Mike Whittemore

Prominent Mitt Romney-supporting New York Republicans are engaged in some full-throated Newt Gingrich bashing today, labeling the former House speaker as everything from “dangerous” and a “little psycho” (former Staten Island BP Guy Molinari) to a “disaster” (former US Sen. Alfonse D’Amato).

This wave of criticism was actually kicked off by former Rep. Rick Lazio when he spoke at the state Conservative Party’s annual political action conference in Colonie last night.

Lazio, a longtime Romney supporter (he even raised cash for the former Massachusetts governor in 2008 when almost every other NY Republican backed hometown favorite Rudy Giuliani), raised a few eyebrows by going right for the Gingrich jugular – at least where some family-values conservatives are concerned – and bringing up his tumultuous personal life.

“I’m saying I think if you compare Mitt Romney, who married his high-school sweetheart – they have an incredibly stable marriage – he’s a strong family man, I think he’s a great role model. That’s a better profile for Republicans to have,” Lazio said.

“…Nobody is absolutely perfect. The American people are not looking for perfection. They’re looking for good judgement, though, and they’re looking for consistent judgement, and I think that’s what we’re speaking about right now.”

Lazio stressed that Romney’s management experience in the private sector – something that has become a bit of a sore topic in some GOP circles – is another plus, particularly at a time of national economic instability.

The former congressman said he has exchanged several emails with Gingrich. When I asked him about that later, he said the former speaker has sought his input on housing issues – a topic on which Lazio has some expertise, thanks to his position as chair of the House Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity.

Lazio was asked about Gingrich vs. Romney by a CPPAC participant. Ironically, Lazio’s 2010 GOP primary foe, Buffalo businessman Carl Paladino, was seated in the front row throughout the event.

Paladino is a staunch supporter of Gingrch. As we were watching this mini melodrama play out last night, Nick Reisman remarked to me that the current Romney vs. Gingrich battle is almost like a do-over of Lazio vs. Paladino in 2010.

As you’ll recall, Paladino came under fire for his unconventional personal life, too. Lazio, on the other hand, met his first – and only – wife, Patricia, while he was studying at American University School of Law in Washington. (She was the sister of a fellow student and was working at George Washington University Hospital while pursuing a nursing degree). The couple has two grown daughters.

Like Romney, Lazio was the steady candidate the GOP rank-and-file was trying hard to fall in love with, while Paladino, like Gingrich, was the firey outsider often apt to put his foot in his mouth. Of course, these are some extremely broad comparisons, and we’re certainly not saying this is an apples-to-apples situation. It’s interesting, nevertheless.