(Source: MIRS.news, Published 01/04/2023) As U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) wrestled with 20 GOP members in his bid for U.S. House speaker, the archives at the Michigan Library yielded up memories of the last Speaker's fight in the Michigan Legislature.
Whir. Click. The soft, yellow bulb shown through the microfiche displaying a Detroit Free Press headline of “President proposes 6 Percent Tax Boost.” President Lyndon B. Johnson wrestled with Social Security issues on Jan. 11, 1967, and on the first page the paper discussed a 55-55 Michigan House that was seated giving rise to the question of who would take control.
“All eyes kind of turned on a Detroit legislator named E.D. O’Brien, who was always something of a maverick within the Democratic caucus,” Dennis Cawthorne said.
Cawthorne was a Republican member of the House during that split session. Democrats were clamoring for equal control.
The Free Press reported on Jan. 11 that former House Speaker Rep. Joseph Kowalski had given up on retaking the speaker position and Democrats had picked Rep. William Ryan.
The black-and-white Free Press film from the archive crawled forward to reveal the Republicans had put forth Robert Waldron, of Grosse Pointe.
The paper reported the selection of Ryan was done in “what was described as a unity move.”
The unity move came because Kowalski, Ryan and O’Brien were all representatives from Detroit and there was bad blood between Kowalski and O’Brien.
Kowalski had reprimanded O’Brien and removed him as chair of the House Economic Development Committee after he stormed the podium and refused to return to his seat in 1966.
“The fact that E.D. O’Brien had a falling out, quite decisively, with Joe Kowalski led many to believe that O’Brien would get his revenge, and indeed, he did,” Cawthorne said.
Whir. Click. A new headline appeared on microfiche screen for the Jan. 12, 1967, edition of the Detroit Free Press, “GOP Gets Control of House When Dem Refuses to Vote.”
Cawthorne said Waldron had “highly urged” all Republican members to show up to the Legislature the night before.
“So that no snowstorm or other calamity could prevent any of us from reaching the Capitol in time for the vote,” Cawthorne said.
The lede of the Free Press read that the 2 ½ hour ensuing battle was watched by spectators from the upper gallery during the opening of the session.
The tan-colored House legislative journal from the cream-colored library shelves revealed there were nine votes taken before the dust settled on history.
The votes started with rules change proposals and blocks, until the first stab by the metaphorical Marcus BRUTUS when O’Brien abstained on a rules vote giving the GOP members the upper hand on a majority rule change.
The rules change led to a call to vote for Speaker.
“The final vote was 55 for Waldron, 54 for Kowalski and O’Brien did not vote and so Bob Waldron became the Speaker,” Cawthorne said.
The Free Press article resounded with Democrats calling O’Brien “Judas” and “turncoat.”
The microfiche crawled past the headline “Photographs taken of ‘Flying Disk’” where the story picked up again.
Much to O’Brien’s chagrin, Kowalski remained floor leader and the talk from O’Brien that he had not made a deal with Republicans, but in fact the old feud had indeed played a role in his actions.
Waldron made a comment about giving O’Brien a choice seat on the Legislative Council.
There was even talk in the article about the Democrats usurping the Speaker and a lawsuit being filed in Ingham County Circuit Court.
An extended whir filled the empty library room and a flap, flap, flap as the end of the film re-spooled on the thick, gray reel.
Cawthorne said Kowalski unexpectedly died about two or three months later, which caused an empty seat in Detroit causing a special election to be held.
The seat previously held by Kowalski in a bastion of Democrats ended up in Republican hands, giving Waldron a true majority.
“The Democrat who lost, and I think he was the second to last Democrat ever to lose the House of Representative in the city of Detroit, and that was Jimmy Hoffa, Jr.” Cawthorne said.
Cawthorne said he doesn’t see the loyalty to fellow lawmakers or party loyalty that existed when he was a public servant.
“We, as a caucus in ’67, were very united, and the moderate to conservative chasm was nowhere near as great as it is today within the Republican Party,” Cawthorne said.
