First Women

The Grace and Power of America's Modern First Ladies

Kate Andersen Brower

• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9780062439666
• eBook ISBN: 9780062679345
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Historical Biographies
• Index: History

“[A] gossipy, but surprisingly deep, look at the women who help and sometimes overshadow their powerful husbands.”  — USA Today

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the groundbreaking backstairs look at the White House, The Residence, comes an intimate, news-making group biography of the true modern power brokers at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue: the First Ladies, from Jackie Kennedy to Michelle Obama.

One of the most underestimated—and challenging—positions in the world, the First Lady of the United States must be many things: an inspiring leader with a forward-thinking agenda of her own; a savvy politician, skilled at navigating the treacherous rapids of Washington; a wife and mother operating under constant scrutiny; and an able CEO responsible for the smooth operation of countless services and special events at the White House. As she did in her smash #1 bestseller The Residence, former White House correspondent Kate Andersen Brower draws on a wide array of untapped, candid sources—from residence staff and social secretaries to friends and political advisers—to tell the stories of the ten remarkable women who have defined that role since 1960.

Brower offers new insights and untold stories about this privileged group of remarkable women, including Jacqueline Kennedy, Lady Bird Johnson, Patricia Nixon, Betty Ford, Rosalynn Carter, Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush, Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, and Michelle Obama. The stories she shares range from the heartwarming to the shocking and tragic, exploring everything from the first ladies’ political crusades as powerful women in politics to their rivalries with Washington figures; from their friendships with other first ladies to their public and private relationships with their husbands. She also offers insight as to what Melania Trump might hope to accomplish as First Lady.

Candid and illuminating, this compelling work of White House history provides a revealing look at life upstairs and downstairs at the world’s most powerful address.

This sweeping work of American political history reveals the untold stories of the ten remarkable women who have defined the role of the modern First Lady:

• A Secret Sisterhood: Explore the surprising friendships, quiet rivalries, and private correspondence that connected First Ladies across party lines, from Jackie Kennedy’s guidance to Hillary Clinton to the unexpected bond between Laura Bush and Michelle Obama.
• East Wing vs. West Wing: Go behind the scenes of the constant battle for influence between the First Lady’s female-led staff and the president’s powerful, male-dominated advisors—a conflict that defined Pat Nixon’s tenure and continues to this day.
• Behind-the-Scenes Influence: Discover how these women acted as their husbands’ most trusted confidantes, shaping policy, vetting staff, and wielding immense power, from Rosalynn Carter sitting in on Cabinet meetings to Nancy Reagan’s control over the West Wing.
• Private Struggles, Public Lives: Witness their personal courage in the face of tragedy, from raising children under intense scrutiny to navigating shocking health crises and political scandals on the world stage.

INDEX

The pagination of this electronic edition does not match the edition from which it was created. To locate a specific entry, please use your e-book readerʼs search tools.

ABC network, 48, 59, 137, 240, 270

Abell, Bess, 67, 114, 144, 147, 149, 153, 176, 248, 249, 289, 323, 330

Abell, Tyler, 67, 330

Adams, Abigail, 130

Adams, Cindy, 240

Adams, John Quincy, 19

Adams, Louisa, 19

Afghanistan, 20

Agnew, Spiro, 123

Ailes, Roger, 182, 273

Air Force One, 67, 81, 91, 177, 249–50

alcohol

abuse by Betty Ford’s father, 232

Betty Ford and, 98, 215–17, 323, 324

Carter family and, 223–24, 230

George W. Bush’s quitting of, 19

LBJ and, 148

Pat Nixon’s alleged use of, 119, 211

Alcoholics Anonymous, 98, 323

Aldrin, Edwin “Buzz,” 116

Alford, Mimi, 201

Allen, Eugene, 65

Allen, Kimberly, 307, 308

Allen, Richard, 234, 307

Alsop, Joseph, 198

Alsop, Susan Mary, 198

Alzheimer’s disease, 16, 78, 79, 268, 308

American Heart Association, 186

American Newspaper Publishers Association, 237

Andrews Air Force Base, 71, 177, 292

Angelo, Bonnie, 122, 180, 189

Anthropologie, 170

Appalachian Mountains, 178

Arkansas, University of, Law School at, 158

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, 160

Arlington National Cemetery, 3, 12, 74

Armstrong, Neil, 116

Aspen Ideas Festival, 38

Aspen Lodge, 121

assassination

attempt against Reagan, 6, 15–16, 75, 79, 130, 303–6

attempts against Ford, 6, 14, 79, 300

of JFK, 12, 14, 61–62, 66–68, 103–5, 110, 112, 203, 249–50

of Martin Luther King Jr., 144

of McKinley, 13

precautions for Rosalynn and Amy Carter during Venice trip, 309

of RFK, 144, 310

of Sadat, 260

threats against Lady Bird Johnson, 151

threats against Obama, 40

Associated Press, 158

Associated Press Stylebook, The, 24

Atkins, Ollie, 295

Atlanta Work Release Center, 126

Atwater, Lee, 273

Auchincloss, Janet Lee Bouvier, 66, 202

Axelrod, David, 53, 173

Baker, James, 234, 236

Baldrige, Letitia, 90, 91, 106, 167

Ball, Andi, 278

Ball, George, 85, 87

Bartlett, Charles, 200

Begin, Menachem, 14–15, 226, 227

Behn, Gerald, 301

Beijing Zoo, 179

Bentsen, Lloyd, 239

Bernard, Jeremy, 169

Bernstein, Carl, 119

Bernstein, Leonard, 101–2

Berry, Marsha, 38

Bessette, Lauren, 69

Bethesda Naval Hospital, 93, 97

Betty Ford Center, 42, 98, 100, 323–24

Biden, Jill, 278–79

Biden, Joe, 278–79

Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport, 136

Black, Shirley Temple, 96

Blair House, 25, 217, 255, 258

Bloomberg News, 4

Bloomingdale, Betsy, 28

Boggs, Hale, 152

Bonanza, 214

Bostock, Bob, 56

Boylan, Mary...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Epigraph
• Contents
• First Women
• Introduction
• I. The Political Wife
• II. Sisterhood of 1600
• III. Profiles in Courage
• IV. Motherhood
• VI. East Wing vs. West Wing
• VII. The Good Wife
• VIII. Bad Blood
• IX. Keep Calm and Carry On
• Epilogue: Ladies, First
• Afterword: Melania Trump and Her Place in History
• Acknowledgments
• Sources and Notes
• Bibliography
• Index
• About the Author
• Also by Kate Andersen Brower
• Credits
• Copyright
• About the Publisher