Tom Coburn
A blunt Oklahoma doctor who brought a physician's scalpel to the U.S. Senate, obsessively dissecting federal spending and earning the nickname 'Dr. No.'
1948–2020 (age 72)·American politician and physician·Birthday: March 14·Baby Boomers
Biography
Tom Coburn approached politics with the direct, uncompromising demeanor of the obstetrician he was. Elected to the U.S. House in the Republican wave of 1994, he immediately stood out by pledging to serve only three terms, a promise he kept. After a brief return to medicine, he was elected to the Senate in 2004, where his mission was singular: to root out government waste. Coburn wielded parliamentary procedures like medical tools, forcing votes on endless amendments to strip what he saw as frivolous spending from bills, regardless of which party proposed it. This relentless focus earned him bipartisan frustration and the nickname 'Dr. No.' A staunch social and fiscal conservative, he battled his own party's leadership as often as Democrats, driven by a conviction that the nation's fiscal health was in critical condition. His career was a testament to the power of a single, stubborn individual to slow the machinery of Washington, if not always stop it.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Tom was born in 1948, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Tom Was Born
The biggest hits of 1948
#1 Movie
The Red Shoes
Best Picture
Hamlet
#1 TV Show
Texaco Star Theatre
Tom's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1948Born
Israel declares independence; Berlin Blockade begins
Gas: $0.26/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Twelfth Street Rag" — Pee Wee HuntBest Picture: Hamlet
1953Started school
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1961Became a teenager
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1964Could drive
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
1966Could vote
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1969Turned 21
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1978Turned 30
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1988Turned 40
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1998Turned 50
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2008Turned 60
Barack Obama elected first Black US president; financial crisis
Gas: $3.27/galHome: $153,100Min wage: $6.55/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Low" — Flo RidaBest Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
2018Turned 70
Royal wedding of Harry and Meghan; Parkland shooting
Gas: $2.72/galHome: $211,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"God's Plan" — DrakeBest Picture: Green Book
2020Died at 72
COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world
Gas: $2.17/galHome: $248,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Blinding Lights" — The WeekndBest Picture: Nomadland
Key Achievements
- Authored and published an annual 'Wastebook' detailing what he considered egregious examples of frivolous federal spending.
- Consistently placed holds on and forced debates about numerous bills, using Senate rules to highlight fiscal concerns.
- Co-chaired the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (the Simpson-Bowles commission) in 2010.
Did You Know?
He delivered over 4,000 babies during his career as a practicing physician.
He was a three-time cancer survivor, battling melanoma, prostate cancer, and a recurrence of prostate cancer.
He wrote a controversial book in 2003, 'Breach of Trust,' criticizing the spending habits of both political parties.
He kept his promise to serve only three terms in the House, retiring in 2001.
“The fact is, the problems we have in our country are not because of a lack of money. They’re because of a lack of courage and a lack of willingness.”
