Barbara Staff
Encyclopedia
Barbara Ruth Wright Staff (born August 26, 1924) is a retired Republican
political activist from Plano
, Texas
. She was co-chairman of her state's 1976 Ronald Reagan
presidential primary campaign.
in Johnson County
, a suburb
of Fort Worth
, to Robert Floyd Wright and the former Hazel Bishop. She graduated from the former Crozier Technical High School
, earlier known as Dallas Technical High School
in Dallas
, and studied at the University of North Texas
in Denton
and finally received her Bachelor of Arts
from Southern Methodist University
in University Park
in Dallas County. She and her husband, businessman William Stewart Staff (1919-1995), native of Washington and formerly of Illinois
, had two daughters, Susan S. Causey (who married Paul Franklin Causey, born ca. 1952) of Grapevine, Texas
, and Barbara Ellen Kimberly (1945-1990) of Bastrop, Texas
, the wife of a Baptist
pastor.
In 1970, Staff took a political science
course at the University of North Texas and became "furious . . . with my radical liberal professor. I didn't think things were as bad as he was touting them to be." Thereafter, Staff became heavily involved in conservative politics and Republican women's activities. She worked in the campaigns of U.S. Representative James M. Collins
of Dallas, whose political career ended in 1982, when he lost a bid for the U.S. Senate to Democrat
Lloyd M. Bentsen. She also served as a volunteer in Collins' office, which she described as "quite a training ground. After you've worked in that office, you're equipped to do anything."
, hosted by state party chairman Ray Hutchison
of Dallas. Sitting U.S. President Gerald R. Ford, Jr., himself absent from the gathering, was represented by his first campaign manager, former U.S. Representative Howard "Bo" Callaway, Vice President
Nelson A. Rockefeller, U.S. Senator John G. Tower of Texas, and two Cabinet secretaries Earl Butz
and William E. Simon
. Also present at the conference was the uncommitted John B. Connally, Jr., the former Democratic governor of Texas who switched parties in 1973. Connally had been expected to enter the 1976 race as a dark horse
contender, but he did not run until 1980, when he was compelled to withdraw after losing the South Carolina
primary.
Staff accused President Ford of having "deviated from the conservative mold and had surrounded himself with liberal advisors." Staff continued: "Ford has deviated more and more from Republican party principles while Reagan stands up for those principles. . . . I don't know if it's as much Ford's fault as it is the advisors he has surrounded himself with."
In 1976, Staff was named the co-chairman of the Reagan primary campaign for the North Texas region, as the former governor of California
challenged President Ford, the favorite of establishment Republicans, including Senator Tower. The two other co-chairmen were Ernest Angelo
, an oil
man and then the mayor
of Midland
, who successfully organized West Texas
, and Ray Barnhart
, a former member of the Texas House of Representatives
from Pasadena
in the Greater Houston
area, who handled the southern portion of the state. Barnhart later was director of the Federal Highway Administration
in the Reagan presidential administration. Ultimately, Reagan won all of the ninety-six delegates at stake in the primary held on May 1, 1976, and four other at-large delegates at the state convention. Reagan also gained the support of state Senator Betty Andujar
, a Republican from Fort Worth. The Reaganites gathered ten times the number of signatures needed to put the Reagan delegate choices on the primary ballot.
Staff and John N. Leedom
, a businessman and later a Republican member of the Texas State Senate from Dallas and Rockwall
counties, headed the Reagan delegate candidates in U.S. House District 3, represented by James Collins. One of the four Ford delegate choices in District 3 was future U.S. Representatived and Dallas Mayor Steve Bartlett
. Leedom led the race with 41,911 votes; Staff followed with 39,030 ballots, and Bartlett trailed with 21,580. Staff recalls the 1976 primary race as a battle between the "establishment" Ford forces and the grassroots insurgents, whom she calls "the volunteers," mostly women. At the time Staff was a member of the large First Baptist Church in downtown Dallas, whose pastor was the nationally known W.A. Criswell. She spoke before various groups with the Reagan message. Years later, she recalled the Reagan volunteers as the most dedicated that she had ever encountered in the political arena.
