these activities proved to be technically illegal, being
based on various loopholes in the ethics rules, and
they were not inconsistent with the practices of
other House members at the time. Still, the appear-
ance of misconduct, combined with the persistence
of Gingrich’s attacks, eventually forced Wright to re-
sign as Speaker on May 31, 1989, and to give up his
House seat shortly thereafter.
Impact Wright’s political success during the early
1980’s and his fall from power at the end of the de-
cade were key events in the battle taking shape be-
tween liberal and conservative elements in govern-
ment during the Reagan years. His story is also a
study in the personal quest for power and the hubris
that can be associated with it.
Further Reading
Barry, John M.The Ambition and the Power.New York:
Viking Press, 1989.
Taylor, Stuart, Jr. “Wright’s Deeds Pale Next to Sys-
temic Corruption.”The New Jersey Law Journal123,
no. 23 (June 8, 1989): 12.
Wright, Jim.Reflections of a Public Man.Fort Worth,
Tex.: Madison, 1984.
Scott WrightSee also Bork, Robert H.; Congress, U.S.; Conser-
vatism in U.S. politics; Iran-Contra affair; Liberalism
in U.S. politics; Meese, Edwin, III; O’Neill, Tip; Rea-
gan, Ronald; Reagan Revolution; Reaganomics;
Scandals.1068 Wright, Jim The Eighties in America
House Speaker Jim Wright, left, talks with Senator Alan Cranston and Representative Nancy Pelosi on Capitol Hill in June, 1987.(AP/
Wide World Photos)