Women of a certain age will never forget the moment in the 1988 Democratic National Convention when then-Texas state treasurer Ann Richards took the stage to proclaim, “Poor George!”
She was stumping for Democrats, and mostly she was pointing up the eight years of the not-so-benign neglect of women’s issues during the administration of President Ronald Reagan and Vice President George Bush – the new GOP nominee.
Ann Richards was a woman whose political prowess was well beyond her time. Would that she had been 41’s presidential opponent rather than the ill-cast Michael Dukakis. Would that she were here today to take on Donald Trump.
Even in 1988 – three decades ago – she said hello to her enthusiastic audience not only in English, but in Spanish: “Buenas noches mis amigos,” she said. The audience applause rose to thunderous approval.
She continued, deadpanning: “I’m delighted to be here, because after listening to George Bush all these years, I figured you needed to know what a real Texas accent sounds like.”