The W. Stillwater Bound
President Bush will be the commencement speaker at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater on May 6. He makes the third president to do so, following his dad, George H.W. Bush in 1990, and Richard M. Nixon in 1974.
Why is President Bush coming to Oklahoma? Perhaps to give a boost to Republican candidates in Oklahoma’s gubernatorial and congressional races this year. Gov. Brad Henry is one of 12 Democratic incumbents up for re-election this year. Or perhaps fellow Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens had something to do with it. Pickens is an Oklahoma native and OSU (Oklahoma A&M) grad. The stadium at which Bush will deliver his address is named Boone Pickens Stadium.
The previous OSU presidential visits did not lead to better days for the chiefs. Richard Nixon resigned from office less than three months later, in August 1974. Bush the Elder temporarily lost his political sanity just a few months after his Stillwater visit, signing the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act in November 1990, which raised federal taxes. Voters who remembered Bush’s “Read my lips: No new taxes” pledge denied him a second term in 1992. It is too early to speak of the “OSU Presidential Curse,” but it will be interesting to watch George W.’s fate during the next few months.
University of Oklahoma at Norman graduates will hear Katie Couric speak on May 12.