, Missouri
, having given up a trip to Jamaica
with her husband's business. Ford secured a close nomination vote over Reagan, who then returned in 1980 to capture the presidency by defeating Jimmy Carter, the man who had beaten Ford in the 1976 general election
.
Staff recalls that Ford delegates were openly hostile to the Reaganites and even pelted them with toilet paper. Staff said that the behavior of the Ford delegates made it difficult for her to support the Ford-Dole ticket, which lost a close race to Jimmy Carter
of Georgia
and Walter F. Mondale of Minnesota
, the last Democratic presidential ticket to win the electoral votes of Texas. "You may just see a big apathetic heartbreak take over. I would say at this point most people here are not going to work for Ford. I don't know what we are going to do to heal the wounds."
Ray Barnhart criticized First Lady
Betty Ford
for having "danced a jig" with singer Tony Orlando
when Nancy Davis Reagan made her entrance to the convention hall; Staff called Betty Ford's behavior "a low, cheap shot" to divert attention from the Reagan campaign.Staff claimed that the Ford managers at the convention deliberately made it inconvenient for the Reaganites. "As far as the seating in the arena, the Texas delegation barely got in. They had us stuck way over to the side where the presiding officer couldn't even see us if we wanted to get recognition. . . . "Gwen Pharo of Dallas agreed with Staff about the "shabby treatment" of the Texas delegation by the Ford backers would undoubtedly mean a lack of enthusiasm for the fall campaign.
Staff took an informal survey of the Texas delegates and found few Reaganites favored Reagan becoming Ford's vice-presidential choice to replace Nelson Rockefeller: "The delegates really don't want to see him in that spot, but I sure don't want him to go home and start rocking on his front porch.". Staff said that a fifth of the Texas delegates would want Reagan in the vice-presidential spot, but more than a fourth favored Connally in the secondary position. There was little support of Senator Howard Baker
of Tennessee
and no mention of the eventual choice, Robert Dole, she said.
Staff recalled that Senator John Tower spent much of his time at the convention with the Mississippi
delegation, which swung to Ford near the end of the deliberations. Tower did not address the phalanx of Reagan backers in his own state delegation. In later years Tower's estrangement from his former conservative backers intensified when he supported abortion
and challenged President Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative
.
, now based in Denton.
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
political activist from Plano
Plano, Texas
Plano is a city in the state of Texas, located mostly within Collin County. The city's population was 259,841 at the 2010 census, making it the ninth-largest city in Texas and the 71st most populous city in the United States. Plano is located within the metropolitan area commonly referred to as...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. She was co-chairman of her state's 1976 Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
presidential primary campaign.
Background
Staff was born in CleburneCleburne, Texas
Cleburne is a city in Johnson County, Texas, United States, and a suburb of Fort Worth. According to 2007 United States Census Bureau estimates, the population is 29,050. It is the county seat of Johnson County. Cleburne is named for a Confederate General, Patrick Cleburne...
in Johnson County
Johnson County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 126,811 people, 43,636 households, and 34,428 families residing in the county. The population density was 174 people per square mile . There were 46,269 housing units at an average density of 63 per square mile...
, a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
of Fort Worth
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
, to Robert Floyd Wright and the former Hazel Bishop. She graduated from the former Crozier Technical High School
Dallas Independent School District
The Dallas Independent School District is a school district based in Dallas, Texas . Dallas ISD, which operates schools in much of Dallas County, is the second largest school district in Texas and the twelfth largest in the United States.In 2009, the school district was rated "academically...
