Sheldon Adelson (left) with his wife Miriam (right). Photo: wiki commons.

Jewish billionaire and casino magnate, Sheldon Adelson, has been active in his support of Newt Gingrich’s 2012 Presidential campaign bid.  Adelson and his wife, Miriam, have given over $10 million in support of Gingrich during the GOP primary, due in large part to the former speaker’s support for Israel.

Now, according to the New York Times, Adelson is prepared to throw his support behind Mitt Romney, if Gingrich concedes defeat in trying to win the Republican ticket for President.  Quoting several “associates”, The Times writes:

“signals from Mr. Adelson, whose politics are shaped in large part by his support for Israel, reflect what the associates said was his deep investment in defeating President Obama and his willingness to play a more prominent role in the Republican Party and conservative causes.”

Much like Gingrich, Mitt Romney’s pledged support of Israel has been a visible theme during his campaign.  In a speech to Republican Jewish leaders last December, Romney said President Obama has been “timid and weak in the face of the existential threat that Israel faces from Iran,” and “on my watch, Iran’s ayatollahs will not be allowed to get nuclear weapons.”

According to some, Romney’s pursuit of Adelson’s support has been coming since Florida.

In the New Republic last month, Noam Scheiber wrote that the former governor’s campaign in Florida was highly focused on showing Adelson that he’s an acceptable candidate, so that in turn he would stop funding Gingrich’s primary run. This would allow Romney to focus on defeating the President in 2012, instead of continuing his battle against fellow republicans.

“…he needed to persuade Adelson that he was ‘alright,’ as the Vegas wise guys would say, when it came to Israel,” Scheiber wrote.