Betty ford spoke her mind. Prochoice and a supporter of the equal rights amendment, she and president gerald ford openly discussed her experience with Breast Cancer. For much of her familys public life, she struggled with drug and alcohol dependency, and confronting it defined her postwhite house years. Good evening and welcome to cspans series first ladies influence and image. Tonight well tell you the story of elizabeth ford, the wife of gerald ford. Here for the next 90 minutes to tell her story is Richard Norton smith, president ial historian. If youve been watching our series, you know him. Hes one of the academic advisers for the project. Hes launched a number of president ial libraries, among them the gerald r. Ford library in michigan. You developed a relationship with the fords. So, you bring that to the table as well. Sure, in interest of full disclosure, i try to be as objective as possible. But i was very fortunate to become friends with both of the fords. But we want to start tonights story where we left off which is that night in august of 1974 when the fords learned that they were going to be in the white house. How much of a surprise was it for them when they heard the news . You know, this is one of the things that i find astonishing almost 40 years later. I recently took part in an extensive oral history project which included about 150 of the fords associates, including all of their children. And, you know, you would think every other American Household the summer of 1974 at some point sat around the dinner table discussing what was happening and what might happen in the white house. The only dinner table in america where that discussion apparently never took place was the fords. For mrs. Ford, i think it really was a case of denial nay lin a f ways. You know, she said august 9th, 1974 was the saddest day of her life. I think in part, she felt badly for the country. But even more, she felt badly for pat nixon and the nixon family who were good friends of the fords. He had never aspired to the presidency. She was, i think, even more reluctant with the idea of going. And she really didnt find out until about a week before it happened. Among the video pieces youll see are clips with the ford family children. The next one and first one up is steve ford. We talked to him a year ago at a conference on first ladies, and well include some of the pieces of that interview tonight. As we begin tonight, one on the familys transition in august from their home in al andrea, virginia and the vice presidency to the white house. Lets listen. Mrs. Ford has a hope you would get out of politics. What is her reaction to the heavy responsibility . Well, shes just doing her best and well wait and see about the other. First of all, you have to remember after dad got sworn in, the day nixon resigned and i think everybody remembers the image of nixons helicopter, him saying goodbye to his staff, family, friends on the south lawn of the white house. Helicopter leaves. We go into the east room of the white house where dad puts his hand on the bible. Mom holds the bible, oath of office. Were sitting there. We go take a family portrait in the oval office. Nixon has cleared off his desk. What people dont remember is we didnt get to move into the white house because nixon we lived in our own little home back in alexandria, virginia, fourbedroom house in suburbia because nixon resigned so quickly, so unexpectedly, they werent able to pack up their belongings. So, they left their daughter and soninlaw, david eisenhower, to pack up their things. It took seven or eight days. We went back to our little house in alexandria, virginia. Dads just become president of the United States. And were eating dinner around the table. Ill never forget mom was cooking dinner and she looks over at my dad and says, jerry, somethings wrong here. You just game president of the United States and im still cooking. I mean, that was your reyallal for the next seven or eight days before we moved into the white house. But when they transitioned to the white house, it was that basic american normal family that got so much coverage. I remember and you probably do news reports of the president toasting well, the famous picture of him the fact is mrs. Ford was never a morning person. I suspect he had been toasting his own muffins for many, many years. That was not something but youre right. The idea was even more than that. Everyone remembers those famous pictures of Richard Nixon at the helicopter with the v. And what they dont know is what president ford soon to be president ford said to his wife on the way back into the white house. Because he realized his job was to reassure the country. And if he couldnt reassure his wife, he couldnt reassure the country. He leaned over and just whispered in her ear, we can do it. And it was just the right thing to say. He said a lot of right things that day. You know, now, there were a lot of problems and controversies that ensued. But youre right. There was a sense that its as if the country had been building up this thunderstorm and the storm raged for a while. And then suddenly, you know, the clouds parted and it was fonorm again. There were people in the white house who we could recognize and relate to. One of her you know, you have to remember this was totally it was like going to live on another planet for these people. The first days she actually lived in the white house, she didnt understand. She would walk through the halls and say hello to people when she saw them. Secret service agents, household personnel, whatever. That was her nature. And no one spoke back to her. And she finally went to the legendary curator and said, am i doing something wrong . Do they dislike us for being here . And she explained, said, oh, no, the nixons were somewhat more formal, had established that practice. So, word went out to the white house staff, its okay to talk to the first family. And before long, the stories about president ford and the butler, about whom the movie was made recently, comparing football scores. They became old shoe almost overnight. Whats been so enjoy able about this series is your involvement along the way. Tonight is no different. Were going to have our phone lines open. 2025853880. 