There aren’t half enough adjectives to describe Ann Richards, the former governor of Texas who died late Wednesday. Charming, gutsy, witty, committed and candid will get us started.
Richards broke down barriers for women and minorities during her tenure as governor from 1991 to 1995. She was politically savvy, had a distinct voice – and the nerve and the timing of a stand-up comic.
Richards was thrust onto the national stage in 1988 when she captivated the Democratic Convention, telling delegates in a keynote address that Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, “only backwards and in high heels.”
She famously zinged Vice President George H.W. Bush, the GOP presidential nominee that year, saying, “Poor George. He can’t help it. He was born with a silver foot in his mouth.” She later lost re-election to Bush’s son, the current president.
Richards always said she entered politics to help others, especially those who were so often ignored by the Texas establishment. She appointed the first black University of Texas regent, the first disabled person on the human services board and the first teacher to lead the State Board of Education. The fabled Texas Rangers pinned stars on their first black and female officers on her watch.
Before leaving office, Richards said she didn’t want her tombstone to read, “She kept a really clean house,” but rather, “She opened government to everyone.”
That she did.
