Former Congressional Leaders Talk Running For President, Compromise

SANDY SPRINGS, GA -- Newt Gingrich has four words he always keeps mind: listen, learn, help and lead. And Dick Gephardt believes that patience, taking time and listening are keys to success in politics, and in life.

The two men, former members of the U.S. House of Representatives who shared the spotlight on the political stage in the 1990's, shared these insights and others Thursday night, Oct. 20, at Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School's inaugural REAL Talks Atlanta event.

“Preserving Our Republic: A Conversation With Dick Gephardt and Newt Gingrich” was moderated by national political correspondent Patricia Murphy at the Atlanta History Center. Gephardt (D-MO) was the Democratic House minority leader when he handed the gavel over to incoming Speaker Gingrich (R-GA) in 1995.

“With partnership but with purpose I pass this great gavel of our government,” Gephardt told Gingrich then. “With resignation but with resolve, I hereby end 40 years of Democratic rule of this house.”

Thursday night, to some 380 guests at REAL Talks, Gephardt described Gingrich as a leader and a visionary.

“And I also knew he really cared about solving problems,” Gephardt said.

And Gingrich expressed the same respect for Gephardt and the U.S. system of government.

“Dick and I had worked together long enough by then to know that we could work together," Gingrich added.

Here’s more from the conversation between Gephardt and Gingrich:

Getting into politics

-Gephardt: “I grew up in the ‘50s and ‘60s when Jack Kennedy was president. We would watch him on television. And our teachers always talked about the good things public servants could do. I thought maybe that’s something I should do. So when I got out of law school, my wife, Jane, and I became precinct captains.”

-Gingrich: “My father was an infantry man in the Army. He came out of the Korean War. In 1958, we went to the Verdun battlefield. And once we stayed with a friend of his who had been in a Japanese prison camp. All night they were talking about the cost of defeat. For a young kid from Pennsylvania, it all coalesced in my brain that leadership matters and that solving things before a crisis is important."

Working together with respect

-Gephardt: “We did work together and respect each other and work to get things done. In 1994, we were at loggerheads over the budget. But we knew we were motivated by the same things … In every issue there are winners are losers, and the losers are plenty. But they have to be willing to grudgingly accept the result. That’s the genius of our democracy.”

-Gingrich: “It’s a very complicated relationship. To think back to the ‘90s, Dick Gephardt and I both grew up in the shadow of World War II, the greatest organizing event in U.S. history since the Civil War. Our generation had been told that life had seriousness, and we came in (to politics) with purpose. We were serving history.”

Serving in Congress

-Gephardt: “Politics is a substitute for violence. These are tough subjects that we deal with. It would be so easy if one person could make these decisions but it would be the wrong way to do it. It takes patience, time, listening and endless meetings.”

-Gingrich: “We did everything to beat each other but it wasn’t annihilation. The key is to remember there is a tomorrow morning. The dance will continue.”

Importance of compromise

-Gephardt: “It took 10 years to balance the budget. That’s how hard it is. And it takes dedication and the right motivation … When you succeed (with legislation), that feeling is exhilaration. And it takes leadership from a president, which means you meet with members of Congress 24/7 and you talk and you listen.”

-Gingrich: “Nothing gets done (in Congress) unless it’s bipartisan. And the reason that matters is that it’s a function of reality. With Bill Clinton, there were things I had to have and things I couldn’t have. Clinton had things he had to have and things he couldn’t have. And there was space in the middle where you could have a deal.”

Running for President

-Gingrich: “Both of us had the experience that money really, really matters … Hillary Clinton has built a huge machine. Donald Trump’s asset is people on Facebook and twitter. He can communicate with them eight or 10 times a day with no money. This is a different world.”

-Gephardt: “This is the hardest job in the world. If you want to run for president, you better be an athlete. It’s 24/7. It never ends. You give up your personal life completely and you have something of a chance to be shot. That’s a tough job description.”

America’s future

-Gephardt: “Our democracy if self-cleansing. If you don’t like it, be a candidate, or support a candidate. We are all so privileged to be citizens of this great country, and we all need to be engaged.”

-Gingrich: “I’m moderately optimistic. We are an enormous country with more than 300 million people so there’s reason for optimism … I am excited about the next generation of leaders. I have a hunch there will be a whole group of people who will decide they will stand up; I know people 15 years old asking me how to get into politics. So we will have a steady stream of new blood.”

REAL Talks Atlanta, which grew out of the former HI Speaker Series, was organized by Heidi Domescik, Chris Durst, Danielle Elms and Erik Vincent, as well as HIES parents Tricia Gephardt, Missy McClatchey and Mike Johnson. The event, which was available to viewers by live streaming, was sponsored by the Gephardt Institute for Civic and Community Engagement at Washington University in St. Louis, and Homrich Berg Wealth Management.

Images via Holy Innocents' Episcopal School