike in Minneapolis:
I don't know, but I bet he won't get many dinner party invitations after this. The hosts will have to spray to get rid of him.