Sources have indicated that Newt Gingrich, leader of the 1994 Republican revolution against Clinton, may try to vastly expand his influence by 2008.

Gingrich has a lot of positive things going for him. In the ’90s he spearheaded conservative causes like welfare reform and articulated a clear if controversial plan through the Contract with America. His rule fell, however, with the revelation that he’d been having an affair with a congressional staffer while going after Clinton. Thus allegations of hypocrisy will increase in proportion to Gingrich’s prominence.

I’ve never put much stock in this charge (a friend of mine wrote a book about it) because anyone with standards will break them from time to time. Having no standards isn’t much of an option at all.

Disgraced representative Foley, for example, can still be lauded for passing anti-sexual predation laws, even if he himself ended up a sexual predator himself. The problem with Foley is that he’s a predator, not that his goals were different than his actions.

And the problem with Gingrich is not that he championed family values while failing to uphold them. It’s not even so much his moral fall — though that speaks to his character. The problem is that he used his government position for personal gain. Those charged with overseeing others simply do not date those they have power over, regardless of who’s single and whether adultery is a public concern.

At this point, then, it’s a good thing that it appears he won’t seek any government office. He will stick to advising Republicans, participating in the public dialogue and working on a clear, Reagan-style agenda to unite a disjointed party. That’s something the Republican Party needs, even if it comes from a “hypocrite.”

Robert VerBruggen blogs at http://robertsrationale.blogspot.com.