Tom Foley : the man in the middle / R. Kenton Bird and John C. Pierce.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bird, Kenton, 1954- author.

Pierce, John C., author.

Series:

Congressional Leaders

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

United States--Politics and government--1945-1989.

United States.

United States--Politics and government--1989-.

United States. Congress. House--Biography.

Foley, Thomas S.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (258 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Lawrence, Kansas : University Press of Kansas, [2023]

Summary:

"Thomas S. Foley, a Democratic representative from the traditionally Republican region of eastern Washington, served in Congress for thirty years, from 1964 to 1994. In 1989 he became the first Speaker of the US House of Representatives from a district west of Texas. His experience as a Democrat from a Republican district contributed to his strong commitment to bipartisanship and institution-building. His leadership came to an end with the Newt Gingrich-led Republican "revolution" that ushered in an era of ideological polarization and partisanship. Speaker Tom Foley is a political biography of this important but often ignored and overlooked figure in modern congressional history. In addition to examining the story of Foley's service as Speaker of the House, R. Kenton Bird and John C. Pierce address key themes that emerge from placing his career in the context of both his own life story and congressional politics in the late twentieth century. What emerges is the story of a leader whose strongly held political values motivated him to sustain a vibrant and responsive House of Representatives as an institution, but left him unsuited for the polarized and strident political environment that emerged in the early 1990s, a climate fueled by talk radio and other conservative media and successfully exploited by Gingrich and his fellow partisans. Though he was a reformed in the 1970s, by the 1990s he was seen as part of an "old guard" holding back the House from further reform. His defeat marked a seismic transition in the landscape of American politics"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Cover

Title Page

Copyright Page

Table of Contents

Series Foreword

Prologue and Acknowledgments

1. The Man in the Middle

2. You Can Get There from Here!

3. A Bipartisan Speaker

4. Mapping the Fifth District Landscape

5. Holding the Center

6. The Pinnacle of Power

7. Defending the Reputation of the House

8. The Perfect Storm

9. His Own Stamp?

Epilogue

Biographical Highlights: Thomas Stephen Foley

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Author Biographies

Photo Gallery

Back Cover.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780700634668

0700634665

OCLC:

1341268708