Willie: The Man, the Myth and the Era, The Speakership Battles

Willie The Man, the Myth and the Era, The Speakership Battles, involves Willie Brown's ambition to be Assembly Speaker, his ascension to the speakership and his efforts to retain the speakership over insurmountable odds.
In 1974, Assembly Speaker Bob Moretti announced his retirement to run for Governor, providing Willie Brown with his first opportunity to become first among lawmakers at the Capitol. His challenger Leo McCarthy, a worthy adversary, and in this case, Willie's foil. Howard Berman and the Black Caucus support McCarthy, while Willie Brown forges allies who will become part of his legacy.
In 1980, Willie Brown rises from the ashes of defeat to serve a turn on the ambitious Howard Berman, candidate for the Speaker and ironically the same man who denied him the speakership in 1974. Combining half the Democrat Caucus with a solid bloc of Republican support, Willie forges a feeble coalition in order to establish the longest and most powerful speakership in the history of California.
And finally, in 1994, during an era in which Newt Gingrich and Republicans nationwide made huge gains, the Republican Leader Jim Brulte captured a majority in the Assembly, helping to elect 41 Republicans to Willie Brown's 39 Democrats. By all accounts, Willie's speakership should have been doomed, but in this last battle, Willie Brown proved why historians and political buffs alike regard him as being the smartest legislator in the history of California.

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