USTIN, Texas - Governor George W. Bush says he is studying a request to remove an image of the Confederate battle flag from the Texas Supreme Court building.
The NAACP and other organizations want it taken down, arguing that a plaque bearing the flag is offensive to minorities and does not belong in the state's highest courts.
''I'm looking at that issue right now,'' Bush told reporters at a news conference. Earlier in his Republican presidential campaign, he refused to say whether he thought the Confederate flag should be removed from the South Carolina State House.
The plaque is situated in the entryway to the building housing the state's two top courts - the Supreme Court and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
It includes an image of the battle flag and quotes Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Another plaque includes the seal of the Confederacy.
The court building was commissioned in 1955 after Texans approved a constitutional amendment to use money from the state's Confederate Pension Fund to build it.
Bush spokesman Mike Jones said the governor's office has been discussing the matter with the commission that maintains state buildings.
''They really haven't come up with any specific solutions yet,'' Jones said.
''We believe it's not clear to the public why that building was dedicated to veterans of the Civil War,'' he said. ''That lack of clarity definitely needs to be addressed.''
