Smith Apologizes To Speaker For Using ‘Fat Kid’ Analogy

Rep. Linda Smith has apologized to Newt Gingrich for the “fat kid” analogy she used two weeks ago in discussing his ethics problems - an analogy she says was wrongly interpreted as a comment on his weight.

Smith used the analogy when she was rallying opposition to Gingrich’s bid for a second term as House speaker. And she says she stands by her contention that Gingrich was standing in the way of what was best for Congress and the Republican Party when he refused to step out of the running.

But she said her analogy - that an overweight child could prove harmful to an entire family if the child ate all the family’s food at the expense of brothers and sisters - was taken out of context by the media.

“One of the hardest things I ever did was write an apology to Newt Gingrich,” the Washington state Republican told The Associated Press.

“I hurt him personally. I owed him an apology for that, not what I did,” she said of her failed effort to see someone else elected speaker.

“Because of his weight problem he had, it was taken personally and spun out as a negative against him. It was never meant to be.”

Smith made the comment the night of Jan. 6, when she held a news conference in her office to tell reporters she and others still intended to oppose Gingrich.