Newt Denied Advocating Individual Mandate During Thursday's Debate, 2009 Audio Proves He Did

In last Thursday’s debate in Jacksonville, FL Newt Gingrich specifically denied ever advocating for an individual mandate for health insurance on a federal level: “I didn’t advocate federal mandates. I talked about it at a state level, finding a way — which included an escape clause that people didn’t have to buy it — finding a way to try to have people have insurance, particularly for wealthy people who are simply free-riding on local hospitals.”

But, newly discovered audio from a conference call in May 2009 shows that Mr. Gingrich praised the individual mandate put forth by President Obama.