a plant for the russians, we criticized those websites and lowered their scores. having said that, the whole incident is one incident where i really screwed up. not "newsguard," but i was on csnbc the morning it happened and i basically said what the intelligence experts said which is it sounds to me like it could be russian disinformation. i then added my opinion does not matter. what matters are the facts and "newsguard is not going to go with my opinion, which newsguard did not. i think there is a misconception that the intelligence experts did not declare this is misinformation. the other thing i will add is the more we talk about this,

what was on the hunter biden laptop that if verified or not verified would have or should have affected anyone's decision about whether to vote for hunter biden's father? host: steven brill's new book is "the death of the truth." you write this book has told the story of the four core forces that have combined to create the death of trust in the ensuing instability and chaos. first, there are the social media platforms. second, there is the development and dominance of programmatic advertising technology that supports misinformation and disinformation. the other two core forces are authoritarians and charlatans promoting bogus health care and

funny products. then there are the abused and those distrustful and vulnerable enough to buy into what the bad actors are selling. that is the core of this book, "the death of the truth: how social media gave snake on salesman and demagogues the weapons they needed." thanks for being on c-span.

let's started does not make covid seem like a very distant memory. this is great to be back again with all you and you know, just to be able to talk to so many friends. well, i'm just delighted to greet you and the audience in grand rapids, michigan. well, as our c-span audience everywhere, i'm gleaves whitney executive director of the gerald r ford presidential foundation. and it's my honor to be your host, along with a lot of good people today, and to welcome to our 2023 edition of america's first ladies luncheon. this year's event is centered around a theme first ladies pat nixon and betty ford lives of leadership, courage and, grace. three great words to describe these remarkable women are our foundation's long running first ladies series is the brainchild of the first daughter, susan

ford bales, who's here with us from texas. susan, thank you so much for your dedication after all these years. and joining susan are number of special guests. so i'd like you to hold your applause to the end, please. president mrs. nixon's son in law, ed cox, is with us. he joins us in lieu of his son, christopher, who was originally on the program but could not make it today. and then we have mrs. nixon's and mrs. ford's chief communication. patti mattson. thank you much for being here. leaders and, board members of the white house historical associa, among whom are anita mcbride, who is a familiar face to this event and dr. colleen shogan, who is president nominee to become the 11th archivist of the united states. we hope you get all the way through that senate process. also, trustees of the gerald r ford presidential foundation, in addition to susan, who are here,

include tina freese, decker hooker and fred keller, the director of the ford presidential library and museum. brooke, brooke clements is with us also and west michigan's political reporter, rick albin with us. let's give all of these distinguished guests a hand. i also want to thank the many many generous donors, the sponsors who made this luncheon possible again. please hold your applause. our premier sponsor once again, fifth third bank. our table sponsors the steve and amy van andel foundation, blue cross blue shield, blue care network of, michigan, and the secchia family foundation and are the principle table sponsors. i want to point out that joan secchia, the wife of the late ambassador peter secchia, is us. thank you so much for being here here. there are many additional

sponsors who are listed on the back of your program. and we appreciate and thank you. well, i'd now like to reverend lynette sparks, senior pastor at westminster presbyterian church, to come forward and offer a benediction, an invocation. thank you. thank you. gleaves and to all of you at the gerald r ford foundation for the invitation to participate today. so as we begin, i invite you to join me in prayer, holy and almighty, one source of all is good and noble and gracious. you gather, your people together in communities for mutual support and for of the common good. and we come to this gathering, thankful for the community assembled here today.

we come with gratitude for all those who have committed lives to public service and to the betterment of our city, our state, and nation. and today we come, especially thankful for the lives of first ladies pat nixon and betty ford, and for ways that they modeled leadership, courage and grace to their families, to their loved ones, to our country, and to the world. we are grateful. the presence of susan ford bales for ed cox, patty mattson and rick albin and ask your upon them as they reflect on the lives of these first ladies and we remember their legacies today. help us all to take to heart the lessons from lives, inspire us to live our own lives with integrity, honesty, courage.

give us the will to combine our gifts and abilities to put aside all would divide us and to work hand in hand toward the flourishing of all people. and we give thanks for all who have made today's gathering possible for the meal. we are to share. and all who have had a part in preparing it. and bringing it to our tables and through it strengthened us for service to another and to all the citizens, the world we offer these prayers in all holy names of god. amen.

