Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich says President Trump is wielding the power of the presidency at a “level of energy, drive, and effectiveness” the U.S. hasn’t seen since Washington, Lincoln, or maybe Franklin Roosevelt. “You have this rock standing in the middle of history called Donald Trump,” he told FNC’s Jesse Watters Wednesday night. “If he can sustain this, he’s moving into a league that, other than Washington and Lincoln, nobody has gotten to.”

JESSE WATTERS: Have you ever seen political parties flip so quickly-where the Republican president gets the backing of the Teamsters, he’s bringing manufacturing jobs back, and the Democrats are just left out to dry? NEWT GINGRICH: Maybe you go back to Franklin Roosevelt 1933-35, when the Republicans were collapsing. A party that had dominated for over 60 years became really a tiny minority. You’re seeing that happen now. I thought, when the senator from Massachusetts went down to endorse Mamdani as the future of the Democratic Party… if you’re a Republican, I mean, this is like Christmas every single day, there’s another gift that comes in, and you just can’t imagine that these people are so out of touch with everyday, normal Americans that I think it’s astonishing. JESSE WATTERS: The nerve of Kamala Harris to stick her finger in the face of the Teamsters and demand an endorsement-Why the hell haven’t you endorsed me yet? Talk about political lockjaw. NEWT GINGRICH: It’s not fair to pick on her. She’s totally out of touch with reality. She’s not very competent. For years and years, she was carried by a California machine that did not require that she learn anything. And she managed to get through the vice presidency without learning anything. So she behaves exactly like the spoiled brat that you would expect at that stage in her career. I’m never surprised by her, because her level of non-intelligence really rivals virtually any major figure in American history-and she proves that every time she goes out in public. … I think what’s changing everything is that you have this rock standing in the middle of history called Donald Trump. And he’s saying: “Do you want to do it my way, or do you want to be crushed? I prefer you do it my way, but if you have to be crushed, that’s okay.” And so rational people like Tim Cook are going: Do I want to do it the way the president wants, or would I like to be crushed? They go, You know, I’ve always wanted to be part of the team. You’re seeing this happen not just in the United States, but all around the world. The Saudis show up and say: Could we buy Boeing airplanes and also invest $ 4 billion in the United States to create new jobs? Trump graciously says, That would be fine, I’m so grateful. And he goes to the next country, and they say the same. This is the most-I think he’s really now moving… If he can sustain this, he’s moving into a league that, other than Washington and Lincoln, nobody has gotten to the level of energy, drive, and effectiveness that we see with Trump… JESSE WATTERS: Once he hears Newt Gingrich put him on that level with Washington and Lincoln, I don’t think we could ever recover from that. Speaker, the Democrats say it’s tyrannical-the way he is exercising power. You see him with some of the universities, with industry, with other countries, with trade. Do you feel like it’s tyrannical, or is he just very savvy in the way he exercises presidential power? NEWT GINGRICH: I think President Trump believes that he was elected by Americans who were sick and tired of a corrupt, incestuous, dishonest Democratic establishment, which includes The New York Times, The Washington Post, and all the propaganda media, as well as the major universities. The people who elected President Trump want him to take them on. If you’re the other team, and you’ve been in charge basically since 1932, and all of a sudden this guy stands up and says, like the story of the emperor that had no clothing, “You guys don’t exist. You aren’t important. You won’t be in charge.” It feels terrible to them. How do they explain it to themselves? The fact that they are corrupt and out of touch with the American people? The fact that their bureaucracy doesn’t work? You can’t have a gathering of Democrats and come to believe that-you know? So Donald Trump has to be the problem, because otherwise, they are the problem. [Transcript cuts off]
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