Tom Coburn: Oklahoma’s Citizen Legislator
Lessons from Oklahoma’s citizen legislator, Tom Coburn
By JOHN TIDWELL
“Nothing so strongly impels a man to regard the interest of his constituents, as the certainty of returning to the general mass of the people, from whence he was taken, where he must participate in their burdens…”
Founding Father George Mason spoke these words at the Virginia Ratifying Convention in June of 1788.
Last month, Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn, M.D., announced that he would retire at the end of this legislative session a move which shocked the political establishment in Washington D.C., as much as it did in Oklahoma. As many of you know, Coburn was recently diagnosed for the fourth time with cancer, a fight he’s won before, but this time the cancer is more serious and the course of treatment more aggressive.
In his statement announcing his decision, Dr. Coburn plainly said, “this decision isn’t about my health, my prognosis or even my hopes and desires.”
You see, Dr. Coburn truly understands that role of “citizen legislator.” He’s embraced it. If you look it up in the dictionary, you will find a picture of Dr. Coburn.