| Robert D. "Bob" Bullock | |
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| In office January 15, 1991 – January 17, 1999 |
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| Governor | Ann Richards (1991-1995) George W. Bush (1995-1999) |
| Preceded by | William P. Hobby, Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Rick Perry |
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| In office September 1, 1971 – January 2, 1973 |
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| Governor | Preston Smith |
| Preceded by | Martin Dies, III |
| Succeeded by | V. Larry Teaver, Jr. |
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Comptroller of Texas
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| In office 1975 – 1991 |
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| Preceded by | Robert S. Calvert |
| Succeeded by | John Sharp |
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| Born | July 10, 1929 |
| Died | June 18, 1999 (aged 69) Austin, Texas |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Profession | Attorney |
Robert D. "Bob" Bullock (July 10, 1929 – June 18, 1999) was a Democratic politician from Texas, whose career spanned four decades. His service culminated in his term as Lieutenant Governor of Texas from 1991–1999 during the terms of Governors Ann Richards and George W. Bush.
After a stint as an assistant attorney general and in the private practice of law, Bullock returned to public life when he was appointed secretary of state, the state's chief elections and records officer, by Governor Preston Smith. Bullock soon left the post to prepare for a statewide race for state Comptroller in the 1974 Democratic primary. Under Texas law, a secretary of state must resign in order to run for another office, a practice not required in most states.
Bullock, before he was widely known, was one of the few Texas Democrats to chastize John Connally for his party switch in 1973.[1] In 1998, Bullock himself would urge the reelection of a Republican, then Governor Bush.
As state comptroller, Bullock was noted for his modernization of the office and for collecting certain taxes that had been previously uncollected for many years. The tax officials doing such duties became known as "Bullock raiders." Bullock was also the first elected state official to adopt an equal opportunity employment program. Bullock held the comptroller's office from 1975–1991. In 1990, he was easily elected to succeed retiring Lieutenant Governor William P. "Bill" Hobby, Jr., of a prominent Houston family.
As Lieutenant Governor, he professed a nonpartisan approach to lawmaking, often telling members of the Texas Senate to leave their politics at the door. Bullock unofficially endorsed Republican Governor Bush's presidential campaign even before it got off the ground. At a November 8, 2006, post-election press conference, a reporter from the Austin American-Statesman, who had covered Bush's tenure as governor, asked Bush if he thought then U.S. House Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi resembled Bullock. The President replied that the reporter's question was an inside joke. The question was a thinly-veiled reference to the close working relationship, well-known in Texas, to have existed between Republican Bush and Democrat Bullock; the reporter apparently was asking whether Bush would be capable of forging a similar bipartisan relationship with the members of the new Democratic legislative majority in the U. S. Congress.
Bullock was renowned for his blunt and sometimes politically incorrect speaking style, but also for his trademark closing line "God bless Texas." A lover of Texas history, he was instrumental in the establishment of the Texas State History Museum, located just to the north of the State Capitol in Austin. Opened to the public on April 21, 2001 (San Jacinto Day) after Bullock's death, it was named in his honor. The second-floor lobby of the museum features a seven-foot-tall bronze statue of Bullock holding a giant gavel, next to a gallery of items and a video from his career in politics.
Born in Hillsboro, Bullock attended Hill College, a junior college. He received his bachelor's degree from Texas Tech University in Lubbock in 1955 and held a law degree from Baylor University in Waco. His political papers are housed in the Baylor Collection of Political Materials. Bullock also served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War. Bullock's adult life was marred by alcoholism and divorce; he had a total of five marriages, although some of them were repeats. He stopped drinking in 1981 and remained active with Alcoholics Anonymous for the remainder of his life. Bullock died in Austin of cancer and is interred there at the Texas State Cemetery.
References
- ^ Charles Ashman, Connally: The Adventures of Big Bad John, New York: William Morrow and Company, 1974, pp. 284-285
| Texas House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by Jim Carmichall |
Member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 54 (Hillsboro) 1953–1957 |
Succeeded by Ronald E. Roberts |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Martin Dies, III |
Secretary of State of Texas 1971-1973 |
Succeeded by V. Larry Teaver, Jr. |
| Preceded by Robert S. Calvert |
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts 1975-1991 |
Succeeded by John Sharp |
| Preceded by William P. Hobby, Jr. |
Lieutenant Governor of Texas 1991–1999 |
Succeeded by Rick Perry |
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