40 years in the wilderness

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The 40 years in the wilderness refers, of course, to the many years the Republicans spent in the poltical outhouse. Heh heh. In 1954, the Dems, led by the great Sam Rayburn (a mentor of LBJ) retook the House after control had seesawed back and forth for 10 years. Rayburn was so sure that the Republicans would take back the House in the Eisenhower re-election year of 1956, that when he became Speaker after the 1954 election, he didn't even bother to move his furniture back to the better office suite occupied by Joe Martin (the Republican Speaker).

As it turned out, the Republicans didn't re-take a majority of the House for 40 years (The Gingrich "revolution" of 1994). We've been in the minority for ten years. But it seems like 40 because the G.O.P. has done about 40 years of damage while they have been in "power."
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