Hope and hard truth : a life in Texas politics / Mary Beth Rogers.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rogers, Mary Beth, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Rogers, Mary Beth.

Women politicians.

Texas--Politics and government--1951-.

Texas.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (242 p.) : 17 b&w photos

Place of Publication:

Austin, Texas : University of Texas Press, [2022]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

Mary Beth Rogers has led an eventful life rooted in the weeds of Texas politics, occasionally savoring a few victories—particularly the 1990 governor’s race when, as campaign manager for Ann Richards, she did the impossible and put a Democratic woman in office. She also learned to absorb her losses—after all, she was a liberal feminist in America’s most aggressively conservative state. Rogers’s road to a political life was complex. Candidly and vulnerably, she shares both public and private memories of how she tried to maintain a rich family life with growing children and a husband with a debilitating illness. She goes on to provide an insider’s account of her experiences as Richards’s first chief of staff while weaving her way through the highs and lows of political intrigue and legislative maneuvering. Reflecting on her family heritage and nascent spiritual quest, Rogers discovers a reality at once sobering and invigorating: nothing is ever completely lost or completely won. It is a constant struggle to create humane public policies built on a foundation of fairness and justice—particularly in her beloved Texas.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Introduction: Into the Well

Part I: Winning and Losing

1. “Look, There’s the Girl”

2. A New Texas?

3. Reality

Part II: The Personal Is Political

4. Sicily

5. The Hard Box

6. Mr. and Mrs. Extremo

Part III: It’s a Texas Thing

7. Austin

8. Campaigns

9. Women

10. Roots

Part IV: Threads

11. Politics

12. Poland

13. Words

Part V: New Beginnings

14. Change

15. Whatcha Gonna Do?

Acknowledgments

Notes

Index

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9781477325759

1477325751

9781477325742

1477325743

OCLC:

1334106816