KPAX.com

MISSOULA- The Montana Republican Party Convention wrapped up Saturday in Missoula with a political big-hitter taking the stage.

Former Speaker of the House and former 2012 presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich said Montana has an important role to play in the upcoming election.

“By voting decisively for Governor Romney, you move electoral votes back in the right direction after 2008 and so the presidential race is important,” he said.

But he stressed all the races are just as important.

He said though republicans may be emotionally committed to defeating President Barak Obama,

“Defeating Barak Obama is not enough,” he said.

“We actually want Washington to work on behalf of the American People and to do that we have to win the presidency, the governorship, the legislature, the senate seat and the house seat because we need a team that shares the same values.”

Newt Gingrich also spoke negatively of President Obama’s policy change decision Friday that put a temporary stop on the deportation of young illegal immigrants if they met certain criteria.

“I look carefully at what Obama had said yesterday and I realized that we did not have a commander in chief, we have a dreamer in chief,” he said.

Gingrich also spoke about how Governor Mitt Romney could relate to and help Montanans, if elected for president.

“I think Governor Romney would say, ‘you know, most of Montana’s decisions ought to be made in Montana. Most of Montana’s future ought to be decided by Montanans. And I think that most of the people in Montana would agree that they would give up Washington helping them if Washington would quit hurting them,” Gingrich said.

Gingrich said his main goal for speaking on behalf of the Republican Party Saturday was to build the whole republican ticket for the November election.

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