Historian, State Lawmakers On Legacy Of Burton Barr

By Steve Goldstein
Published: Wednesday, November 12, 2014 - 1:58pm
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Since 1987, or at least over the past decade, some Arizona legislative watchers will at some point mention how much the state misses the leadership and big picture bipartisanship practiced by Burton Barr. Many Phoenicians only know Barr because his name is on the city’s main library, but they don’t actually know why it’s there.

We spoke with ASU professor Philip Vandermeer, who has written a new book about Barr. We also spoke with former state lawmaker Chris Herstam, who served with Barr in the legislature, and Democratic State Sen. Steve Farley.