The roster of potential candidates for the GOP presidential nomination is "the strongest bench we have had in modern times," former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Tuesday, and any of them "would be a formidable general election candidate."
"I work very hard not to pick a final choice," Gingrich, who launched a White House bid himself in 2012, told
Fox News' "America's Newsroom" co-host Martha MacCallum, pointing out that he knows all six of the candidates who will take the main stage in the upcoming debate "very well."
"[Ted] Cruz is very, very smart," said Gingrich. "[Donald] Trump has a different kind of intelligence. You know he is a, not a trained lawyer, he is not a debater but astonishingly good businessman. He knows how to make deals and done things in public policy that are remarkable, like the skating rink in Central Park."
But also, said Gingrich, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, and Sen. Marco Rubio would also be excellent nominees, and he thinks the GOP should be "very proud."
Meanwhile, Gingrich said he can't imagine how aggressive Trump would be in a general election matchup, but he "better have a plan B, because he may not get Hillary [Clinton] to play with."
Whether the eventual Democratic presidential candidate is Clinton or Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, said Gingrich, the GOP will rally around its own nominee "because the other side is so far to the left and so unthinkable," but he expects Cruz will have a better turnout operation in Iowa.
Gingrich admitted he has said some favorable things about Trump, but he has other good friends in the race.
"I have been with John Kasich, who balanced the budget when I was speaker," said Gingrich. "He is a great person and would make a great president," but then again, so would Jeb Bush."