Newly recovered court files concerning former House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s 1980 divorce from Jackie Gingrich throw Gingrich’s version of events into doubt. According to Gingrich, it was his wife and not him who requested the divorce three decades ago. Gingrich’s website affirms that claim, with the support of Gingrich’s daughter, Jackie Gingrich Cushman, who was 13 when her parents separated.
The divorce documents, which were originally sealed, cast doubt on Gingrich’s claims. The documents confirm that it was Gingrich who filed the divorce claim, saying that “the marriage of the parties is irretriebably (sic) broken.” Gingrich married Marianne Ginther Gingrich in 1981, six months after his first divorce was final. He divorced her 19 years later to marry Callista Bisek Gingrich.
