Former political big wigs to open Tate Lecture Series

Since Sept. 11, the invasion of Afghanistan and the war in Iraq,questions have been raised regarding America’s role as aleader in today’s world. The debate will come to the Hilltopas some of the nation’s former top leaders come to campus onWednesday to kick off the first lecture in the 2003-2004 TateLecture Series.

Former Secretary of Defense Bill Cohen and former SenateMajority Leader George Mitchell will comprise a panel moderated byU.S. News and World Report editor-at-large David Gergen for theLinda and Mitch Hart Lecture “American Leadership inToday’s World.”

Cohen, who served in the Clinton administration from 1997-2001,began his Senate career in 1978. As the chairman of the SenateCommittee on Aging, Cohen led efforts on health care reform andimprovement of Medicare efficiency during the ‘90s. TheChristian Science Monitor dubbed Cohen “a true RenaissanceMan.” He has also written nine works of nonfiction, fictionand poetry and holds degrees in classical Latin and Greek.

Mitchell was appointed to the Senate in 1980 to complete theunexpired term of Sen. Edmund S. Muskie, who resigned to becomeSecretary of State. He was elected to a full term in 1982. Heserved as the Senate Majority Leader from 1989 until he left thebody in 1995.

During his tenure, Mitchell served as the chairman of the peacenegotiations in Northern Ireland. He also led the successfulreauthorization of the Clean Air Act and the passage of thenation’s first childcare bill. A bipartisan group of seniorcongressional aides voted Mitchell the “most respectedmember” of the Senate for six consecutive years.

Although the question-and-answer section of lectures has beenremoved, members of the community will still be permitted to askquestions at the Tate Student Forums.

This year, a new feature will be added to the Tate lineup forcertain lectures. The Center for Teaching Excellence will debut abook club series this fall beginning with the lecture. The varioussections of the club will be discussing Gergen’s bookEyewitness to Power Wednesday at 3 p.m. For more information on thebook club, visit the Center for Teaching Excellence’s Website at www.smu.edu/cte.

The student forum is free and open to the public and will beginat 4:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Hughes-Trigg Forum. The paneldiscussion will start at 8 p.m. in McFarlin Auditorium.

A limited number of tickets will be available to students with avalid SMU ID beginning at 7 p.m. in the basement of theauditorium.

Former political big wigs to open Tate Lecture Series

Former political big wigs to open Tate Lecture Series