TEXAS: L.B.J. for This & That

Addressing a joint session of Texas' legislature last month, Lone Star Statesman Lyndon Baines Johnson piously declared: "I have no aspirations, no intentions, no ambitions for office other than that I hold." He preferred instead, explained U.S. Senate Majority Leader Johnson, to serve fellow Texans as a legislator. Last week, with all 31 members signing as cosponsors, the Texas senate passed—and sent to an eager house—a bill allowing candidates to file for both statewide office and the U.S. presidency or vice-presidency on the ballot for this summer's Texas primaries. The bill mentioned no names, applied to any candidate. But, explained San Angelo's Dorsey Hardeman, author of the measure: "This might be referred to as the Lyndon Johnson-for-President bill."