CNN: '1994- Newt Gingrich's Contract With America'

Source:CNN- House Minority Whip Newt Gingrich (Republican, Georgia) talking about the House Republicans Contract With America.

 "In 1994, Newt Gingrich led Republicans against the Clinton administration and orchestrated "The Contract With America." 

From CNN

The 1994 Republican Revolution in Congress that not only saw the Republican Party take control of the House of Representatives for the first time in forty years, but saw them take control of the Senate for the first time in eight years, was obviously very impressive. First of all the numbers: they went from I believe 178 Seats in the House to 230, a fifty two seat pickup in one mid-term election. And then some right-wing Democratic Representatives switched over to the Republican Party right after that election. 

And Senate Republicans went from forty four Senators, a filibuster proof minority to fifty three, a nine seat pickup in the Senate. Where only 1/3 of the Senators runs every two years so that pretty impressive as well. 

But it's how Congressional Republicans did this: a lot of it were gifts from the Democratic Party President Clinton and the Democratic Congress. The 103rd Democratic Congress was very productive as far as passing legislation. President Clinton got most of his agenda from the 1992 campaign through his first two years. 

I'm not sure a lot of people are aware of this and I believe a lot of good legislation. Two trade agreements that both actually had bipartisan support that the Republican Leadership who were still in the minority in both the House and Senate, instead of trying to block it like they were successful in doing with health Care reform, helped try to pass those bills.

Then President Clinton got his Family and Medical Leave bill through, his deficit reduction bill through without one Republican in Congress voting for it. And the 1994 crime bill that had some bipartisan support for. As well as two Supreme Court Justices through the Democratic Senate, Stephen Brier and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, two liberals, by the way. 

But the problem with most of this legislation that President Clinton and Congressional Democrats passed was how unpopular it was with the Republican base and Independents and ended up uniting the entire Republican Party against President Clinton and the Democratic Congress. 

And the Republican Congressional Leadership along with the Republican National Committee and their allies knew how unpopular Washington Democrats were and were able to take advantage of this anger across the country and tell people especially in Republican areas, that they don't like what the Democrats are doing as well, vote for them in 1994 and they'll stop them. Along with the Senate Republican Leadership with Bob Dole able to block more legislation from passing. 

Another thing that I respected as a political junky and also as a Liberal even though I disagreed with a lot of the Contract with America, was what it was about, getting America back to classical conservatism, especially fiscal conservatism and foreign policy conservatism. Even though they brought in the Christian- Right which certainly doesn't represent classical conservatism but religious fundamentalism.

The Newt Gingrich Congressional Republicans (especially in the House) weren't from the George W Bush Administration. Their message was the Federal Government was too big, has too much power and spends too much money. And has moved away from what the U.S. Constitution and we need to send some of this power back to the states and people. And give them a bigger say in how they govern themselves. This was sort of a Barry Goldwater/Ron Reagan conservative message. That they almost threw away in their first two years but they got off to a good start.