not too subtle, is it? not subtle that we're about to begin. now, the proper program here. well, it's that time of year again, three weeks after betty ford's birthday and her name sake. daylilies are popping in the beautiful gardens outside our gerald r ford presidential museum. also this spring seen the publication of richard smith's much heralded biography, an ordinary man, which, by the way, is an ironic title which reveals a number surprises about president his private life and his historic presidency. now, once you delve into book, you realize a good sequel to an ordinary man would be an extraordinary woman. and of course, i'm referring to betty ford. and that title would also apply to pat nixon. well, for these two remarkable women who became friends who

encouraged each other to live their best lives in the pressure of public life and the glare of the white house. well, with us to give deeper insight into pat nixon and betty ford, we have some distinguished people on this stage, susan ford bales only daughter of president and mrs.. susan is the sponsor, the aircraft carrier uss gerald r ford and recognize one of her extraordinary service as the ship's sponsor. susan was named an honorary aviator by the united states navy, becoming only the 31st american ever to receive this distinction and the first woman ever to be so honored. she is the recipient of three honorary doctorates and is the author of two novels set in the white house. i'm waiting for those novels. get on tv now, because the netflix we need to clean up next looks a little.

edward cox next to susan, the son in law of president and mrs. nixon. many of you recall that the hauenstein and the ford held a joint program. i figured it out 12 years ago. you asked when it was 12 years, 2011, where we were at the ford museum and featured ed cox talking about what it's like to work with presidents. he's worked with four of them. he's a corporate lawyer, finance lawyer. and he and tricia nixon. i found out this story last night. they met in new york at a class dance in 1963 when they were seniors in high. they married eight years later, of course, the famous marriage in the rose garden that we're all familiar with. and just celebrated their 50th anniversary at the nixon in 2021. so congratulations congratulations, everyone, on that. harry mattson, who's next to ed?

we're with both mrs. nixon and, mrs. ford. she served the assistant press secretary and speechwriter in the white house office of the first lady during ford administration, the nixon administration, patti traveled extensively and she traveled not only domestically but internationally. she was an advance person. she later worked at abc for 25 years, including as senior vice president of communications. and last but not least, today's conversation will be moderated by rick albin veteran political report. you know, i didn't know which word you are. are you senior veteran? i've got to be careful when rh fragrance out, but veteran political reporter for news eight. he has long been associated with wood tv, which has given him the platform to cover politics on radio and television. five states and in dc. and rick has interviewed every since president ford. so, ladies and gentlemen, please join me in expressing

appreciation for our great penn. as are. thank you. gleaves. and good afternoon, everyone. i take a quick moment to thank the foundation as they have the better part of. 30 years, inviting me to be part of these very special events. and this one, i promise you, will be extraordinary. after listening to the conversations that had since i've been here and a special thanks to the ford family, because they too have allowed me to do things that most reporters don't get a chance to do, and particularly susan, who we spent so much time together between the ship, some of these events and it's always great you're back in town. and so it's nice to you all here. and let's get started. i want you to think for a minute about these two remarks. all women, we all know them. we can think of the high points, but think about what they did, how they did it, and when did it. and think about this title. lives of leadership, courage and both of these women had very

distinct examples of all three of those wonderful traits. think about being a relatively young mother in the 1950s, when women didn't have the same for the lack of a better word, privileges that are now. you didn't just go out and become that kind of a strong voice unless you came from a very place. these two families were also linked and so many ways. and susan, i want to start with you on this. we had a conference call and i had never really thought about it, but all the way back to congressional days or the time of mr. nixon being the vice president, your father being in congress. and then the obvious choice of vice president and then ascending to the presidency. talk to me about. your mother and mrs. ford's. this was nixon's relationship and how your families were kind of intertwined. well, president nixon was a

congressman when my dad became a young congressman in 1948. and then so that relationship and began then president nixon welcomed my dad, helped him along find his way. all of those things as young, new congressman. but then mrs. nixon back in the day which you know we're coming up on 50 years of all of this. was because she was the vice wife. she became head of the senate wives. that was part of your job. and so my mother, pat, worked together for years working in both a senate wives club, congressional wives club. they did fashion shows. they rolled bandages i mean, it was a very active group. when you when you think about the two similarities, did did they keep in close contact even post white house? they did. you know, and that was one of

the things i remember my dad visiting president nixon after he had had surgery and, the phlebitis issue, and my dad left an event and went to go visit him at the hospital. he was very ill at the time. but my mother was was close to pat. i mean, they been through so much together, just like my mother became good friends with nancy reagan. you know there's only so many people who have been in this fishbowl that understand where coming from. and and so they become dear friends. ladybird was another one who was a dear friend. ed talk me a little bit about that at nixon and how multifaceted she was from promoting volunteerism and really being on the the kind of the early edge of focusing on reading and the importance of that. but she also traveled with the vice president and then

president. i mean, she was a bona fide world traveler. she was as vice president. she traveled with the president, i believe it is 53 countries excuse me, with the vice president, 53 countries. the first was a trip around the world which president eisenhower, the vice president, to take. and mrs. nixon went with them and the couple's secret service and one aide. and that was it. and they were on their own and they went to allies in east asia, allies in south asia, in the mideast, in europe, and of course, there were different customs and from white tie to you know regular business suits. and of course women have to do do what's necessary to dress according it and yet they did it on their own. it was quite extraordinary. and she was a real trooper in doing that. but of course you know she was brought up working. she believed just to get through

college. she went to the university, southern california. she had nine different jobs from sweeping the floor of a bank to being an extra in a hollywood film. now her brother's, on the other hand, had football scholarships. why shouldn't women have scholarships, too? well, guess what president nixon passed title nine, which makes equal sports equal to men. sports. and put a little finer point on that. her mother passed when she was 13, 14 years old. yes. and father, she she 17 years old. she she actually took care of him. and she was taking care of her brothers. and they were they had a small so harm. yes, exactly. there was an and then i and just one more note, because as i read all of this, it was making my head spin shortly after her father passed, she graduated from high school, an apartment and some wanted to go to new york city and she drove them. she drove them. she is interesting.

