You're Invited to a Bipartisan Forum, January 7th at OU

http://www.ou.edu/web/landing/Articles/bipartisan_forum_january.html

Information provided by the Office of the President.
UPDATED on January 4, 2008.


OU students, faculty and staff as well as members of the general public are cordially invited to attend a bipartisan forum of national political leaders at OU on Monday, January 7, 2008 from 11:00 a.m. to noon at the Catlett Music Center. Ticketing or advance reservations are not required. Seating will be on a first come, first serve basis and no advance ticketing or reservation is required.


As you know, the university has extended an open invitation to all presidential candidates in both parties and to those actively involved in the presidential election process to speak to our students, faculty and staff as well as members of the community. Thus far, one candidate, Governor Mitt Romney, has accepted our invitation and spoke at the university earlier this year. Other invitations remain outstanding, and we hope that candidates will continue to accept our invitation. Last spring, the university welcomed former President George H.W. Bush to campus for a discussion on the history of the American presidency with presidential historian David McCullough as well as Ken Duberstein, chief of staff for President Ronald Reagan, and Jack Valenti, chief of staff to President Lyndon B. Johnson. Another renowned presidential historian and leading author, Michael Beschloss, spoke to the OU family this fall on the qualities which have been important to successful presidencies. Through these events, the university advances its goal of educating our students about the presidency as an institution and national issues that they are likely to face as the future leaders of our nation as well as encouraging their civic involvement.


In furthering this goal, the university is pleased to announce that we will be host to a panel of leaders who will be potentially influential in producing increased national discussion of fundamental issues in the upcoming presidential election. The panel’s discussion will include ways in which our nation can end divisive partisan polarization, create bipartisanship, and bring the country together after conclusion of the 2008 election.


Those national leaders who are expected to participate in the panel include:


David Abshire, President of the Center for the Study of the Presidency

Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York City and founder of Bloomberg News

David Boren, Former U.S. Senator

Bill Brock, Former U.S. Senator

Bill Cohen, Former Secretary of Defense and U.S. Senator

Jack Danforth, Former U.S. Senator

Susan Eisenhower, Chairman Emeritus, The Eisenhower Institute

Bob Graham, Former U.S. Senator

Chuck Hagel, U.S. Senator

Gary Hart, Former U.S. Senator

Jim Leach, Former Member of the U.S. House of Representatives

Sam Nunn, Former U.S. Senator

Edward Perkins, Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations

Chuck Robb, Former U.S. Senator

Christine Todd Whitman, Former New Jersey Governor

For more information about the bipartisan forum, please contact the Office of the President at (405) 325-3916 during normal business hours. Members of the media who plan to cover the forum should contact Catherine Bishop at (405) 620-1544 or cbishop@ou.edu to receive advance credentialing.