Former Congressman to Speak on “Rule of Law” for Constitution Day
September 8, 2008
Story by Danny Groshong, OSU Library Communications Intern
For Immediate Release
STILLWATER -With national security categorized as a “hot button issue” this election season, OSU is honored to host Mickey Edwards, former Oklahoma Congressman and foreign affairs expert, for a talk titled “National Security and the Rule of Law.” This debate is the compromise of providing adequate national security against those foreign and domestic while citizens retain their personal freedoms.
Edwards will speak on Wednesday, Sept. 17, in the Peggy V. Helmerich Browsing Room at the Edmon Low Library. The event begins at 3:30 p.m. It is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.
In March 2007, Edwards delivered a lecture for the Law Library of Congress on the same topic. There, he noted the special care that is required to protect legal rights, which are most important during times of emergency.
"...It is when the risk of the people is greatest that they must retain the right to be heard," Edwards said while speaking at last year’s lecture. “Freedoms, once lost, are not easily regained."
Edwards, who held his position in Congress for Oklahoma’s 5th district for 16 years, currently lectures at Princeton; writes weekly columns in the Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, and Los Angeles Times; and is a host of a weekly political commentary broadcast on National Public Radio.
While a member of Congress from 1977 to 1993, he was chairman of the Republican Policy Committee and a ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Foreign Operations. Now, Edwards is also a director of several public policy and foreign affairs organizations. This background in foreign affairs and operations gives him particular insight into the "War on Terror" and how the Constitution and the citizens of the United States have been affected by new legislation like the "Patriot Act."
September 17 is Constitution Day. Enacted by the Omnibus spending bill of 2004, this day includes a requirement mandating every school, college and university receiving federal funds to hold an event about the U.S. Constitution, promoting awareness of the history of our Constitution and the laws by which we live.
For more information on this and other events at the OSU Library, call 405-744-7331 or email lib-pub@okstate.edu.
Oklahoma State University is a modern land-grant system that cuts across disciplines to better prepare students for a new world. Oklahoma's only university with a statewide presence, OSU improves the lives of people in Oklahoma, the nation, and the world through integrated, high-quality teaching, research and outreach. OSU has more than 32,000 students across its five-campus system and nearly 21,000 on its Stillwater campus; with students from all 50 states and about 110 nations. Established in 1890, OSU has graduated more than 200,000 students who have made a lasting impact on Oklahoma and the world. CREATE - INNOVATE - EDUCATE - GO STATE!
URL: http://www.library.okstate.edu/news/fall08/constitution.htm
Last Updated: 08 September 2008