she did like travel. so she took a job that didn't pay very much to take these two elderly people in an old car and drive across the country to, new york city, where she found a job as a secretary. among all the other things she did, she could touch type and could stay stenography. and she spent a year in new york city before she went to california. but that was her real trip. she liked to travel, but she and traveling she liked to communicate with ordinary people wherever she went. and on her tombstone at the nixon library. and i a little bit. but it's while you may not the same language you always know if you have love in your heart and that's the way liked to communicate wherever traveled not go to big fancy things but to go out and meet the people even if they didn't speak the

language she could communicate with. patty, you worked for both women at our table. you were talking about these great experiences and i'll just let you start where you want to. i don't want to pick a particular story because they're all charming but they're also very indicative of the kind of women they both were. and i think you describe both of them as kind. and and that's another it's a trait not just one implied. it has really struck me in preparing this and rereading a lot of the things that i was involved in that one, the main thing that they both was this great empathy for people and, their kindness. so faced their jobs and their responsibilities. but you always sense that in it

and a lot of the things that they did of i think were really because they understood how much it meant to people to have any kind of contact with the white house and i know that it it affected mrs. nixon's really revamping and having the white house available so many more people for international people that came the brochures were in several languages and she was continually thinking about things that could make the experience more memorable and, and really meaningful to people.

and most important to her were, the volunteers who came. that's what she focused on. yeah. people were giving back to their community. she wanted them to come to the white house. there was one little boy who came to the white house and he said, oh, you live. i don't believe you live here. where's your washing machine? and so she took the little boy and showed the little boy where the washing machine was, because you can't live in a house without a washer. yes. the other thing had in common was their sense of humor. mrs. ford as you know, she loved to have a good time as as well. and she was always seeing the humor in everything. and then her quiet, elegant way. mrs. nixon did, the same thing. you know, there would seem to be a little bit different, but they both had that humor and the

kindness. susan i, want to talk about a moment that showed grace and courage with your mother and it happened. never a good time for any diagnosis, but at such a pivotal moment in your family's life, you had just moved into the white house and your mother got a diagnosis of breast cancer. and if we were doing panel 50 years ago, i wouldn't have said breast cancer because you didn't say that in public. and she could have and others would have kept it as quiet possible. had people who do communications gloss over it. she had people taking pictures of her after her surgery in the hospital room. the first lady of the united speak to me about what that was

for her at once, knowing had just taken on the role of first lady of the united states and now is literally battling for her life. we had our wreck. i was at the lbj library last week and. lucy and i were talking because lucy and linda and her mother came to visit that day as mother was leaving that afternoon one evening to go check herself into bethesda. and lucy said, i don't know why your mother just have somebody else. let us see the white house, because it's a real privilege to go back to the house and see the house after you've left. i've only been once and then allowed to go upstairs to my bedroom and see my bedroom of what it looks like now, who knows what it looks like now? but anyway, you don't normally to go upstairs into the family and so we were letting lucy and linda see their old rooms and and all of that and they unaware

that mother was headed to bethesda naval hospital that afternoon, which i'm sure patty involved in right in that press release. and said to me, she goes, your mother was so gracious because she could have, you know, and said, but lucy, you and i now know how special it is to go back to the house. and why would my mother take that away from you. and and your mother. because it's unique experience and because my mother, lady bird, were also long time dear friends and had worked their husbands and worked together for years and years and years. so what was it like, as you to get a handle on what your lives were like, what your mom's life was going to be like having? these two big events happen very close and proximity to each other. how tough was it for her to to

grasp the role of first lady while she's still obviously has serious health issues? well know it's it's interesting. i worked my first job ever was for the white house historical association selling guidebooks to the tourists who came through. and that was my first job. and so i knew when the nixons were in house the the screen was up. so that couldn't go to the west wing and exactly what i'm talking about. so you knew if they were in house or out of house. so when we moved in, which was about ten days later while because julie, david were packing their things and getting them moved. i was cocky. let's just say that. well, mom, i mean, i worked and, you know, let me just show you how it was and but let's also remember, was 17. let's put in perspective.

