You can tell how bad it’s gotten for the GOP when as a crying baby in diapers, after he complained Clinton ignored him on a long flight when they should have been negotiating, and he had to exit Air Force One by the back stairs after attending the funeral of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.
When Gingrich abruptly stepped down as speaker after the GOP effort to impeach Clinton backfired, and Democrats won seats in the 1998 midterm election, Clinton called him a “worthy adversary” and thanked him for the times they were able to work together.
In the many historic political standoffs of recent years, leaders in both parties have found a way to rebuff the most extreme tactics that would damage our democratic institutions. That is the challenge facing the GOP, however long it takes.
