Lyndon Baines Johnson Epitomized Texas In His Stature,

Lyndon Baines Johnson epitomized Texas in his stature, his attitude, his tone, and his attitude. He was a force to be reckoned with and he used each of these attributes to push for legislation that he felt deeply about. His major influences were his parents and the rustic Hill Country of Texas. Johnson was born August 27, 1908, in Stonewall, Texas on an isolated farm in the Texas Hill Country to Sam Ealy Johnson, Jr. and Rebekah Baines Johnson. His mother was a woman â€Å"†¦ who treasured poetry, revered knowledge, and detested anything dirty or shabby †¦Ã¢â‚¬  She wanted to make sure her children received an education. Sam Ealy Johnson, Jr. came from a family of farmers and ranchers but did not share their love or skill of farming and in 1913 he†¦show more content†¦Lyndon expertly used this technique with great success and it would later be called â€Å"The Treatment.† Lyndon Johnson attended Southwest Texas Teacher’s College in San Marcos, Texas, but he ran out of money and had to quit school for a year while he worked as a teacher and principal for a Mexican-American school in Cotulla, Texas. This experience had an enormous impact on Johnson and this would influence his political career. The school did not provide meals for the students, they had no playground equipment, so he purchased sporting equipment and required the teachers to encourage games on the playgrounds. He also expected much from his students, he required them to work hard and to learn to speak English and created a debate program to practice their skills. He eventually graduated and became a high school teacher in Houston where his students excelled in debate. He would later push his staff like he pushed his students to work long and hard. Johnson’s political career officially began in 1930, when he was recommended to Congressman Richard Kleberg as a congressional secretary. Kleberg was more of an absentee congressman and Johnson ran his office and worked the staff into exhaustion. He worked to meet people and build his political network, Johnson was in his element. The Great Depression had impacted the entire nation and during this time, letters from Texas came into Kleberg’s office asking for help. Johnson felt helpless and wanted