so anyway and, my mother was extremely gracious because she had been to the white house many times mean there she was there during the kennedy administration and we went to church when the nixons have church services on sunday at the white house. i remember going to that. so you know the transition in from being vice president's wife to president's wife. i think it was a matter of housing because were still living in alexandria. so was an upgrade in housing for sure. and i want to ask you about the converse, because ten days earlier, you were standing beside the first lady and the president as talked to you and the rest of the white house staff just before he walked out in that famous shot, got on the helicopter and flew out to air force one. you also accompanied him on that flight, and that was moment that had to be particularly difficult

for everyone. but how did the first lady navigate at a moment like that? i actually that question was raised by steve bole, who has organized the event. and he asked me, should the family be there with the president? and of course, i thought of mrs. nixon. and of course, she's always been there with him, whether it is the fun crisis, where he wasn't sure what he'd do. and she said, you got to go fight it. and he did. and he won that. so in all these tough moments, she was there. she was a real fighter. and for her not to be would have just not been right. i think steve was asking, you know, would she be able to control emotion. well yes. there's no doubt about she was that type of a person. so we were all there. it was night before i was in the president asked me to be in the lincoln sitting room with him as

he was preparing his talk. i was very calm about. he asked me to go to book the quote that he used about roosevelt, teddy roosevelt, about his past wife, and that tribute that he read. so i brought that book with me to that and and then we got on the helicopter. i know that your parents accompany us there. julian, david stayed behind and we went off to san clemente with the with the president. mr. nixon, as we passed by the washington monument. the president is there. i'm sitting here. mrs. nixon's next him. and i thought. what do you say as you're going by am the marine one. and said, mr. president, in ten years you will be back. because that's the kind of person he was. and mrs. nixon was. they were fighters. and ten years later, by order of

katharine, who heard him give speech, he was on cover of newsweek saying he's back because everyone wanted seek his advice and is nixon was very much a part of that. patty a couple of things. your take as a staffer at that pivotal moment, but before that something much happier and i wanted to ask you earlier and we moved along you talked about mrs. loved to have one on one time with people to be able to look them in the eye, to make them understand not her importance, but the importance of the office and the presidency and the first lady. how many of you all have ever taken a tour? the white house? bunch of us. i think we have done it during the nixon administration because what would she do when there were tours coming in in the last months, when weren't traveling so much, she was able to to be

there and be a hostess, if you will, to people who wanted to come. so particularly with the women's that would come to see washington, she would have them invited into the white house. she would stand and sometimes three and four times a week she would greet them at door. she would them in the eye, talk to them and shake their hand. and everybody left. walking on air and and you know that those people still have that. a memory of of a highlight of their life. but she understood how much it meant to people to have a sense of the kinds of people run the the and who are in the white house. so she also was known because

she so much mail she had a view. remember it's like this has up outside her door for her to write her replies and she did it personally and not only. i mean, she never allowed else to sign the letters, but at any rate, she, she understood what mail meant to people and she made sure that everything was answered and. you know, sometimes it's what agency do you go to? i mean, you can't believe the the both the volume and how much time they they took because understood what it meant to people to have that kind of a relationship to being in the white house, being the first lady being a congressional wife in the fifties having all of that pressure.

your mother didn't lose her sense of humor. the the picture of her standing on the cabinet room table that kennerly took remains one of my favorites. how did she how did she cope with? the kind of pressures because it's not an easy place to live. there's a lot going on. and but she still in what i read what i see when you talked about her, she always seemed to be up and trying to to get others to be the same. i told you about the picture i saw the day, the election. your father had lost the entire family standing, the oval office as she tried to get jack to smile. you know, she's physically, like trying to get him to smile because obviously people were unhappy, you know, but she wanted people to feel better. well as patty knows, she was quite the prankster. she loved a good prank. now, i think some of that comes

having two older brothers and having three boys. and then she got me so you had to roll with the punches. and, i mean, it's my dad was gone probably 200 and some odd days a year. so you learn to roll with the punches. but we were always doing pranks at the white house and that was mandatory to keep spirits up. i mean, you know, inflation was this and, you know, whip inflation now buttons and the sweater that some woman wonderfully knitted my father i remember the picture of him it on christmas. but you so beaten down on living there by the press and the american your numbers are up one day and they're down the next. you to laugh. you have to laugh and my mother was a great prankster.

