By Elinor Lipman
Ten months ago, feeling an urge to tweet but worried that the whole enterprise could be vain and self-involved, I decided to write one political rhyming tweet per day until November 6. That was 306 days ago, and I've skipped only Yom Kippur. I started with a rich cast of characters: Herman Cain, the Bachmanns, the Palins, a Trump, two Ricks, Jon H., Dr. Paul, and Mitt—a scannable and rhymable bunch. I’ve kept my distance from moon, June, spoon, while working in rhymes for Ahmadinejad, Uzbekistan, and Blagojevich. To my surprise, rhyming "Santorum" with "Purim" proved very popular with readers.
Our former speaker with his one-, two-, and three-syllable options (Newt, Gingrich, Callista) has been a boon and a doggerel blessing. The quatrains that follow (the Beast supplied the brief sentence before each poem setting the scene) were my efforts to keep up as he yo-yoed from longshot to hotshot to no shot. I shall miss him.
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June 30: Newt’s campaign, yet to gain any traction, seems sunk when his political team quits en masse.
Where is Newt? I miss the strifeHis shrunken staff, his hungry wifeInflame & chafe!/Stay in the race!It's only up from dead-last place.
November 12: Newt begins his first climb up the polls, as allegations of sexual harassment sink Herman Cain.
Who's sitting pretty in the race?It's Newt who's now in 2d place.He must believe that we forgot/How many jewels Callista bought.
November 17: Newt tries to explain to voters why he was paid $1.6 million by Freddie Mac for his services as an historian.
Dear Freddie Mac, it's me, your Newt.I want to thank you for the loot.Who knew that history could sell?Too bad it isn't playing well.
November 27: Newt’s lucrative career after leaving the House raises eyebrows.
Consultant this, consultant that.His big head wears a dozen hats. Milk every theme but kitchen sink& run for prez as "Gingrich, Inc."
November 28: Newt scores the coveted New Hampshire endorsement of the Manchester Union.
Big endorsement snagged by Newt,Giving Mitt the front-page boot. But who else did that paper flaunt?Buchanan, Forbes, Pierre DuPont.
December 1: Newt’s career as a professional historian continues drawing scrutiny.
Professor Newt, he loves to teachFor only 60K per speech.When you're rich, you need not lobby.Sell ideas, but call it "hobby."
December 8: Newt rises to the top of the national polls.
Newt's way ahead in every state.So who will be his running mate?For balance, no one sharp or richI'm thinking Rod Blagojevich.
December 9: Newt, now the frontrunner, continues to make time to make money. mingling with the state’s voters.With Iowa a month awayWhat 's on tap for Newt today?At a store to pimp the mission:Sell copies of the new edition.
December 10: Newt and Rick Santorum are the last two candidates to remain committed to the (eventually cancelled) Donald Trump-moderated debate.
Trump's debate is down to 2All but Newt & Rick withdrew.I'm worried that it might fall thruPerhaps it could be pay-per-view.
December 11: Newt indulges a rare moment of silence.
A big exchange at 12th debateOn who's been faithful to their mates5 spoke of vows, then looked at NewtFirst time his bio left him mute.
December 19: Newt sinks back down in the polls.
In Iowa it's all reversedRon Paul has taken over 1st.Air's leaking out of Newt's balloonFarewell, late surge! You came too soon.
December 22: Newt, hammered by attack ads and down in the polls, lashes out.
Attack ads boosting Dr. PaulNow Gingrich is above it allToo statesmanlike to vent his spleen?But buddy, you invented "mean."
December 28: Newt’s new pitch: only he can expose Obama in a one-on-one debate. (But he settles for Jon Huntsman.)
The Gingrich cry: "Let's set a date!"A Lincoln-Douglas-style debate!""90 minutes to the wall—"So sure he'll beat the pants off all.
December 29: Newt’s poll plunge continues.
For Gingrich not a happy phase:Down 20 points in 20 days.How to handle such a wobble?Better buy the wife a bauble.
January 13: Newt’s superPAC aims a scathing attack on Mitt Romney’s record as CEO of Bain Capital.
Newt's latest ad attacking MittExposes why the guy's unfit:Besides the sins of Bain financeThe traitor speaks la langue de France.
January 17: Newt calls Obama “the food stamp president” to the delight of the partisan South Carolina debate crowd.
The audience was loving NewtFinding racist quips so cute."Food Stamp Prez!” That really played& bigotry was on parade.
January 22: Newt rises, again, with a surprise win in South Carolina.
Newt mocked & railed & condescendedNow the race has been upendedIt all came down to one debate& Carolina bought the hate.
