In 1997 a strong majority of Americans believed Gingrich should have been replaced as Speaker of the House, and he held an all-time low job approval rating of 28%.[http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1997/04/18/poll/(1)]. Gingrich was forced out of the Republican leadership as a result of the poor Republican performance in the 1998 election, the only mid-term election in a president's second term in the last 60 years where the opposition party failed to gain seats until 2006. | In 1997 a strong majority of Americans believed Gingrich should have been replaced as Speaker of the House, and he held an all-time low job approval rating of 28%.[http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1997/04/18/poll/(1)]. Gingrich was forced out of the Republican leadership as a result of the poor Republican performance in the 1998 election, the only mid-term election in a president's second term in the last 60 years where the opposition party failed to gain seats until 2006. |