she loved to be involved in a prank. and i mean, patty, i'm sure you and you were part of maybe a prank or two along the way, but my mother was one of those that patty showed me a picture last night at dinner. that of what birthday was it for you? 30. 30. she hasn't changed a bit. and my mother really honored and respected her staff who worked for her and they became part the family because they are insiders and they know you can trust them and they're not going to talk. and i'm ed can say the same about president and mrs. nixon. they become friends each and every one to come back to you. but you tell the story about your 30th birthday. oh we are mrs. ford reconnected with the famous woman, had

taught her how to dance and. dancing was quite a an important part of her life when she had been young. so we went to new york. her escort was woody allen, who was in a tuxedo with tennis shoes. and it got quite a bit of it was her reuniting with martha graham. so we had had a wonderful weekend up there and. we came back and they given us a little plane to come in and we were, you know, just sitting there going over the day and how much fun it had been. and that kind of thing. and in walks in walks at that part of the plane, this cake was my 30th birthday. i didn't know anybody knew it was my 30th birthday. and she had gotten as a

surprise. it was such a sweet thing to do this beautiful cake with, candles. so that's how i celebrated my 30th birthday. this is my least favorite, favorite thing when it comes to these. we are almost out of time. and i it because i can sit here the rest of the afternoon. but i know you have schedules, so i'm going to make sure we stay with them and i'm going to with you i'm going to go to each of you. and this is a challenge, but try to tell me something, mrs. nixon, that else in this room knows. hmm. you've got to chat, patty. well, she was a wonderful mother in law to me, and we were married in 71 and 72. i graduated from law school and. the you are required in order to practice law to take a thing called a bar exam. and the school i went to,

harvard doesn't get you ready to do that. and mrs. nixon somehow understood that perhaps from her husband. and she made available to me the solarium of white house and set it for me so i could study there and nonstop for the six week sprint that you do to cram in order to pass the barracks. and that very kind of her do that. and the think of my and what i had to do because by the way, failing was not an option. and so she was that that thoughtful a wonderful mother in law. great story, patty. what don't we know that you know about either of these great first ladies? i think with mrs. nixon, the people don't understand one of the things that made her so effective was that she had

worked she started working and you mentioned a couple of the things she worked for in a hospital for two years. all these things. and that meant that when she came to the white house, she knew how to get things done and that was what drove her ability to bring more people into the white house all these other things but she never wanted any publicity herself so think most people do not understand how much she responsible for. and i. i regret but she really did it on behalf of the the nixon and what would say the nixon community she wanted people to understand that the government was doing something for them. susan, same question to and i apologize. we didn't need to get a to talk about the leadership courage

your mother showed after she left the white house complete. you know, specifically to substance abuse as well. and certainly worth noting. but what's something about your mom that we don't know she was spanker? i can attest to that. i know you. can't do that anymore. so i would also say that my parents were horror. well, drivers horrible. i was never so happy. as for them to get secret service and not be driving. and on that note will end with so many more stories to be told. thank you all very. i appreciate it. thank. thank you all. i do want to i do want to thank the ford presidential foundation for putting a spotlight on mrs. nixon here. as you said, she never really

wanted that that recognition but she was the kind of first lady who deserves it. so thank you very much is very much appreciated on behalf the nixon family. thank you. well and since we're passing out. thanks. i never for us to leave an event like this without saying thank you to all the people who work hard behind the scenes to make something like this happen. i want to thank the wonderful staff of the gerald r ford presidential foundation for all they did behind the scenes to pull off a big event like this. that's months and months, the planning. i'd also like to thank all the people here at the gw who prepared the meal and served so beautifully. so thank you all for all you did to make a great event. and of course we thank you the four panelists who did just an

exceptional job of humanizing what so often is just in a history book or, a textbook or a little clip on the history channel. you behind the scenes and underneath the exterior of these wonderful and humanize them for in a very special way. so thank each of you for bringing your a-game to us today. and i just want to make sure now that, nicolle, please come forward. this is a small token of our appreciation. we have a gift for each of you, and you'll be able to us this day. and at the same time, i want to bring susan ford forward because she's going to present a very special gift. thank you. gleaves. the white house belongs to the american people. and don't ever that. but the history of the white house is a national treasure. and the white house historical is essential in being the keeper

of that house history. with us today, gleaves had mentioned we have several guests from the association on behalf of the president and my mother i would like you all to please accept stand and accept boundless gratitude for all that you do every day. the keepers of the white house history. 40 years ago, the white house historical association began a tradition. each year they produce an ornament that pays tribute to a selected president and his family. this year's ornament honors dad and our family's christmas celebrations. the ornament is wonderful, and it portrays special parts of our

milestone. and one of this year's tributes that meant so much to my dad, the uss gerald r ford, cvn 78. to our friends, the white house historical association. thank you for all that do to preserve history of america's white house. and please accept my gratitude for this very special 2023 ornament. ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy video about this year's ornament. thank you all very much. the white house historical association was founded in 1961 to help collect exhibit artifacts of american culture at the white house and open the door to the rich history of the executive. to support this education efforts, the official white house christmas ornament program was started in 1981. each ornament is designed and

assembled in the united states by a veteran founded business. these ornaments honor presidents and significant anniversaries in white house history. the official 2023 white house christmas ornament features president gerald ford on the front of the wreath. the ford's white house christmas decorations themes, which focused on american handcraft efforts. turn the ornament around. see emblems representing president ford's legacy of service from his in boy scout troop 15, where he earned the rank of eagle scout to his college years playing football for the university of michigan. after graduating from yale law school, ford served in the united navy during world war two, achieving the rank lieutenant commander. one of the last honors that my received six weeks before he passed was naming of cvn 78. that was probably one of the highest honors he received following his military service, ford, elizabeth, betty bloomer,