January 27: Newt, needing to pick up more momentum, instead falls flat at a Florida debate.
So very rich! Last night's debate!Wolfe Blitzer came to moderateHe fired back when Gingrich pouncedAnd Romney's comeback was announced.
January 31: Newt, again falling, desperately appeals to Florida’s Jewish population.
Pandering—thy name is NewtIn Florida, will it bear fruitSo obvious it does amuse:"Mitt cut Kosher meals for Jews!"
February 1: Newt loses Florida, but you’d never know it from his speech that night.
Newt ungracious in defeat,Inauguration plans completeSo positive he will succeedForgot he lost & should concede.
February 14: Newt channels cupid.
Callista, please be mine foreverWhen will I forsake you? Never!Yes, I had a marriage spreeBut Valentine, it stops at 3.
February 19: Newt wins the backing of former candidate Herman Cain.
Is Gingrich going down the drainDespite the boost from Herman Cain?I miss the mission to the moon& hair that holds in a typhoon.
February 23: Newt, in the final GOP debate, is asked to define himself in one word, and chooses “cheerful.”
Oh really, Newt? When asked to tellOne word that sums you up quite wellYou answered "cheerful" with a smileYou? The poster child for bile.
March 5: Newt wins his home state of Georgia, but loses everywhere else on Super Tuesday.
Be prepared: It will be toughWatching Gingrich strut his stuffStay tuned to hear him bloviateOn narrow win in his home state.
March 8: Newt and Rick Santorum each encourage the other to drop out to allow the “anti-Romney vote” to consolidate.
Back & forth, the two teams shout:You get out, no YOU get out!Newt tells Rick he'd sweep the RightRick tells Newt: Go fly a kite.
March 12: Newt hints he may name Texas governor Rick Perry, fresh from his own failed presidential run, as his running mate.
Have you heard the speculation,The rumor now in circulation:Perry runs with Newt this FallMalaprop meets know-it-all.
March 14: Newt vows to press on after Santorum wins Mississippi and Alabama in a surprise sweep.
Santorum had a two-win night& not one pollster got it rightOf course we get the Gingrich spin:Brilliant Me is staying in.
March 21: Newt finishes fourth in Illinois.
So Romney wins. No big surpriseIn 2nd, Mr. MoralizeBut who should take a curtain call?It's Newt in 4th behind Ron Paul.
March 25: Newt presses on.
If spying on the Gingrich campWould we see an exit ramp?Does ANY outcome cause self-doubt?Can Newt pronounce, "We should get out"?
March 27: Newt slams the president’s response to the slaying of Trayvon Martin.
"A son of mine would look like that…"& Gingrich takes it to the mat"Appalling!" does not fit the billFor crime evoking Emmett Till.
March 29: Newt, desperate for cash, charges supporters $50 to have their photo taken with him.
Pose with Gingrich & his bride!A souvenir pre-Newticide:For 50 bucks a photo opQuick before he closes shop.
March 30: Newt and Mitt have a secret meeting in New Orleans.
It's been confirmed: a secret meetIn New Orleans, a hotel suiteNewt & Romney 'round a tableThere's a ticket: Cain & Abel.
April 9: Newt seems sunk, but presses on.
Sinking Gingrich still won't quitHis mission only: torment MittHe claims the urge to reassessIs purely in the heads of press.
April 17: Newt, now splitting his time between campaigning for president and visiting zoos, is bit by a penguin.
Bit by penguin at the zooWhat's a candidate to do?Soon the bird wrote in his blog"Newt tastes like an underdog."
April 23: The high cost of Newt.
Newt, you're costing us too muchCan't your PAC at least go Dutch?For Secret Service every dayOur taxes shell out $40K.
April 26: Newt gives in.
Reasons for my Gingrich bluesNo lunar dreams or Grecian cruiseNo credit line from Tiffany'sNo saintly wife, his former squeeze.
April 29: Newt delays the inevitable.Mitt must wait to get a bounce,Newt says Wednesday he'll announce.Extension, please; he needs a day,Before he PACs his dream away.
May 2: Farewell, Newt.Farewell to Newt & current Mrs!But wait, his verb choice is suspicious."Suspend" in lieu of "Now I quit"?Also missing:"Vote for Mitt."
Elinor Lipman is the author of 10 works of fiction, most recently The Family Man. She is the 2011-2012 Elizabeth Drew Professor of Creative Writing at Smith College, and only a special-occasion poet. Her next novel, The View from Penthouse B, and a collection of essays, I Can't Complain, will be published next spring. Follow her daily rhyming political tweets @elinorlipman.
