To understand the partisanship and bitterness of American politics today, you have to consider what happened in 1994. Steve Kornacki, National Political Correspondent for NBC News and MSNBC, steps back from the Big Board to tell the origin story of the 1994 Republican “revolution,” the midterm election when the GOP took the House majority for the first time in four decades. It was set in motion by Georgia Congressman Newt Gingrich, who — over the course of 15 years — pushed Republicans in a direction of confrontation and conservatism. Steve talks with Newt’s allies and adversaries about backroom strategy sessions and dramatic battles on the House floor. As yet another midterm threatens to upend the political landscape, Kornacki hears echoes of 1994 everywhere. Follow now and join Steve Kornacki through all six episodes, out October 31st.
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episode 4: Episode 4: False Spring
We enter the era of President Bill Clinton. In the 1992 election, Democrats win the White House for the first time since the 1970s and enjoy solid majorities in the House and Senate. They seem poised to deliver on an ambitious agenda. But scandals start erupting on a regular basis. By June, Time magazine publishes a cover naming Bill Clinton “The Incredible Shrinking President.” And by August, Republicans are crowing about a bruising battle over Clinton’s budget. Republicans will now tell voters that Democrats are the party that supports the largest tax increase in history. This is the contrast Gingrich has spent his whole career trying to create — and it will catapult him towards the role of House Speaker.