ROMNEY STAYS ON THE OFFENSE WITH GINGRIC

WORLD / POLITIC

By JIM RUTENBERG and JEFF ZELENY

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Mitt Romney, facing his greatest challenge of the campaign so far, relentlessly pressed Newt Gingrich on Thursday night in their final debate before the Florida primary, seeking to regain the offensive against an insurgent challenge that has shaken his claim to inevitability.

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The debate included Rick Santorum, left, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney and Ron Paul. More Photos »

On immigration, personal finances and the grand ideas that have been the trademark of Mr. Gingrich’s candidacy, Mr. Romney gave his rival no quarter, giving prime time voice to his campaign’s all-out, round-the-clock assault on Mr. Gingrich here.

In a debate in which Mr. Romney could ill afford to allow Mr. Gingrich another triumphant night, he delivered sharp lines that gave him an advantage usually held by Mr. Gingrich: applause from the audience.

After being accused in so many debates of pandering, this time it was Mr. Romney accusing Mr. Gingrich of playing to the crowd with his proposal for a lunar colony, which Mr. Romney said may be popular around the Kennedy Space Center in Florida but unrealistic in practice. “I spent 25 years in business,” Mr. Romney said. “If I had a business executive come to me and say they wanted to spend a few hundred billion dollars to put a colony on the moon, I’d say, ‘You’re fired.’ ”

And, clearly prepared with reams of research, he frequently turned Mr. Gingrich’s attacks back against him. When Mr. Gingrich pressed Mr. Romney for having investments in Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and with Goldman Sachs, “which is today foreclosing on Floridians,” Mr. Romney was ready with an attack of his own.

“Mr. Speaker, I know that sounds like an enormous revelation, but have you checked your own investments?” he asked. “You also have investments for mutual funds that also invest in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.”

Effectively shut down, Mr. Gingrich turned grim and said meekly, “All right.”

The most intensive attack on Mr. Romney came not from Mr. Gingrich but from Rick Santorum, who insisted that Mr. Romney’s health plan for Massachusetts when he was its governor was no different from President Obama’s and that as a result Mr. Romney would be unable to combat the president effectively on the issue if he became the Republican nominee.

Mr. Gingrich started the week with all the momentum here after his victory in South Carolina. But he has subsequently come under relentless pounding from the Romney campaign and its supporters, a battering that appears to have had some impact.

Throughout the 19 debates, Mr. Gingrich has won over debate audiences on site and in their living rooms with an assortment of one-liners aimed at the establishment and, frequently, the news media. At times Thursday night he turned to those techniques, but to little seeming effect.

And Mr. Romney gave no ground, even when Mr. Gingrich at one point seemed willing to do so. The moderator, Wolf Blitzer of CNN, effectively invited Mr. Gingrich to critique Mr. Romney’s release this week of his tax returns, which disclosed that his blind trust included a Swiss bank account that was shut down in 2010.

“How about if the four of us agree for the rest of the evening we’ll actually talk about issues that relate to governing America?” Mr. Gingrich responded when Mr. Blitzer asked him if he was satisfied that Mr. Romney was sufficiently transparent in releasing his tax returns.

But after Mr. Blitzer noted that Mr. Gingrich had made an issue of Mr. Romney’s personal wealth earlier this week, Mr. Romney said sternly, “Wouldn’t it be nice if people didn’t make accusations somewhere else that they weren’t willing to defend here?” Inviting a fight in which he used offense as defense, as he did many times during the course of the night, he told Mr. Gingrich, “I think it’s important for people to make sure that we don’t castigate individuals who’ve been successful.”

The few moments of levity were often left to Representative Ron Paul. Asked whether his health was strong enough for him to serve as president, considering that at age 76 he would be the oldest president of the United States, he did not hesitate.

“I’m willing to challenge any of these gentlemen up here to a 25-mile bike ride any time of the day in the heat of Texas,” Mr. Paul said, pausing as the crowd erupted in laughter. “You know there are laws against age discrimination, so if you push this too much, you better be careful.” – The New York Times.