James Grant spoke about his biography of Thomas Reed, speaker of the House of Representatives from 1889 to 1891, and again from 1895 to 1899. During Reed's tenures he increased the power of the speaker and, according to Mr. Grant, "changed forever the way the House of Representatives does its business." The former speaker did so by establishing the power of majority rule instead of allowing the minority to hold up consideration or passage of legislation. James Grant has authored six books including a biography of John Adams.