You know when I was 9 years old in 1994 my dad gave me a huge poster of Newt Gingrich, and Contract With America he told me to always remember that day.
When I was 9 years old, I was scratching my head trying to understand why my maternal grandparents (who raised me) voted for Carter over Reagan!!
Sounds like you had a good father, when I was 9 y.o. I was too busy wondering what promise my father was going to break to me next (he was full of promises along with other things) and wondering when I was going to see my mother as she whisked me off to live the rest of my formative years with a grandmother.
Of course I didn't mind that meant no more vicious spankings from Mom and basically getting away with murder from that point on. So how's the old man doing these days?