Newt Gingrich

Newton Leroy Gingrich (born June 17, 1943) is an American politician who is best known as the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. In 1995 he was named Time Magazine's Man of the Year.

United States representative

Newt Gingrich made two unsuccessful runs as a Republican for Congress in Georgia's Sixth Congressional District in 1974 and 1976, losing both times to Democrat Jack Flynt, who had served in the House since 1954. Flynt then decided to retire, and so did not run in the 1978 election. The Democrats fielded Georgia State Senator Virginia Shapard in Flynt's place. Gingrich defeated Shapard in November, starting his long career in the House. He would be reelected ten times.

Related Topics:
Republican - 1974 - 1976 - 1954 - 1978

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In 1981, Gingrich was a cofounder of both the Congressional Military Reform Caucus and the Congressional Space Caucus. In 1983 he founded the Conservative Opportunity Society, a group that included young conservative House Republicans. In 1983, Gingrich demanded the expulsion of fellow representatives Dan Crane and Gerry Studds for their roles in the Congressional Page sex scandal.

Related Topics:
1981 - 1983 - Dan Crane - Gerry Studds - Congressional Page sex scandal

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In 1987, Gingrich brought ethics charges against Speaker of the House Jim Wright, a Democrat, who eventually resigned as a result of the Congressional ethics inquiry. Gingrich's success was in part responsible for his rising influence in the Republican caucus, and in 1989 he served as minority whip, succeeding Representative Dick Cheney, who had been appointed Secretary of Defense by President George H. W. Bush. Gingrich served as Minority Whip until the election of 1994, the first midterm election during the Presidency of Bill Clinton.

Related Topics:
1987 - Speaker of the House - Jim Wright - Caucus - Whip - Dick Cheney - George H. W. Bush - 1994 - Bill Clinton

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Gingrich only faced one tough election, in 1990. During the 1990s round of redistricting, Democrats in the Georgia state legislature tried to draw Gingrich's district out from under him by splitting most of his old territory among two other districts. At the same time, they created a new, heavily Republican 6th District located in Fulton and Cobb counties in the wealthy northern suburbs of Atlanta--an area that Gingrich had never represented. However, the plan backfired when Gingrich sold his home in Carrollton and moved to Marietta in the new 6th. He easily won the Republican primary, which was tantamount to election in the new district. Also, five-term incumbent Richard Ray, whose district was redrawn to include much of Gingrich's former territory, lost to Republican state senator Mac Collins.

Related Topics:
1990 - Fulton - Cobb - Atlanta - Carrollton - Marietta - Richard Ray - Mac Collins

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In 1994, Gingrich defined a Contract with America, a list of campaign promises signed by himself and other Republican candidates for the House of Representatives. The promises were designed to unite the various factions of the party and provide a contrast with the policies of the Democratic Party. Many credit that contract (as well as demographic trends) for the election successes of November 1994. In that election, Republicans gained 54 seats and took control of the House for the first time since 1954.

Related Topics:
1994 - Contract with America - 1954

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Gingrich was then elected Speaker of the United States House of Representatives and served from 1995 to 1999. The Congress fulfilled Gingrich's Contract, voting on all ten of the Contract's issues within the first 100 days of the session. Legislation proposed by the 104th Congress included term limits for Congressional Representatives, tax cuts, welfare reform, and a balanced budget law, as well as independent financial auditing of the finances of the House of Representatives and elimination of non-essential services such as the House barbershop and shoe shine concessions. While many of the major proposals did not become law, after defeat or modification in the Senate or President Clinton's veto, they represented a dramatic change in the legislative goals and priorities of previous Congresses and in general promoted Gingrich's conservative philosophy of limited government.

Related Topics:
Speaker of the United States House of Representatives - 1995 - 1999 - Tax cuts - Welfare reform - Balanced budget law - Independent financial auditing - Veto

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Over the next four years, Gingrich also took aim at the embattled president, investigating various scandals and calling for impeachment of President Clinton.

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Democrats filed 84 ethics charges against Speaker Gingrich. All of them were found to be without merit. The last three were dropped on October 10, 1998.

Related Topics:
October 10 - 1998

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During the investigation into the charge that Gingrich used tax-exempt foundations for political purposes, in which thousands of documents were turned over, a letter prepared and filed by his lawyer contained an inaccuracy. Gingrich personally accepted responsibility for the misstatement and agreed to reimburse the Ethics Committee for the cost of the investigation. He paid it from his personal funds.

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The charge of using tax-exempt foundations for political purposes was dismissed, but it led the IRS to wrongfully revoke the tax exempt status of two groups that organized a college course, "Renewing American Civilization", that Gingrich was teaching. However in April 2003, the IRS reversed itself and restored the tax exempt status of both foundations.

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The events of 1998 ended Gingrich's career in the House. In early 1998, many House Republicans had come to see him as a liability and attempted to replace him as Speaker with suburban Buffalo, New York congressman Bill Paxon. The coup failed, and Paxon was forced from office and completely retired from politics. At the end of the year, the Republicans expected big gains from the 1998 Congressional elections. When the party received the poorest results in 34 years for any party not in control of the White House, Gingrich received much of the blame for the showing. He announced that, although he would serve out the lame duck term in Congress, he would not take the Congressional seat to which he'd been re-elected and that he would not stand for the speakership in January.

Related Topics:
Buffalo, New York - Bill Paxon

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