This orginally appeared in The Politico

In 1989, when I started working for then-House Minority Leader Bob Michel, I was full of ideological enthusiasm. Fresh off of reading “The Fountainhead” and listening to Newt Gingrich’s GOPAC tapes, I was, in my mind, a fire-breathing conservative who became a bitter critic of George Bush the First and his Big Government ideas. I thought of myself as the most conservative member of the Michel leadership staff. Some thought I was a right-wing wacko.

After I had worked for five years for Michel, a war hero and one of the best leaders in congressional history, he announced his retirement. I decided to go back home to Illinois, where I worked for Denny Hastert, a loyal lieutenant of Michel. Hastert curiously became the campaign manager of Tom DeLay, a bitter critic of Michel who was running for Republican whip.

DeLay, with Hastert’s considerable help, won the whip race as Republicans captured the House for the first time in 40 years. I moved back to Washington to work for then-Majority Whip DeLay and Hastert, his chief deputy. I eventually became DeLay’s communications director.  Read more...