Capitol Steps: Make America Grin Again

The Capitol Steps began as a group of Senate staffers who set out to satirize the very people and places that employed them. Although not all current members of the Steps are former Capitol Hill staffers, taken together they have worked in 18 Congressional offices, representing 62 years of collective House and Senate staff experience. The Steps have recorded over 35 albums, including their latest, Make America Grin Again. They've been featured on NBC, CBS, ABC and PBS, and are heard twice a year on National Public Radio stations during their Politics Takes a Holiday radio specials. The Capitol Steps were born in December 1981 when staffers for Senator Charles Percy were planning entertainment for a Christmas party. Ronald Reagan was President, so co-founders Elaina Newport, Bill Strauss and Jim Aidala figured that if entertainers could become politicians, then politicians could become entertainers. Their first idea was to stage a nativity play, but they couldn't find three wise men or a virgin in Congress! So, they dug into the headlines of the day, and created song parodies and skits which conveyed a special brand of satirical humor as popular in Peoria as on Pennsylvania Avenue. No matter who holds office, there's never a shortage of material. Says Ms. Newport, "Typically the Republicans goof up, and the Democrats party. Then the Democrats goof up and the Republicans party. That's what we call the two-party system." The Capitol Steps are based in Washington, DC, and most of their shows are out-of-town or for out-of-town audiences. They have performed for the last five Presidents (six, if you include Hillary). The only complaints they seem to get are from politicians and personalities not included in the program! No matter who or what is in the headlines, you can bet the Capitol Steps will tackle both sides of the political spectrum and all things equally foolish. What more would you expect from the group that puts the "MOCK" in Democracy?!