William Clement was an oil - field roughneck and entrepreneur . He was elected Texas governor in 1978 , and ousted four years later . He scored a surprise victory in 1978 to become Texas governor . George W. Bush remembers him as a ` ` great man '' and ` ` political pioneer '' Gov . Rick Perry called Clements ` ` the father of the modern - day Republican Party ''
William Clement was an oil - field roughneck and entrepreneur . He was elected Texas governor in 1978 , and ousted four years later . George W. Bush remembers him as a ` ` great man '' and ` ` political pioneer '' Gov . Rick Perry called Clements ` ` the father of the modern - day Republican Party ''