| Larry Powell: Texas looms big, bright on national scene 12/28/2000 By / The Dallas Morning News Texas is about to be at the center of the universe – again. Yep, turn on the spotlight, Texas is ready to rodeo.
It'll be in style again to be Texan – power and prestige by association. You'll hear people proudly say things such as, "I'm not a Texan, but my husband is," or "My grandmother was born in Texas" or "I have a cousin who went broke in Texas in the '80s, but he liked it so much he just never left."
Restaurants promising "authentic Tex-Mex" will open from Vermont to Oahu. Boot sales will skyrocket. We'll simply see a tsunami of Texana. To quote former Texan and Vice President-elect Dick Cheney, "Big time."
When Lyndon Johnson was president, all of us kids (well, some of us teens, anyway) would swell with pride when a network anchor used the term "Texas White House." The Texas White House was, of course, the LBJ Ranch down in the beautiful Hill Country – a territory where people longed to live then and now – and nowadays pay a pretty penny for the privilege. The term "Texas White House" meant power was where it rightfully belonged – deep in the heart of Texas.
During a particularly turbulent portion of Johnson's administration – that hardly narrows it down – some country warbler recorded a song about LBJ (the prez and the ranch). I'll translate the catchy refrain into Texas tones for you folks from out of state. It went: "Ever thang's OK awn thu Ell-Bee-Jaaaay." (Aside: Our computer searches for the rest of the lyrics have been futile. My frustrated crack research staff has done everything but stage a guerrilla-style invasion to rummage through the record closets at the home of WBAP's Midnight Cowboy Bill Mack. Heck, the legendary overnight DJ on 820 AM may have written the song.)
As you know, nearly everybody from Texas has a ranch. Wait. Perhaps that's an overstatement. Perhaps it should have read "nearly everybody from Texas has tried ranch dressing." Well, forget most of this paragraph and move on with this: Meanwhile, back at the ranch ...
President-elect George W. Bush has a Texas ranch. It's near Crawford, which is close to Waco. And it'll become the Texas White House pretty soon. For now, it's the Texas White House-elect.
Each area of Texas has its own peculiar charm (interpret "peculiar" as you wish). No doubt, just as quaint Plains, Ga., drew visitors during the Jimmy Carter administration, the magnet that is Crawford will pull people off the main highway to get a Dr Pepper and remark about the desolation with such terms as "middle of nowhere" or "badlands." Maybe the visitors will get a bumper sticker that reads, "Crawford, Texas – Home of George W. Bush's Ranch and not much else" or a T-shirt that reads "My folks went to Crawford, Texas, and all I got was a pregnant chad."
Our files show that Mr. Bush's ranch is named "Prairie Chapel Ranch" after the road it's on. There may be plans to change the ranch's name, but that was probably a low-priority item in the Bush camp for a few weeks after the election.
It might be appropriate, however, that Mr. Bush change the name to something that reflects both the heritage of Texas and the historic gravitas of his election.
No, not Six Flags Over George.
Try Rancho Piel de los Dientes. Yes, the "Skin of the Teeth Ranch." Rancho Piel de los Dientes. Sounds more romantic in español, doesn't it? Can you imagine a fitting brand? Well, just something to chew over in your spare time.
Larry Powell can be reached at 214-977-8487; P.O. Box 655237, Dallas, TX 75265; fax 214-977-8319.
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