Donnald K. Anderson Page, U.S. House of Representatives (1960) Staff, U.S. House of Representatives (1961–1969) Democratic Cloakroom, U.S. House of Representatives (1969–1972) Manager, Democratic Cloakroom (1972–1987) Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives (1987–1995) Oral History Interviews Final Edited Transcripts January 25, 2006 February 23, 2006 April 12, 2006 May 31, 2006 June 21, 2006 July 10, 2006 October 5, 2006 Office of the Historian U.S. House of Representatives Washington, D.C. “And with barely the trace of a smile throughout the conversation, which lasted perhaps five or 10 minutes, he [Ralph Roberts] asked me about how I was enjoying my experience as a Page. And I asked if he would mind telling me about what he did as the Clerk of the House. And he was forthcoming about that. And I sort of made up my mind then and there being Clerk of the House has to be the best job in the world, and my fantasy as a 17-year-old high school senior was to be the Clerk of the House—little knowing that 27 years later I actually would become the Clerk of the House.” Donnald K. Anderson, January 25, 2006 Clerk of the House Donnald K. Anderson standing in his office. Image courtesy of Donnald K. Anderson Table of Contents Interview Abstract i Interviewee Biography i Editing Practices ii Citation Information ii Interviewer Biography iii Interview One 1 Interview Two 49 Interview Three 105 Interview Four 162 Interview Five 210 Interview Six 260 Interview Seven 313 Notes 373 Index 375 Abstract Elected Clerk under Speakers Jim Wright of Texas and Thomas Foley of Washington, Donnald K. Anderson began his 35 years of House service as a Page. Even before he was Clerk, Anderson’s duties—running errands, operating elevators in the Capitol, enrolling bills, and serving Members in the Democratic Cloakroom—kept him close to the House Floor. In his seven audio interviews, Anderson shared illuminating anecdotes about personalities like Sam Rayburn of Texas, Hale Boggs of Louisiana, and Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neill of Massachusetts, and described in detail the old Capitol Hill neighborhood, particularly the Page boarding houses. His recollections of the advent of electronic voting, the shift away from patronage employment, and the integration of women Members illustrate how technological, procedural, and social developments have transformed the institution of the U.S. House of Representatives. Anderson’s memories of his long tenure in the Democratic Cloakroom and his later rise to Clerk of the House, provide a rare look at the critical behind-the-scenes operations which enable the House to function each day. Biography Donnald K. Anderson was born on October 17, 1942, in Sacramento, California, to Russell V. and Sally Anderson. Educated in the Sacramento public schools, Anderson first came to Capitol Hill on January 5, 1960, having been appointed a House Page during the 86th Congress (1959–1961) by Representative John E. Moss of California. After attending Sacramento State University and George Washington University, Anderson spent eight years in the U.S. Army Reserve. During the next several decades, Anderson held a variety of administrative and managerial positions in the House: He was an elevator operator, an assistant enrolling clerk, a clerk in the House Finance Office, and assistant manager of the Democratic Cloakroom. In 1972 Speaker Carl Albert of Oklahoma appointed Anderson Majority Floor Manager, a position he held until January 6, 1987, when he became Clerk of the House at the opening of the 100th Congress (1987–1989). As Clerk, Anderson managed an office that controlled legislative, administrative, and financial operations for the House. His staff of more than 600 was responsible for House Floor operations, finance and procurement, information technology, and televised House proceedings, among other areas. One of Anderson’s main achievements in his eight years as Clerk was the creation of two House offices: Employee Assistance and Fair Employment Practices. Anderson retired from the House in January 1995. A resident of Capitol Hill, he was a member emeritus of the House Page Board and is an active board member of several charitable and educational organizations. He was invested by Pope John Paul II in the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, a Catholic group for laypeople and clergy and the only order of knighthood of the Holy See. i http://history.house.gov/Oral-History Editing Practices In preparing interview transcripts for publication, the editors sought to balance several priorities: • As a primary rule, the editors aimed for fidelity to the spoken word and the conversational style in accord with generally accepted oral history practices. • The editors made minor editorial changes to the transcripts in instances where they believed such changes would make interviews more accessible to readers. For instance, excessive false starts and