So much for Ronald Reagan's supposed 11th commandment, "Thou shalt not speak ill of a fellow Republican."
Within 72 hours, Gingrich - who on the eve of the assault had been the front-runner for the GOP nomination in national polls - was transformed into an unelectable, mentally unstable risk.
First came wave after wave of big-time Republicans, testifying to the former House speaker's shortcomings in statements and calls organized by the Romney campaign. It was not hard to find former House colleagues ready to describe his "erratic" tenure in leadership, for instance, and veterans of the Reagan administration willing to undercut Gingrich's claims of closeness with the Gipper.
"Hardly anyone who served with Newt in Congress has endorsed him, and that speaks for itself," said former Kansas Sen. Bob Dole, the party's 1996 presidential nominee. "He was a one-man band who rarely took advice. It was his way or the highway."
Added Dole: "Gingrich had a new idea every minute, and most of them were off-the-wall."
Then there was the television blitz. Romney and his allies spent $15.4 million on ads in Florida, and only one of the spots those millions bought contained a positive message. (It was in Spanish and aired just 15 times statewide, according to Kantar Media's CMAG.)
Romney, with a new debate coach and an aggressive plan, also brought the heat in person.
In the Jan. 26 debate in Jacksonville, when Gingrich declined to defend his portrayals of Romney as living in a "Swiss bank account" world, the former Massachusetts governor hit back: "Wouldn't it be nice if people didn't make accusations somewhere else that they weren't willing to defend here?"
