[To say that
this year’s midterm
elections are significant is, I believe, to significantly understate the
case. But crucial as they are, they won’t be the first such significant
midterms, so this week I’ll AmericanStudy five other major midterms, leading up
to a special weekend post on this year’s results. And oh yeah: vote!]
On three ways—beyond
the most obvious, the rise
of Newt Gingrich and his Contract with
America—that the “Republican
Revolution” of the 1994 midterm elections foreshadowed 21st
century American politics and society:
1)
Oliver
North: True, former Reagan aide and Iran Contra figure North lost
his Virginia Senate bid (to incumbent Charles Robb). But it’s far from a
coincidence that North has gone on to become a Fox News star—every
aspect of his campaign, from his emphasis on his born-again Christianity to his
unrelenting attack ads on Robb, has become integral to the 21st
century right-wing media world of which he’s now a part.
2)
Bill
Frist: One of the most surprising 1994 victors was Frist, a heart surgeon
with no prior political experience who defeated three-term incumbent Tennessee
Senator Jim Sasser. One of 1994’s most lasting influences has been the value
placed on “outsiders,” not just to Washington but to the political realm
itself; and no candidate fit
that mold better than Frist, who would go on to become the ultimate insider
as Senate Majority Leader.
3)
Rick
Santorum: Among the many GOP triumphs in 1994, relatively little attention
was paid to Pennsylvania Congressman Rick Santorum’s victory over incumbent
Senator Harris Wofford (in part because Wofford had been appointed after John
Heinz’s tragic 1991 death, so was far from an established incumbent). Yet
Santorum’s victory was hugely significant, and not only because he has gone on
to be a perennial
presidential candidate. It marked the growing presence and power of
Christian Conservatives, a trend that would culminate in the election and
presidency of George W. Bush six years later.
Special post
this weekend,
Ben
PS. What do you
think? Other elections or contexts you’d highlight?
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