U.S. Senate race a personal mission for Andrew Rice

For state Sen. Andrew Rice the race is personal.

Very personal.

Rice, a freshman Democrat from Oklahoma City, wasn’t really planning a foray into the electorial politics. In fact, Rice had earned his master’s in theology at Harvard Divinity School and had planned to get a doctorate.

From there, he figured he would teach.

He traveled to India to help film a documentary about the country’s AIDS crisis, and also went to Sri Lanka and Thailand to work on social issues.

He was concerned about world issues, but politics wasn’t really on his radar screen.

“Sure there were issues I believed in,” he said. “But I’d never run for anything before. I’d never been on the student council or involved in student government.”

Then his brother, David, died.

David, a graduate of Bishop McGuiness High School and a Fulbright scholar, was working at the investment firm Sandler O’Neill when terrorists flew jets into the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

And at that moment, politics and government became very personal for Andrew Rice.

“My beliefs didn’t really change, but my commitment level did,” he said. “I realized how the decisions we make as a government affect people.”

With the death of his brother in the back of his mind, Rice “rededicated himself” to social justice and, as he says, common sense public policy.

He also ran for office.

He got the opportunity when state Sen. Bernest Cain, D-Oklahoma City, was forced to retire because of term limits. That year, Rice made his first bid for office. “The state Senate race offered a chance for a seat at the table, so to speak,” he said.

With his youthful looks, energy and door-to-door style, Rice turned back several well-financed challengers and captured Cain’s old seat.

And true to his word, he focused on social issues.

This past year, five of Rice’s proposals — including Norman Democrat Bill Nations’ bill requiring helmets for drivers of all terrain vehicles — made it to the governor’s desk; an A-grade accomplishment for the new, 34-year-old lawmaker.

“I try to work with everyone,” he said. “I try to be bipartisan. In fact, sometimes it’s easier to work with the opposition than with your own party.”

But Rice’s focus remains on the federal level.

As a family member of a 9/11 victim, Rice had better-than-average access to national lawmakers and cabinet members. “I spent a lot of time exchanging letters with (U.S. Secretary of State) Condoleezza Rice,” he said.

With access and energy, Rice spent several years absorbing all he could about national security issues and terrorism. “Frankly, the more I learned about the problem and the early drum-up for the war, the more I thought the war was a rash thing,” he said.

Once again, the issues became personal.

And once again, Andrew Rice is running for office.

This time, the United States Senate — a seat that’s currently held by incumbent Republican Jim Inhofe.

“The state legislature is one thing,” he said. “But the U.S. Senate is totally different; it’s just that so many of my personal reasons (for seeking office) deal with federal issues, and no one is stepping up to challenge him.”

This week, Rice will make his challenge official.

After filing this necessary federal paperwork in early August, Rice will announce his candidacy this Wednesday with media events in Tulsa and Oklahoma City.

“I think people want a change in Washington,” he said. “I’m not saying they want Andrew Rice — because the don’t know me yet — but they want a change. They want someone they can trust.”

Dressed in blue jeans and a blue checked shirt, Rice spent Monday afternoon honing that message at the Cleveland County Democratic Party’s annual Labor Day Picnic.

“We’re under no illusions about how hard Inhofe will be,” he said. “But I’m confident in my ability to build coalitions and do good work for the state. I think Oklahomans want their officials to be bipartisan. I think they’re unhappy with Washington.”

Concerns which Rice takes personally.

Framed against both races for public office, Rice says he often thinks of his late brother and that legacy has continued to push him toward public service.

“We were very different,” he said. “David was ornery and outward. I was a little more quite about stuff. But we both struggled a lot during our teenage years, and then got our acts together.”

Still, Rice talks proudly about following his bother’s path.

“I’ve followed David in many ways,” he said. “What made him so great was the fact that he would drive you crazy one day, and then the next day you’d be amazed by what he did. But it’s the aggressive side of my brother’s memory that gives me a lot of energy to do what’s right. But I’ll be honest, if I don’t win, I don’t know if I want to be in politics for 10 years. I’m not doing this to position myself. I want to see real justice from 9/11 and I just want the people of Oklahoma to have a choice.”

A choice which, Andrew Rice says, is very personal.