warren. they married in 1948 and had four children. michael, john stephen and susan. gerald ford took office august ninth, 1974, after president nixon resigned. for declared in his remarks upon taking the oath of office. i am acutely aware that you have not me as your president by your ballots. so i ask you to confirm me as your president with your prayers. god helping me. i will not let you down. thank you. during their time the white house, the fords made an celebrar dated history such as their participation in the bicentennial, including hosting a state dinner for queen elizabeth. the second. although one of the most famous families in the country, the fords enjoyed ordinary moments, the president was often with the family's golden retriever

liberty. liberty. and my dad had just a really unique relationship her dad taking her to the office, and she would just got right underneath his desk and made herself right at home. and like many american families was also a special time. the fords. the white house. so exceptionally beautiful during christmas and coming up with the themes you know the year of the bicentennial we did bicentennial ornaments. my mother was very involved in recruiting people to help make those ornaments. the official 2023 white house christmas ornament helps you to create your own white house inspired holiday memories. this year's ornament so special. when i look at it, it brings back many things and memories of my white house days of parents and it will always have a very special on my tree.

purchased the official white house ornament and help preserve our shared american story for generations to come come. isn't that a beautiful ornament. good afternoon. my name is rachel siglow and i am the director of the gerald r ford president foundation. i am that each of you will be bringing home an ornament that is a reminder of the ford white house. there's a gift in your gift bags, autographed books. gigi in the white house. the book was written by giovanna

gigi mcbride. illustrated by john hutton and published by the white house historical association. this children's is based on the real life experiences of gigi visiting her mother. anita mcbride, who is here today, who worked in the white house, the bush administration. unfortunately, gigi could not be with us today. she has finished finishing the semester's courses. anita is here along with her former colleague, albert lea. marilyn kimberly osborn and colleen shogan. thank you for joining us today. if you would like to purchase additional ornaments or copies of book gigi in the white house be sure to visit the white house historical website. their online store has. many unique gifts for the special people and occasions in your life. thank you to today's sponsors.

fifth third bank, the steve and amy van andel foundation blue cross blue shield care network of michigan. the secchia family foundation. grand valley state. the hauenstein for presidential studies. aquinas college. mary freebsd. rehabilitator john hospital. 13. on your side. dhs insurance. wilcox farms. trucking pioneer construction and allegra. if you're not a member, please becoming a member of the gerald r ford presidential foundation. we call our members friends of ford. their envelopes at the tables for you to consider your level of membership. sponsor our ships of our programs and your membership. help support the many initiatives of the foundation including educational programs of the davos learning center and the ford leadership.

in addition, important activities at the presidential library and museum that are not funded by the federal government. temporary exhibits, noted speakers and events are just a few examples. the activities supported by your. please us at our next event on 16th with author john luke, who will be discussing his book the good country a history of the american midwest. finally, i hope you enjoyed centerpieces at your tables. nathan veneman and, his team at green envy created today's look based on photographs, state dinners during the nixon administration. one person at each table will home a centerpiece. the winner is person at each table whose birthday is closest to mrs. pat nixon.

march 16th. congratulations thank you for joining us today and have a wonderful. good evening, everyone i'm jay barth. i'm the director of the clinton presidential library. and on behalf of the clinton school of public service, the clinton foundation and the clinton presidential library, we welcome you to another offering of the clinton presidential center presents series. i want to welcome you all and

very thrilled you're all here. in particular, i want to welcome congressman french hill and martha for being here this evening. our three guests to little rock at the clinton presidential center this evening have committed themselves to right our understanding of the influence of america's presidential spouses on our nation's policy politics and life. from the first textbooks to be used college classrooms to the of a more general audience text. remember first ladies to establish flair and or the first association dedicate it to the study of the evolving roles in history of america's first ladies to traveling the country to talk this work. they are really a movement to bring first ladies to the center of the conversation about the happenings and presidential ministry issues. as part of that building, our three authors spent an hour with students south lawrence southwest high school.

today talking with teens about the role the first lady this year team at the clinton presidential library is closely with southwest high schools students as part of the academies of arkansas. their class talks by our staff about their work, job shadowing, experience and social media, intern and a social media internship focused on first ladies. i think you've seen a few of those this evening those were introduced to work at a presidential and in federal government service broadly as part of the academy of and public service as southwest. our authors book, the first lady's, explores the evolution honoree role of the first lady and its historic on the american presidency. this groundbreaking work shines light on the influential women who broke barriers and made a mark on our country and at times our world during their tenures in the white house. the book argues that first ladies have been uniquely to influence american society today policy, diplomacy and, life in