filler words were removed when they did not materially affect the meaning of the ideas expressed by the interviewee. • In accord with standard oral history practices, interviewees were allowed to review their transcripts, although they were encouraged to avoid making substantial editorial revisions and deletions that would change the conversational style of the transcripts or the ideas expressed therein. • The editors welcomed additional notes, comments, or written observations that the interviewees wished to insert into the record and noted any substantial changes or redactions to the transcript. • Copy-editing of the transcripts was based on the standards set forth in The Chicago Manual of Style. The first reference to a Member of Congress (House or Senate) is underlined in the oral history transcript. For more information about individuals who served in the House or Senate, please refer to the online Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, http://bioguide.congress.gov and the “People Search” section of the History, Art & Archives website, http://history.house.gov. For more information about the U.S. House of Representatives oral history program contact the Office of House Historian at (202) 226-5525, or via email at [email protected]. Citation Information When citing this oral history interview, please use the format below: “Donnald K. Anderson Oral History Interview,” Office of the Historian, U.S. House of Representatives, [date of interview]. ii http://history.house.gov/Oral-History Interviewer Biography Kathleen Johnson is a senior historical editor for the Office of the Historian, U.S. House of Representatives. She earned a B.A. in history from Columbia University and holds two master’s degrees from North Carolina State University in education and public history. In 2004, she helped to create the House’s first oral history program, focusing on collecting the institutional memory of Members and staff. She co-authored two books: Women in Congress: 1917–2006 (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 2006) and Black Americans in Congress: 1870–2007 (GPO, 2008). iii http://history.house.gov/Oral-History — DONNALD K. ANDERSON — INTERVIEW ONE JOHNSON: This is Kathleen Johnson interviewing Donnald Anderson, former Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. The interview is taking place in the Legislative Resource Center, Cannon House Office Building. It is January 25th, 2006, and this is the first interview with Mr. Anderson. Before discussing your career at the Capitol, it would be helpful to focus on some biographical information. Where and when were you born? ANDERSON: I was born on October 17th, 1942, in Sacramento, California, which is still my other home to this day. I grew up in Sacramento, was educated in the public schools of Sacramento until I received my Page appointment in my senior year of high school, which brought me to Washington initially. I completed my high school education here in Washington at the Capitol Page School. JOHNSON: What were the names of your parents and their professions? ANDERSON: My mother, who is still living, is Sally Anderson, a career civil servant with the state of California. And my late father, Russell V. Anderson, was a civil engineer, who died about 30 years ago. JOHNSON: I read that in 1959 you came across a magazine article discussing the Pages of the Capitol and you subsequently wrote your Congressman, Representative [John Emerson] Moss. http://history.house.gov/Oral-History/ 1 ANDERSON: Indeed. In late summer of 1959, as I was about to begin my senior year of high school, I read a lengthy article in Time magazine about Pages in the House and Senate. I decided this was a really extraordinary thing to do. I had developed an interest in parliamentary government because my mother had worked for many years—and would for quite a few years thereafter—in the state capitol in Sacramento, not very far from our home, in the state controller’s office. And so, frequently, after school or during break periods, I’d go down to the capitol and visit Mom at her office. And I got to know many of the members of the state senate and assembly and would hang around the chambers and watch our legislature in action. I became keenly interested in the process of consensus government. So when I read the article, I thought, well, this would be a wonderful thing to do. But the article wrongly pointed out that unless you were well connected, came from a well-to-do, influential family—the chance of receiving a Page appointment in either the House or Senate was rather far- fetched. Of course those things didn’t necessarily describe my family situation, but in the spirit of nothing ventured nothing gained, I sat down and wrote a handwritten letter, which I still have, to our Congressman from Sacramento, the late John E. Moss, expressing in the same terms that kids do to this very day, why I would like to be a Page in the House of Representatives.