Hello and welcome to this day in esoteric political history from Radiotopia.

My name is Jody Avergan.

This day, September 27th, 1994, 367 Republicans in the U.S. Congress stood on the steps of Congress and signed the contract with America. It was written by Newt Gingrich

and Dick Army. The contract detailed the actions that Republicans promised to take

if they became the majority party in the United States House of Representatives that fall and

that would have been the first time in 40 years. I will spoil it and say that they

did. The contract included 10 bullet points with items like, and you'll recognize this language, fiscal responsibility,

quote taking back our streets, common sense legal reforms. That fall the Republicans won a net of 54 seats to control the House.

They also took control the Senate and President Clinton was now faced with stiff opposition.

Republicans had their groove back. Gingrich is well really became a rising star in the party and in many ways the voice of the new Republican Party.

So let's talk about the contract with America and its legacy.

I am joined as always by Nicole Hemmer of

Columbia. Hello, Nicky. And back with us is Kristen Soltis Anderson

pollster at Echelon Insights and author of The Selfy Vote.. Hello Kristen. Hello? Yeah so the

contract with America you're absolutely right that it turned Newt Gingrich into a

national leader and it was something that he had been engineering for years

well in the Congress trying to figure out some way to get Republicans back in power.

What's so surprising about this actually is that Gingrich had been working for so long to try

to figure out a way for Republicans to win, but the contract with America doesn't come out until

late September of election year. I mean, Kristen, is there a reason why this comes out

what seems like so late in the election cycle?

Well, I wonder to what extent the idea of this being so late

...