the white house profiles individual first ladies bring their achievements, legacies to life. readers will learn the developed of the role of the first lady from its origins under martha washington through its current iteration under dr. jill biden. the authors will be around after the to sign copies or remember the first lady's run outside the door are three guests are starting on this in diana b carlin professor emerita of communications at saint louis university and retired professor of communication studies, the university of kansas. her research and teaching are in political communication and with an emphasis on women in politics, first lady's political rhetoric and political. and she continues a very research agenda in the middle. anita, be mcbride is executive in residence, director of the first lady's initiative at the center for congressional and presidential studies in the school of public affairs. an american. her experience includes service in three u.s. presidential

administration shows at the white house and department of, state and as chief of staff to first lady laura bush, nancy keegan smith, previous served as director of the presidential materials division of the national archives and records administration. and in that role, she was central the development of the clinton presidential library and museum. she is the president of the first lady's association for research education flare, which is coeditor of modern first ladies. their documentary, legacy and lectures on first lady's and presidential records. let us welcome our guests. a friend, stephanie streett, executive director of the clinton foundation who had a central role, a white house where the first lady transformed that role will moderate. tonight's conversation. stephanie, i'll let you take it away. thank you. welcome, everybody. we're thrilled to have you here with us this evening.

and i'm so thrilled to have you all with for this fascinating conversation. i'm just going to dive right in, if that's all right. there are numerous memoirs, the biographies of first ladies, plus plenty of significant historical documentaries, articles i'd love to know why you all decided this time to write book. and diane must start with, if i may. all right. well, this book, the read one, started with the blue one. i was approached about a little over three years ago from a publisher company about writing a textbook. i could pitch an idea to them, and i had been teaching a course either an entire course or part of a course on women in politics, on ladies for 30 years. and i didn't have a and i had to cobble things together. there was a lot out there, but it didn't really do justice any one book. so i just pitched the first lady's book and they loved and i said, but i can't do this alone.

so i proposed to coauthor and i gave them their credentials and i said, yeah, i think they're qualified to work on that with you? so. so we, we started with the textbook and our editor what we wanted do was something nothing else was doing. and that was looking at the entire t of the history of the first lady, the role. so there are a lot of biographies she's edited volumes on an issue or whatever, but we wanted to do something different looking at how the times in which they lived their own backgrounds changed over time, stayed the same over time, and then really look at the position and what each of these women brought to. so that was the textbook editor was so engaged and this isn't read like any textbook i've ever read it's actually interesting and so and readable and so you consider converting it to a book for the general public. so we did that. so you know, some technical chapters were gone and it gave us a chance to really add more

stories and humanize some of their experiences as people with families and, how their own individual backgrounds affected them. so that was what happened. and we also have thematic units, you know, woven within this. we, in fact, one of the real important chapters is one on the history of relations and civil rights and from martha washington all the way through to present. and we were very fortunate that dr. biden gave us an interview so have and wrote the foreword the textbook. so it's current is it could can be at this and we're excited to share it with you you need to from your special role as chief of staff to first lady laura bush at the time do you have anything you want to share about why you thought this was important to right now. well i think you know i've been working at a university for over years at american university is mike knows and i was asked to come to the university to develop program an initiative around studying ladies.

their impact and their legacies. and it's the only university in the country that has this kind of initiative, but was really clear, though, there was a gap, an academic literature around this. i mean, we were hosting conferences around the country at presidential libraries, bringing together all the best voices, those who written about first ladies and worked with first ladies. but still to have an hour and 30 native text like this didn't exist. so it was a great exercise. i have to say. i was intimidated about writing a book. i'm glad i had two coauthors to really help me. diana had written textbooks before, nancy written books. so i think the publisher was shocked, was not at first convinced that three people can write a book. but we had such a great working relationship and process and i think we've given a gift to schools and college you and universities around the country

to actually have something so definitive like this, so it we're on a mission to get it in the hands of as many students as possible. and i'll just say one last thing. every student and every class where we tested this book before it was actually published all said the same thing. why did we never learn this? so that's why we know we were on the right path. a great takeaway. well, nancy, you and i, the opportunity to work together during the clinton you when you were trying to get us to get all of our documents in boxes. and so i'd love from your perspective, having worked at the national archives and being exposed to many different first ladies, why you think it was important for this book now? well, i really think it is important because these u.s. first ladies have done so important things and in teaching in with textbook history, still even.

in 2024 remains very male. and we would be continually asked by the men in classes and men who read our general book why didn't we know this before and so that they're important legacies were somewhat hidden and weren't showcased the way they should be and records at the presidential libraries are a wonderful way of buttressing that so that was i think, an interest to make the history more fulsome on a very, very important group of women. and the more modern first ladies have left legacies personal legacies at the high. today, anita was told about how much it meant to laura bush's book initiative and.

