Toomey ‘disappointed’ in Gingrich over Bain attacks, moon base

{mosads}”Fact is, Speaker Gingrich knows our dynamic system of of opportunity creates far more jobs than are lost, and for him to attack private equity for focusing on those jobs are lost and ignoring the fact that many more are created is really feeding into the liberal narrative that is hostile to our free enterprise system. I was disappointed with him for that,” Toomey said.

Toomey also said Gingrich’s proposal — articulated in a speech Wednesday on the Florida coast and in a book penned by the former Speaker — to create a colony on the moon didn’t “make any sense.”

“I can’t even imagine how costly that would be. It’s hard to imagine that would not run into the trillions of dollars,” Toomey said.

The senator also dismissed Gingrich’s argument that commercial partnerships could help to finance the moon base.

“I’m sorry, I’m just not aware of any commercial market for a colony on the moon. It’s not at all clear to me that there’s a marketplace, any demand for this,” Toomey said. “I don’t think we’re in a position to afford that. I’m in favor of further space exploration, but sometimes Newt gets a little carried away with these grandiose ideas, and colonizing the moon strikes me as one of them.”

Toomey’s “grandiose” comment echoes that of a former Pennsylvania senator — and current GOP candidate. Rick Santorum has blasted Gingrich for his proposals in recent Republican debates.

Gingrich embraced the idea that his proposal was “grandiose” while giving the speech Wednesday.

”I was attacked the other night for being grandiose,” Gingrich said. “I would just want you to note: Lincoln standing at Council Bluffs was grandiose. The Wright Brothers standing at Kitty Hawk were grandiose. John F. Kennedy was grandiose. I accept the charge that I am grandiose and that Americans are instinctively grandiose.”

But it is unclear whether the voters will coalesce around him — or if they share Toomey’s concerns. A Quinnipiac poll released Friday showed Gingrich trailing Mitt Romney by nine points in the crucial Florida primary.