The announcement by Newt Gingrich that he intends to appoint Lewis Lehrman and James Grant to co-chair a new Commission on Gold will serve as a signal that he has determined, if given the chance, to undertake monetary reform in a serious way. The former speaker made his announcement only days after declaring for a return to the gold standard so that it would be radically more difficult for America to dodge its fiscal problems. After he made his announcement, these columns expressed the concern that we don’t need another commission, for in American politics commissions are normally a way to bury an idea.

The choice of Messrs. Lehrman and Grant signals that Mr. Gingrich is already past the question of whether to go for sound money and is focusing on getting it done. Of Messrs. Lehrman and Grant, the former speaker said: “They are both distinguished students of monetary policy and long-time advocates of a return to hard money — a dollar as good as gold.” Mr. Lehrman was a member of the United State Gold Commission that was set up under President Reagan, and Mr. Grant, editor of the Interest Rate Observer, has emerged as one of the most distinguished journalistic voices in support of gold-backed, honest money.

The moment Mr. Gingrich announced for gold, Messrs. Lehrman and Grant had sent him a congratulatory letter that is a classic of concision and point. They noted that between 1792, when the Congress first defined a dollar, and 1971, when President Nixon abrogated the Bretton Woods Treaty, “Congress defined the dollar by statute as a specific weight unit of gold.” They noted that between 1971 and 2011 — that is, the period of fiat money that is being used today — the dollar has shed 85% of its value. They stressed the importance of establishing convertibility of the dollar to gold a value that will hold for “many generations.”

Mr. Gingrich, in his statement today, signaled that he would be unlikely to prejudge the details of how to end the era of fiat money. “While I am not presently committed to any one version of reform,” he said, “if elected I will be eager to work with Lew Lehrman and Jim Grant in achieving a dollar that once again can hold its purchasing power for many decades to come.” Mr. Gingrich also gave an important salute to Congressman Ron Paul, who has done so much to keep the issue of the collapse of the dollar at the center of the current campaign.

“I have had, and will continue to have, many strong disagreements with Congressman Paul during the campaign,” Mr. Gingrich said today. “But I believe he has made an important contribution in the field of monetary reform.” His salute to Dr. Paul came the same day on which the Wall Street Journal issued what will be a closely read column by one of its stars, Kimberly Strassel, warning that the “real aim” of the libertarian from Texas is hold the GOP hostage to his issues, including his isolationist foreign policy.

Mr. Gingrich’s demarche can be seen, at least in part, as a counter maneuver, an effort to seize Dr. Paul’s most important issue for what might be called the his own wing of the party. By our lights the backers of honest money can take heart either way. From the beginning of this campaign, these columns have argued that the question of money — of monetary reform — is the issue of the hour, one that deserves to be taken to the hustings. The Republicans could still let it slip from their grasp. But thanks to Mr. Gingrich, this week has certainly been an encouraging one.