initiative? yes. yes. and the first lady's legacy wildflowers or books. it's very personal legacy. the betty ford breast cancer and alcohol abuse and chemical dependency. so that's that is good reason, i think. thank you. let's talk a little bit about the origins of role of the first lady. let's go back to martha washington. abigail adams and dolley madison. how did they establish important presidents precedence and? nancy, i'm going to start with you on this one. well, i'm to be i'm going to these were three very important. first ladies that we want to talk a lot of subjects. so i'm going to condense down. and then if you have questions on martha, of course set the precedent and martha did not want to be a first lady. she thought george was going to retire and they were going to entertain at mount and then he

writes a letter saying surprise and so she comes several months later to to new york and finds that george has stopped her role is so important that he has tasked her with the ceremonial hostess role but he and his advisors did not think to ask martha how she would like handle that. and so she was told that she could not go to people's houses to thank and visit with them, which was of her southern heritage. and that's partly why she wrote that letter that she felt like she was a prisoner. but martha balanced, you know, it was a new nation. it was very to be seen as important, regal, but too british, not french. and she balanced incredibly well. she wore clothes.

she was regal. george did receptions for men she did dinners and receptions since in which she entertained george was more informal. and so she set the social entertaining, the negative thing that she did. and she did many positive things is that she bring slavery into the white house. so that is part of her legacy, too. but martha started the long tradition that some has been followed by every first lady of supporting military and being close to them. then we get to abigail and abigail, although she was from a different part of the country, massachusetts, and she was in congress final minister's daughter and. she was vehemently opposed to slavery, really liked martha and

respected martha. and when she became first lady, she asked martha for her entertainment. and she basically followed that and abigail was different that she was absent almost half of john adams term, either because of sickness or because she was taking care of a sick daughter. but you can document abigail has things, feelings this first ladies in the wonderful documentation she left which is at the massachusetts historical society the adams. it's an incredible treasure trove of early founding of our nation. so what did abigail do that very unique because she was john's policy advisor on and normally she was very good but she advised john to support the alien and sedition acts which

basically made it a crime to speak out against the government and thomas jefferson and who was adams vice president at the time left and went back to monitor he was so upset and many people think that john adams did not get reelected because of the and sedition act. she had much good advice. and before john became president she wrote what is our title for the trade book, which is she wrote him in the continental please remember the ladies and be kinder to them than your ancestors. so john basically thought that was he took in a light tone he didn't take it that seriously. although independent, unambiguous advice. then we get to dolley, who's a very interesting first lady and

definitely a strength. then the entertainment component and made really created by partizan entertaining. before that it was pretty much who was invited to receptions were friends or they needed to invite dolley so many people they became came called squishes because you really could hardly move in the room and there receptions and she invited foes and and she was very charismatic she would wear turbans she would wear french clothing. she was beautiful. and she managed to get every man thinking that she totally interested in him, which just so wonderful ability. and she sent james madison, her husband, who would wear black suits who was shorter than

dolley. brilliant, brilliant mind, but not outgoing at all. so she really helped madison in getting his policies passed with her outgoing ness and one of madison's opponents said if only he could have run against mr. madison not out of $1 and james so sort of take and she saved the gilbert stuart nice right that she she was very courageous the 1814 when the british were invading washington she remained madison there very few people there and she made sure that the portrait was rolled up and preserved and some very important government documents were taken and let the white house very shortly before british entered in. i think you can consider her the

nation's first archivist. i mean she knew that these documents needed to be protected not getting what say exactly. yes really interesting. let's talk a little bit about how how and when the of first lady started to change and develop in really critical ways. can you talk about two of the most important developments? one, the creation of, the office of the first lady, and then first lady's kind of evolving role with communicating with the american. well, i'll start with the first half of that on the creation of the office and the structure around them. first of all, it wasn't until rosalynn carter actually her own office in the east wing, that was an office for the first lady. they all worked up their bedrooms and in there, the residence, there was no office for for a first lady.

they were working out of their dressing rooms are also were mostly there working remotely there. you know there was also no staff other than of course, our first ten or 11 first families had had slaves and they tended to their person all needs. of course. but it wasn't until edith roosevelt was the first first lady to hire the first staff position to the white house. so we're talking 1901. oh, my goodness. and the position was social. that was the first position. that woman's name was isabella hagner. she was a local washington kind of social person, well known. and this so that was the first professional position because edith roosevelt came into the white house with five rambunctious children. she was right. and she found her husband six. and so there are you. there you go. and a stepdaughter. who teddy? they asked alice long.

roosevelt longworth was always doing something and they asked teddy if he couldn't. he said, i can either run the country or control alice and i choose to run the country. do both can do both. but. but the position so this now starts professionalize and the the important too is she got her husband agree that this needed to be in the federal to pay for this position and it helped mrs. roosevelt now manage the social and at the same time remember she she was overseeing a mass of reconstruction of the white house. this is the creation of an executive wing we now know is the west wing. later there was an oval office that was added because. she needed all of that space in. the white house for her family. prior to that, the office, the residence were all in one place. and so so things start to change with that and it really changes the dynamics of the entire white house complex. was that controversial you said it he