, earlier known as Dallas Technical High School
Dallas Independent School District
The Dallas Independent School District is a school district based in Dallas, Texas . Dallas ISD, which operates schools in much of Dallas County, is the second largest school district in Texas and the twelfth largest in the United States.In 2009, the school district was rated "academically...
in Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, and studied at the University of North Texas
University of North Texas
The University of North Texas is a public institution of higher education and research in Denton. Founded in 1890, UNT is part of the University of North Texas System. As of the fall of 2010, the University of North Texas, Denton campus, had a certified enrollment of 36,067...
in Denton
Denton, Texas
The city of Denton is the county seat of Denton County, Texas in the United States. Its population was 119,454 according to the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the eleventh largest city in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex...
and finally received her Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University is a private university in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1911 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, SMU operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Taos, New Mexico. SMU is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church...
in University Park
University Park, Texas
University Park is a city in Dallas County, Texas, United States, and a inner suburb of Dallas. The population was 23,324 at the 2000 census. The city is home to Southern Methodist University. Like its neighbor, Highland Park, it is a city partially surrounded by the municipality of Dallas...
in Dallas County. She and her husband, businessman William Stewart Staff (1919-1995), native of Washington and formerly of Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, had two daughters, Susan S. Causey (who married Paul Franklin Causey, born ca. 1952) of Grapevine, Texas
Grapevine, Texas
Grapevine is a city in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, United States located within the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census the city population was 46,334. The city's moniker is derived from the native grapes prevalent in the area. In recent years several wineries have...
, and Barbara Ellen Kimberly (1945-1990) of Bastrop, Texas
Bastrop, Texas
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there are 5340 people in Bastrop, organized into 2034 households and 1336 families. The population density is 734.8 people per square mile . There are 2,239 housing units at an average density of 308.1 per square mile...
, the wife of a Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
pastor.
In 1970, Staff took a political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
course at the University of North Texas and became "furious . . . with my radical liberal professor. I didn't think things were as bad as he was touting them to be." Thereafter, Staff became heavily involved in conservative politics and Republican women's activities. She worked in the campaigns of U.S. Representative James M. Collins
James M. Collins
James Mitchell Collins, often known as Jim Collins , was a Republican who represented the Third Congressional District of Texas from 1968-1983. The district was based at the time about Irving in Dallas County....
of Dallas, whose political career ended in 1982, when he lost a bid for the U.S. Senate to Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Lloyd M. Bentsen. She also served as a volunteer in Collins' office, which she described as "quite a training ground. After you've worked in that office, you're equipped to do anything."
Working to nominate Reagan
Staff was the president of a group called the Council of Republican Women's Clubs of Dallas County, from which position she launched a successful membership program known as "I Believe." In December 1975, Staff, Angelo, and Barnhart attended the two-day Southern Republican Conference in AustinAustin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, hosted by state party chairman Ray Hutchison
Ray Hutchison
Elton Ray Hutchison, known as Ray Hutchison , is a prominent Dallas, Texas, attorney, who served in the Texas House of Representatives in the 1970s and is married to the state's senior Republican senator, Kay Bailey Hutchison. In 1957, Hutchison graduated from Southern Methodist University in...
of Dallas. Sitting U.S. President Gerald R. Ford, Jr., himself absent from the gathering, was represented by his first campaign manager, former U.S. Representative Howard "Bo" Callaway, Vice President
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
Nelson A. Rockefeller, U.S. Senator John G. Tower of Texas, and two Cabinet secretaries Earl Butz
Earl Butz
Earl Lauer "Rusty" Butz was a United States government official who served as Secretary of Agriculture under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford.- Background :...
and William E. Simon
William E. Simon
William Edward Simon was a businessman, a Secretary of Treasury of the U.S. for three years, and a philanthropist. He became the 63rd Secretary of the Treasury on May 8, 1974, during the Nixon administration. He was reappointed by President Ford and served until 1977. Outside of government, he was...
. Also present at the conference was the uncommitted John B. Connally, Jr., the former Democratic governor of Texas who switched parties in 1973. Connally had been expected to enter the 1976 race as a dark horse
Dark horse
Dark horse is a term used to describe a little-known person or thing that emerges to prominence, especially in a competition of some sort.-Origin:The term began as horse racing parlance...
contender, but he did not run until 1980, when he was compelled to withdraw after losing the South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
primary.
