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Bush Library Plans Progressing Ronald Kessler Negotiations with Southern Methodist University are still ongoing, but the SMU campus in Dallas has been selected as the site for the George W. Bush Presidential Library. For the design of the library, consultants are about to interview some of the president's close friends to help develop themes that reflect the man. SMU is Laura Bush's alma mater. As a Christmas present to her when he was Texas governor, Bush donated $250,000 to create the Laura Bush Promenade outside the entrance to SMU's Fondren Library Center. The benches were etched with quotes about friendship, including one form Abraham Lincoln: "The better part of one's life consists of his friendships." Laura is heavily involved in the planning for the Bush library. Headed by former Commerce Secretary Don Evans, the group helping the Bushes plan the library consists of former White House Chief of Staff Andy Card, former White House counsel Harriet Miers, Karl Rove, and Clay Johnson III, the president's close friend from high school who is deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget, Card tells me. So far, at least three nationally prominent architectural firms are competing to design the library. The winning design will incorporate the spirit of the Bush presidency. The Bush Presidential Library Foundation will ask those making the cut to submit management and construction plans by July 25. The top firms will be interviewed in Washington the week of July 30. The leading firms are HKS Inc. of Dallas, Overland Partners in San Antonio, and Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects of New Haven, Conn. The guidelines for the project call for a 145,000-square-foot library and a 40,000-square-foot public policy institute. "Of course each of us has our own ideas," Card says. "The interviews will be to further explore the possible presentation."
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My suggestion for the library: A branch of Johnny's Barbecue, the Midland, Texas, establishment where Laura's father Harold drank coffee and smoked cigarettes with his friends almost every morning. When Laura returns to her hometown to see her mother Jenna, she usually drops in to Johnny's or calls owner Johnny Hackney to order takeout of succulent barbecue beef brisket, pulled pork, pork ribs, or German sausage with barbecue sauce lovingly ladled over them. Meanwhile, Bush celebrated his 61st birthday on July 4 with more than 100 friends. As usual, the event took place three days before his actual birthday and featured picnic fare like fried chicken and mini-hamburgers. Bush is not big on gifts, and friends are always stumped about what to buy him. Chief of Staff Josh Bolten gave him a Tommy Bahama shirt from the staff. The president may be under siege from all sides, but he hasn't lost his sense of humor. After the party, Bush looked at the pile of presents and joked to Laura, "I don't have time to open presents. I have to run the country!"
Ronald Kessler is chief Washington correspondent of NewsMax.com. View his previous reports and get his dispatches sent to you free via e-mail. Go here now. © NewsMax 2007. All rights reserved.
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