Former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, 73, dies
Richards remembered as a gifted politician
Poor George. He can’t help it; he was born with a silver foot in his mouth.
- Former Texas Governor Ann Richards
Long before I even remotely considered the possibility of moving to Texas, I was made aware of Texas politics. Ann Richards used her larger-than-life irrespressibility to thrust Texas to the forefront of this nation’s consciousness, and she gave this state a face- a smiling face with a sense of humor and a joie de vive that stretched from El Paso to Texarkana.
I have to wonder where our country would be today if Texans had re-elected Richards to a second term as governor in 1994. Instead, they elected that noted mediocrity, George W. Bush, who, like his daddy, was born with a silver foot in his mouth…a size 18 foot. After her defeat, Richards never again ran for public office, which was Texas’ loss. Richards brought an energy, a love of life, and a sense of humor to public office that’s sorely lacking among the current crop of Republican drones currently in power. Governor Goodhair, for example, pales in comparison to Ann Richards. A personality transplant might help, but Rick Perry, like most Republicans, are too concerned with their own self-aggrandizement and political future to even be discussed in the same sentence with Richards.
My family does have something in common with Ann Richards: both Richards and She Who Endures My Myriad Eccentricities were debaters at Baylor University. Of course, only one of the went on to become governor….
The word “icon” gets tossed around too much these days, but Ann Richards really was a true Texas icon, and an original whose mold was broken when she was born. Au revoir….