Staff accused President Ford of having "deviated from the conservative mold and had surrounded himself with liberal advisors." Staff continued: "Ford has deviated more and more from Republican party principles while Reagan stands up for those principles. . . . I don't know if it's as much Ford's fault as it is the advisors he has surrounded himself with."
In 1976, Staff was named the co-chairman of the Reagan primary campaign for the North Texas region, as the former governor of California
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
challenged President Ford, the favorite of establishment Republicans, including Senator Tower. The two other co-chairmen were Ernest Angelo
Ernest Angelo
Ernest Angelo, Jr., known as Ernie Angelo , is a Texas oilman and Republican politician who served from 1972–1980 as mayor of the West Texas city of Midland and was in 1976 the co-manager of the Ronald W...
, an oil
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
man and then the mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of Midland
Midland, Texas
Midland is a city in and the county seat of Midland County, Texas, United States, on the Southern Plains of the state's western area. A small portion of the city extends into Martin County. As of 2010, the population of Midland was 111,147. It is the principal city of the Midland, Texas...
, who successfully organized West Texas
West Texas
West Texas is a vernacular term applied to a region in the southwestern quadrant of the United States that primarily encompasses the arid and semi-arid lands in the western portion of the state of Texas....
, and Ray Barnhart
Ray Barnhart
Ray Anderson Barnhart is a retired businessman and Republican politician, formerly from Pasadena in Harris County, Texas.From 1981–1987, Barnhart was director of the Federal Highway Administration under U.S. President Ronald W. Reagan...
, a former member of the Texas House of Representatives
Texas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Texas Legislature. The House is composed of 150 members elected from single-member districts across the state. The average district has about 150,000 people. Representatives are elected to two-year terms with no term limits...
from Pasadena
Pasadena, Texas
Pasadena is a city in the U.S. state of Texas within the metropolitan area. It is the second-largest city in Harris County, 17th-largest in Texas, and 162nd largest in the United States. The area was founded in 1893 by John H. Burnett of Galveston....
in the Greater Houston
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
area, who handled the southern portion of the state. Barnhart later was director of the Federal Highway Administration
Federal Highway Administration
The Federal Highway Administration is a division of the United States Department of Transportation that specializes in highway transportation. The agency's major activities are grouped into two "programs," the Federal-aid Highway Program and the Federal Lands Highway Program...
in the Reagan presidential administration. Ultimately, Reagan won all of the ninety-six delegates at stake in the primary held on May 1, 1976, and four other at-large delegates at the state convention. Reagan also gained the support of state Senator Betty Andujar
Betty Andujar
Elizabeth Richards Andujar, known as Betty Andujar , was the first Republican woman, a homemaker by stated occupation, to have served in the Texas State Senate...
, a Republican from Fort Worth. The Reaganites gathered ten times the number of signatures needed to put the Reagan delegate choices on the primary ballot.
Staff and John N. Leedom
John N. Leedom
John N. Leedom, Sr. , is an engineer and lobbyist from Dallas, Texas, who served from 1981 to 1996 as a Republican member of the Texas State Senate from District 16...
, a businessman and later a Republican member of the Texas State Senate from Dallas and Rockwall
Rockwall County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 43,080 people, 14,530 households, and 11,972 families residing in the county. The population density was 334 people per square mile . There were 15,351 housing units at an average density of 119 per square mile...
counties, headed the Reagan delegate candidates in U.S. House District 3, represented by James Collins. One of the four Ford delegate choices in District 3 was future U.S. Representatived and Dallas Mayor Steve Bartlett
Steve Bartlett
Harry Steven "Steve" Bartlett is the President and CEO of the Financial Services Roundtable, an advocacy group lobbying the U.S. Congress on financial services legislation. He is a former U.S...
. Leedom led the race with 41,911 votes; Staff followed with 39,030 ballots, and Bartlett trailed with 21,580. Staff recalls the 1976 primary race as a battle between the "establishment" Ford forces and the grassroots insurgents, whom she calls "the volunteers," mostly women. At the time Staff was a member of the large First Baptist Church in downtown Dallas, whose pastor was the nationally known W.A. Criswell. She spoke before various groups with the Reagan message. Years later, she recalled the Reagan volunteers as the most dedicated that she had ever encountered in the political arena.
