Dallas Businesspeople Gloomy Over An Obama Presidency

Some of Dallas’ biggest business names aren’t happy about the prospect of a president Barack Obama. “The younger generation is going crazy for liberalism,” realty doyenne Ebby Halliday said Saturday night, “but my generation is scared to death.” Perot Systems founder Ross Perot, asked about the current financial crisis, wasn’t much cheerier. “It would be wonderful if we had the right president in place to deal with it,” Perot said, “but the chances of that happening are getting slimmer and slimmer.” Meanwhile Perot’s son, Perot Systems chairman Ross Perot Jr., struck a more conciliatory note: “I think if the new president, probably Obama, comes out fast with a bipartisan message–announces that he’ll govern from the middle–then ends the class-warfare stuff and assembles a strong economic team,” we’ll be all right. Ebby, who predicted the financial meltdown could be worse than the Great Depression or the S&L crisis, concluded philosophically: “This too shall pass!” All three bigwigs were attending the 25th annual H. Neil Mallon Award dinner presented by the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth; this year Perot father and son received the Mallon.