Table of Contents

• Introduction. The Long Shadow of Scandal: The Forgotten Legacy
• Part I. The Rise of a Politician
  • 1. The Foundations for Success: Family and Childhood (1922–1939)
  • 2. The Lessons of Life: College and War (1939–1944)
  • 3. Ambition and Frustration: State Legislature (1944–1948)
  • 4. Preparation and Payoff: Businessman, Mayor, and Election to Congress (1948–1954)
• Part II. Congress in an Age of Tradition
  • 5. Learning the Ropes: The New Congressman (1954–1956)
  • 6. Building a Record: The Eisenhower Years (1956–1960)
  • 7. Challenges: The Kennedy Years (1960–1963)
  • 8. Access to Power: Johnson Takes Control (1963–1965)
  • 9. The Rough Path Forward: Years of Change (1965–1968)
• Part III. Leadership in an Age of Dynamism
  • 10. Old School: A Moderate in the Nixon Years (1968–1972)
  • 11. Bombshell: The Watergate Crisis (1972–1974)
  • 12. The Ripples of Watergate: A New Congress and New Opportunity (1972–1976)
  • 13. The New Majority Leader: Critical Decisions in an Age of Partisanship (1976–1978)
  • 14. The Struggle for Unity: The Carter Years (1978–1980)
• Part IV. Victory and Defeat in the Age of Reagan
  • 15. A Challenge Like None Before: Reagan (1980–1982)
  • 16. Rallying the Opposition: Friends and Enemies (1982–1986)
  • 17. On the Mountaintop: Speaker of the House (1986–1989)
  • 18. In the Valley: Resignation and Its Aftermath (1987–2015)
• Epilogue. The Politics of Scandal and the Judgment of History
• Acknowledgments
• Notes
• Index

About the Author

J. Brooks Flippen is a professor of history at Southeastern Oklahoma State University. His previous books are Jimmy Carter, the Politics of Family, and the Rise of the Religious Right, Conservative Conservationist: Russell E. Train and the Emergence of American Environmentalism, and Nixon and the Environment.

Reviews

Flippen draws on Wright's memoirs, diaries, and papers; copious library and newspaper archives; and interviews (including conversations with Wright) to offer a definitive, richly detailed biography . . . An engrossing history that sheds light on our own fractious times.
*Kirkus*

Flippen offers an exhaustive biography that reveals Wright as a Texas go-getter in the mold of mentor President Lyndon B. Johnson. . . The detailed analyses of Wright’s legislative actions will likely make this the authoritative account of his political life.
*Library Journal*

A vivid and compelling portrait of a grass-roots politician who ascended into the hallowed halls of our nation’s capital and made his mark on practically every major public policy issue in the late 20th century.
*San Antonio Express-News*

Extensively researched and well written…Flippen provides his readers with an excellent political biography, a work that will serve as the authoritative voice on Wright's career for many years to come."
*Central Texas Studies*

A very scrupulous 'warts and all' account of the life of Jim Wright and his short-lived and problematic time as Speaker of the House…a good read in addition to representing strong scholarship.
*Congress & The Presidency*

Clearly written and provides a helpful account of Wright's rise in national politics…historians of twentieth-century Texas will want to read this book.
*Southwestern Historical Quarterly*

A detailed, thoroughly researched account of a lost political species: the moderate southern Democrat.
*Journal of Southern History*

[An] engaging treatment of Wright's life and career…Flippen makes a convincing case that Wright deserves a place in the ranks of Texas political giants.
*Texas Books in Review*

Much-needed…this book offers a definitive political biography of Wright while also illuminating the multifaceted and complex structure of Congress and the individuals who serve in it.
*Western Historical Quarterly*

Everyone interested in the power structure of Congress and late twentieth-century public policy issues should fine a place for Speaker Jim Wright on their bookshelf.
*Journal of American History*