Gingrich Campaign Press Release - Day Three of Newt's Jobs and Growth Bus Tour

Day 3 of Newt's Jobs and Growth bus tour brought him to Sioux City, Winterset, Storm Lake, Denison and Carroll.  Art Laffer, the architect of Reagan's economic plan, joined Newt in Storm Lake to offer his endorsement.  At each stop, Newt outlined his bold solutions to create jobs and showed why he is the best prepared to debate President Obama.  Click here for pictures and news coverage from Day 1 of the bus tour and here for Day 2.

At the Sioux City Convention Center, Newt explained why he's the best candidate to debate President Obama one-on-one and offer a clear choice between more paychecks or more foodstamps.

GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich on Thursday said his ability to stand toe-to-toe with President Barack Obama is the reason people should caucus for him Tuesday night.

Gingrich, who flatlined in Iowa polling over the summer before enjoying a November resurgence, spoke about economic policies for most of his 35-minute Sioux City Convention Center campaign stop.

He predicted Obama will amass $1 billion in campaign funds, so the eventual Republican candidate will have to stand tough against a negative onslaught of ads and excel in debates too.

Obama "is going to run a relentlessly negative campaign," the former U.S. House speaker said.

Gingrich also reiterated that he wants to have seven Lincoln-Douglas-style debates with Obama, mirroring the series of forums between U.S. Senate candidates Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas across Illinois in 1858.

Gingrich drew many laughs when adding that he'd even allow the president to use a teleprompter in the debates.

In Storm Lake, Newt outlined his plan to create jobs and economic growth and received the endorsement of Ronald Reagan's economist Art Laffer.

Mr. Laffer is the father of supply-side economics and a guru behind Ronald Reagan's economic plan. Mr. Gingrich was an early adoptee of Mr. Laffer's ideas and says they twice worked, once when President Reagan implemented them and again when he helped push them through as speaker of the House.

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Mr. Laffer said Thursday that Mr. Gingrich was the candidate most suited to return that kind of prosperity to America again. In an endorsement, Mr. Laffer compared Mr. Gingrich to a doctor and the country to a patient.

"If one of my kids were sick and needed an operation, which one of these surgeons would I pick to operate on my kid that I felt would do the best job? And my view is that of the candidates today, Newt Gingrich is far and away the best person to bring this country back into prosperity, period," he said.

Mr. Laffer said he was backing Mr. Gingrich because he "fundamentally and deeply" understands "that [if] you tax people who work, and you pay people who don't work, don't be surprised if you find a lot of people not working."

At Boulders Inn in Denison, Newt won over undecided voters with his knowledge and positive solutions to rebuild the America we love.

Tom Alesch of Denison said he particularly liked that Gingrich said he'll avoid negative advertising. Alesch said he will probably vote for the former Georgia congressman.

"Newt knows so much that he doesn't have to use negativity," said Alesch, 63.

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Gingrich said in Denison that he believes many voters are still undecided and that he can still rally their support.

He had already succeeded with Jim O'Neill, a cattleman who lives outside Logan, who lauded Gingrich's extensive knowledge.

Other Iowans "need to know more about him and more of the positive," O'Neill said.

In Carroll, Newt spoke to more than 150 people at the Santa Maria Winery about his record of balancing the federal budget and how has the experience and knowledge to do it again.

Dan Dirkx, of rural Auburn, who was a candidate for the Iowa Legislature in 2010, said he plans to caucus heavily for Gingrich after giving consideration to former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania.

"I think the fact that (Gingrich) is the historian that he is — he understands what makes America great, and he will elevate to the altitude of the office," Dirkx  said.

Dirkx said Gingrich is an outsider who understands Washington and should be measured by the list of enemies he's made among the establishment.

It reminds Dirkx of an analogy he read recently.

"Dogs don't bark at parked cars and that makes complete sense," Dirkx said. "How can you be in Washington and get as much done as he's gotten done and not create some enemies?"