Recently I attended a family office conference on Martha's Vineyard. Much to my surprise, Newt Gingrich was the keynote speaker during our first day's lunch break.
Martha's Vineyard is a resort area off the coast of the Cape in Massachusetts. The President and his family spent part of their vacation there this year as well.
The morning hours were a-buzz with Newt stories, critiques and mystery. Why was he here? Would he take questions from the audience? How would he be received? And, what in the world will he talk about?
Family offices, for those who don't know (and I didn't before I got into my line of work) act as the hub, the center, the inner support team for extremely wealthy families. Most of the conference attendees were either family office leaders or wealthy family members themselves – the stragglers, like me, were those who support family offices. My role happens to be in philanthropic advising.
We were told that he would speak for about 20 minutes on "neutral" topics and would not take questions.
High noon approached, and in walked Newt with Callista ever close by his side. Once the couple was seated at a center front table in the conference space, Newt took the stage. He is known to be a good speaker and he did not disappoint. His recall of history (whether or not you agree with his position) is remarkable. Newt came off as a very smart, guy next-door, savvy politician – until.
After regaling us with vignettes of politics past he moved on – to politics now. Making light of Donald's "foibles, his "eccentric" behavior, his "originality" and his "impressive" history as a businessman and – wait for it – best selling author. Oh and don't forget what a good and honest man Donald is.
By this time steam was coming out of my ears. I said a quick prayer to the gods – either let him take questions from the audience or give me the strength to hold my tongue. People – my prayers were answered.
Newt turned to the audience for questions.My hand shot up. Most people lobed softballs like "how do you feel about NAFTA?" and "will there be an intervention?" And then Newt pivoted the stage and pointed at me. Yes, you he said – you in the white dress. I stood and took a deep breath.
With all due respect, I began; we are talking about the office of the President of the United States, the most powerful and most respected position in the world. This is not a joke.This is about character. Donald Trump clearly does not have the character to represent our country – end of story. And, he did not write Art of the Deal, Tony Schwartz did. The way I see it, the Republican Party should be ashamed of themselves.
The audience roared with approval. Newt turned red and sputtered – you would prefer Bill Clinton's character? I replied, yes, as a matter of fact I would, but he is not running for president.
I didn't dare, but I wanted to ask a follow up – how do you, Newt, live with your hypocritical self?
How indeed. This is no joke. We must elect Hillary Clinton for President of the United States of America.
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August 23, 2016
addendum. Tony Schwartz, who wrote The Art of the Deal, told why he thought Trump was not fit to be POTUS. Here is what he said.
Donald Trump's Ghostwriter Tells All, New Yorker, July 26, 2016.
In “The Art of the Deal," Tony Schwartz helped create the myth that Trump is a charming business genius. Now he calls him unfit to lead.
