Wednesday, November 28, 2001

UT Austin hoping to host the Bush library
By Rachel Yates
Daily Texan (U. Texas-Austin)

AUSTIN (U-WIRE) — University of Texas President Larry Faulkner wants the University to be the first in the country to house two presidential libraries.

This summer, Faulkner wrote President Bush to present him with the University’s proposal for housing the George W. Bush Presidential Library. He received a letter of acknowledgment in return, which said the Bush administration will seriously consider the proposal.

Faulkner said a second presidential library would benefit the University immeasurably.
“Presidential libraries are very valuable assets to universities,” Faulkner said. “They’re valuable to scholars who are interested in history, culture and public affairs, and the impact on the university can be very beneficial.”

There is little doubt that the Bush library will find its home somewhere in Texas. Aside from serving as governor of the state, Bush owned an oil and gas company in Midland and part of the Texas Rangers baseball team. First lady Laura Bush was born and raised in Midland and attended Southern Methodist University in Dallas. To top it off, Texas A&M University is home to his father’s presidential library.

The real question is which Texas university Bush will choose for his library.

The United States has 12 presidential libraries, and the University is home to one of them already — the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, located at the northeast corner of the main campus.

Faulkner said the University is a logical choice for the Bush library considering the president’s relationship to Austin.

“It makes sense for the president for it to be in Austin because of his prior public service here as governor,” Faulkner said.

Additionally, Bush’s daughter Jenna currently attends the University as an undergraduate student, his nephew, George P. Bush, attends the UT School of Law and his brother Jeb is a graduate.

Faulkner proposed two sites for the library — one west of the Pickle Research Campus in Northwest Austin, and the other directly across from the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum.

The northwest Austin site would provide a convenient location for visitors near State Loop 1 (Mopac) and Highway 183, he said.

Logically, Bush could consider other Texas schools, including SMU, where his wife is an alumna, Texas Tech University, near his childhood home of Midland and Baylor University, near his permanent home in Crawford.

Baylor officials think their campus is also a promising candidate for the library. The school’s proximity to Interstate 35 and the Bush’s permanent home makes the school attractive, said Jerome Laughridge, chief of staff for Baylor President Robert B. Sloan Jr.

“We have established committees across the campus ... and we are well along the way in developing a formal proposal for the Bushes,” Laughridge said. “Our plan is to have a plan ready for ... when the president is ready to consider it.”

The president is unlikely to decide on a site for his library any time soon, considering he has more pressing issues immediately at hand, Faulkner said.

“Because of what happened Sept. 11, this is not a front-burner issue for (the Bush Administration),” he said.

Presidents choose the sites for their libraries, and the National Archivist usually plays an advisory role in their administration. Construction of the libraries is paid for by private funds.