1976 convention highlights
Staff was a delegate to the national convention in Kansas CityKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, having given up a trip to Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
with her husband's business. Ford secured a close nomination vote over Reagan, who then returned in 1980 to capture the presidency by defeating Jimmy Carter, the man who had beaten Ford in the 1976 general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
.
Staff recalls that Ford delegates were openly hostile to the Reaganites and even pelted them with toilet paper. Staff said that the behavior of the Ford delegates made it difficult for her to support the Ford-Dole ticket, which lost a close race to Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
of Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
and Walter F. Mondale of Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, the last Democratic presidential ticket to win the electoral votes of Texas. "You may just see a big apathetic heartbreak take over. I would say at this point most people here are not going to work for Ford. I don't know what we are going to do to heal the wounds."
Ray Barnhart criticized First Lady
First Lady
First Lady or First Gentlemanis the unofficial title used in some countries for the spouse of an elected head of state.It is not normally used to refer to the spouse or partner of a prime minister; the husband or wife of the British Prime Minister is usually informally referred to as prime...
Betty Ford
Betty Ford
Elizabeth Ann Bloomer Warren Ford , better known as Betty Ford, was First Lady of the United States from 1974 to 1977 during the presidency of her husband Gerald Ford...
for having "danced a jig" with singer Tony Orlando
Tony Orlando
Michael Anthony Orlando Cassavitis , better known as Tony Orlando, is an American show business professional, best known as the lead singer of the group Tony Orlando and Dawn in the early 1970s. Discovered by producer Don Kirshner, Orlando had songs on the charts in 1961 when he was 16, "Halfway to...
when Nancy Davis Reagan made her entrance to the convention hall; Staff called Betty Ford's behavior "a low, cheap shot" to divert attention from the Reagan campaign.Staff claimed that the Ford managers at the convention deliberately made it inconvenient for the Reaganites. "As far as the seating in the arena, the Texas delegation barely got in. They had us stuck way over to the side where the presiding officer couldn't even see us if we wanted to get recognition. . . . "Gwen Pharo of Dallas agreed with Staff about the "shabby treatment" of the Texas delegation by the Ford backers would undoubtedly mean a lack of enthusiasm for the fall campaign.
Staff took an informal survey of the Texas delegates and found few Reaganites favored Reagan becoming Ford's vice-presidential choice to replace Nelson Rockefeller: "The delegates really don't want to see him in that spot, but I sure don't want him to go home and start rocking on his front porch.". Staff said that a fifth of the Texas delegates would want Reagan in the vice-presidential spot, but more than a fourth favored Connally in the secondary position. There was little support of Senator Howard Baker
Howard Baker
Howard Henry Baker, Jr. is a former Senate Majority Leader, Republican U.S. Senator from Tennessee, White House Chief of Staff, and a former United States Ambassador to Japan.Known in Washington, D.C...
of Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
and no mention of the eventual choice, Robert Dole, she said.
Staff recalled that Senator John Tower spent much of his time at the convention with the Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
delegation, which swung to Ford near the end of the deliberations. Tower did not address the phalanx of Reagan backers in his own state delegation. In later years Tower's estrangement from his former conservative backers intensified when he supported abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
and challenged President Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative
Strategic Defense Initiative
The Strategic Defense Initiative was proposed by U.S. President Ronald Reagan on March 23, 1983 to use ground and space-based systems to protect the United States from attack by strategic nuclear ballistic missiles. The initiative focused on strategic defense rather than the prior strategic...
.
Other activities
Among her civic activities, Staff has been a volunteer for Parkland Hospital and the Dallas County Heritage Society. She is also a member of the Texas State Historical AssociationTexas State Historical Association
The Texas State Historical Association or abbreviated TSHA, is a non-profit educational organization, dedicated to documenting the rich and unique history of Texas. It was founded on March 2, 1897. As of November 2008, TSHA moved from Austin to the University of North Texas in Denton.The executive...
, now based in Denton.