CHARLESTON, S.C. – Former Rep. J.C. Watts, who was one of the top leaders in the Congress in the 1990s and is one of the most famous black Republicans in the country, repeatedly praised former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in a speech here on Thursday.

“I’m going to do everything within my power to see to it that it’s Newt Gingrich,” Watts said of the GOP nomination process at the conference for the Southern Republican Leadership Conference.

African-American leaders have sharply criticized Gingrich over the last month for comments they say imply blacks are not hard-working and want to get income from federal programs instead of through jobs.

Watts did not directly address those remarks. But he repeatedly praised Gingrich for the progress of the 1990’s,when the federal budget deficit was dramatically reduced and the economy grew.

“We don’t need more taxes, we need more taxpayers,” Watts said in what sounded like a nod to the controversial rhetoric of Gingrich, who has repeatedly urged Americans to seek paychecks instead of food stamps.

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