Editor’s note, Oct. 19, 1:15 p.m.: This story has been updated throughout.
CEO’s, business owners, and entrepreneurs gathered Friday morning at the Keeping Texas Economy Strong conference to discuss Texas’ dynamic economy.
The seventh annual conference, held in the Collins center, was hosted by SMU Cox’s William J. O’Neil Center for Global Markets and Freedom.
“I am always looking for what drives growth and Texas has had a run of it,” said Thomas Siems, Assistant Vice President and senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
The conference focused on Texas’ economic model, the free market, and the economic challenges of the Lone Star State.
The event is in its seventh year and had record attendance. Three state senators were among the 285 attendees.
“It was the most successful conference in quality and numbers,” said Robert Lawson, O’Neil Center Director.
The keynote speaker, George F. Will, is one of America’s leading political columnists.
Will reached beyond Texas’ economy and discussed the economic state of the nation. He focused on the difficulty of balancing a welfare state and inherent human inequality in the changing world. His analysis was peppered with baseball jokes.
The morning keynote was former U.S. Senator Phil Grahm. Grahm’s speech was received with a thunderous applause. But his light demeanor and charm did not cloud his informative discussion on why the Texas economy has been so strong and why it should serve as a model for the rest of the country.
“I don’t usually think highly of politicians, but Senator Grahm was great, he was forth whole and clear,” Lawson said. “It was not the usual empty platitude.”
Other speakers included Dean Stansel, co-author of Economic Freedom of North America; W. Michael Cox, founding director of the O’Neil Center; Brooke Rollins, president and CEO of the Texas Public Policy Foundation; and James Galbraith, professor at UT Austin.
“The information being discussed at this event is important to the public and to politicians,” said Polish professor of economics, Andrzej Kondratowicz. “Economic freedom has an effect on every aspect of life whether it be the GDP or clean drinking water.”
