Newt Gingrich Charging $50 For Photos With Him
Times are tough for candidates when they have only won two states, one of them being their own home state. Newt Gingrich has to explore new avenues of fundraising. So he is trying this one on for size. For $50 you can have your photo taken with Newt.
National Journal reports that campaign staff have now started asking for credit card information up front when a picture is taken. They were putting them up online and letting people claim them.
Gingrich press secretary R.C. Hammond defended the fee, writing in an e-mail to supporters,
“Did you see reports today we are charging for photos? Some campaigns make you travel all the way to Wall Street to pay $2,500 for a photo with a candidate. We are trying out a new tactic and asking our supporters at our rallies for a nominal donation. And guess what, it is working.”
Hammond also made sure to stress how the Gingrich Campaign has always relied on smaller donors and pointed people to their website, “where supporters can make a donation to receive a hat, a shirt or even a bandana for your dog”
Gingrich’s campaign raised $2.6 million in February, a sharp decrease from previous months. Federal Election Commission filings from last month show his campaign $1.6 million in debt, more than any of his three remaining rivals for the GOP presidential nomination.
Gingrich was once the frontrunner for the Republican nomination polling higher than even Mitt Romney. Romney’s constant attacks and reminding voters of all of Newt’s baggage took its toll and he has been lagging behind Romney and Santorum ever since.
