Gingrich: Obama Should Withdraw Kagan Nomination




"I think the president has every right to nominate a liberal," he added, when reminded by host Chris Wallace, that Kagan's position on executive power are much in line with Gingrich's. "He is the president and that is his value system. I think the fact is if you look at the brief you filed, if you look at what she wrote at the time, it's a very myopic view. On the one hand, Harvard accepts money from Saudis. Saudi Arabia, by the way, executes homosexuals, Saudi Arabia represses women, Saudi Arabia doesn't allow Christians or Jews to practice their religion, but Saudi money is fine."

Throwing haymakers in the midst of a Supreme Court confirmation process is a familiar perch for the former House speaker. Gingrich infamously called Sonia Sotomayor a "racist" during the early days of her rollout -- before having to walk back the claim. The charges he leveled against Kagan on Sunday, however, are a bit peculiar. The notion that the Solicitor General is anti-military (for denying military recruiters access to Harvard's campus in protest of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell") is oft repeated in conservative circles. But the idea that Kagan should be held to account for the Saudi money that Harvard receives is both new and bizarre.

There is no indication that Kagan recruited or okay-ed Saudi donations to the institution. Even if she had, it's not entirely clear how controversial those donations would be. And for Gingrich to make this an issue while on Fox News is a bit of cross-messaging. Outside of CEO Rupert Murdoch, the largest shareholder in Fox's parent company, News Corp, is Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, a Saudi oil tycoon.