Alan Lowe and the Bush Library

While the country moves forward with a new President, Alan Lowe, director of the Baker Center for Public Policy, is looking backward with the former.

As of April 12, Lowe will be the new director of the George W. Bush Presidential Library. He will oversee the gathering and cataloging of the President's papers.

The Library will be built on 25 acres on the campus of SMU in Dallas, Texas. A Foundation is raising between 300 and 500 million dollars for the project.

Until it's completed, Lowe and the papers will remain in nearby Lewisville, Texas.

I spoke with Lowe and asked him how he came about getting this job?

He says it started three weeks ago with call from the White House. His name had come up as a possible candidate for the director's post. He was reluctant at first, but 45 minutes later, he was still talking.

He says it took him a week to decide he wanted the job. He called the White House and last Friday, he was in Washington for a very important job interview.

He met with President Bush and the First Lady in the Oval office.

Lowe says they talked about their hopes for the Library. Lowe says it was a "good meeting."

Apparently so, because it wasn't long, Lowe says, before the President looked at him and said,"OK, let's do it."

And that was that...after a picture of the occasion was taken, of course.