2025853881 in mountain or pacific or farther west. You could also send us a tweet using the address firstladies. And finally you can join our facebook conversation, facebook. Com cspan. You can see theres a large picture of first Lady Betty Ford and a robust conversation already underway. We said at the outset that her comments were often controversial. Its interesting to see to this day she remains controversial. People are telling us on facebook, i loved her, i couldnt stand her all along the way. What made her so controversial . A number of things. First of all, she spoke her mind. And the very fact that she would address subjects. I mean, quite frankly, you can understand a lot of the criticism of people who were accustomed to, for lack of a better word, more traditional approach to the job. First ladies were not overtly political. First ladies did not wade into intensely debated moral issues like abortion, for example. First ladies certainly did not discuss whether their children had used marijuana or whether their daughter might have an affair. Part of what was different was for the first time she was being asked questions that no one would have put to a pat nixon or a Lady Bird Johnson. The difference is she was willing to respond. Mary on facebook said mrs. Ford was an inspiration, perfect for the times. One of the things that we have been following all along this series this year is the changing role of women in society. Yeah, yeah. And how the first lady in the office often is a benchmark for that. Yeah. And i think that thats where i think she connected with millions of women. You know, she was candid about her personal struggles. She was a lot of people didnt realize when she became first lady that she had been married before. I think Bonnie Angelo with time magazine, correspondent, asked her about it and why people didnt know about it. She said no one had bothered to ask her before. In 1957, i remember the first time her name ever appeared in the washington post, and it was about her fashion sensibility and it talked about her taste for white hats and slightly more talkative suits. In 1957, that was fine. That was one culture. A lot of people looked at betty ford, this cub scout ben mother, this sunday schoolteacher from west michigan, and they labelled her. They wrote her off, in effect. And then they discovered, no, actually this is a woman with views of her own. This is a woman who has had a lot of challenges in her life. A lot of chose challenges bonded her with millions of other women who entertain similar doubts and uncertainties as she did. Well, you referenced her first marriage. Lets go back in time and learn where she came from, what her roots were, and what influenceder had. Where was she born and when . She was born actually in chicago. Her parents are fascinating contrast. Her mother clearly is the dominating, defining figure in her life. Bloomer, who ive often thought of as a character out of tennessee williams. She came from a very prosperous family. Status meant a lot to mrs. Bloomer. She insisted, for example, that betty wear white gloves. By the way, when she went shopping. She was a perfectionist to end all perfectionists. Bet betty, as a child, was prone to overeat, as far as her mother was concerned who responded by hanging a sign over her daughters neck saying please dont feed this child. Exactly. I mean she was a formidable figure. Her father, talk about patterns. Her father was a traveling salesman and an alcoholic who died amid mysterious circumstances when she was 16. And it was one of those deaths that was never quite fully discussed. In fact, it was only then that betty learned that her father was an alcoholic and that those trips that her mother had made from time to time to be with him on the road were a consequence of his illness. It was a house where secrets flourished. She had two brothers, one of whom was an alcoholic. So, in many ways she was genetically or culturally programmed for the disease that she would have later on. But bloomer is a larger than life figure. She was president of the hospital in grand rapids for crippled children. She wanted betty to join the Junior League at a very early age and kind of rise up the ladder. She had problems with a daughter who had a mind of her own, who, for example, wanted to pursue a career as a dancer. And in fact, she did. She went to new york and studied dance and accepted into the Martha Graham troop which was an accomplishment. Yeah, she did. She spent a couple of years in vermont, aso he shall yachtsoci program there. She joined the Martha Graham company. She never made the first ranks. She was very modest in later years. But it is a key to her personality. She was a natural performer. She was perfectly comfortable being on the stage. And in some ways, that came back to her to aid her when she became first lady. And she came back to grand rapids, and can you briefly tell us about her first marriage and what happened to it. She came back to grand rapids. She taught dance. She worked as a fashion coordinator in a local department store. And she, by her own acknowledgment, was a party girl who met a party boy. Actually she had known him since i think she was 12 years old. Bill warren, who, as i said, was himself a traveling salesman and an alcoholic. And they were married. She was, i think, 24. And she had, almost overnight, kind of embraced a whole different set of values. She was ready is to settle downd be a wife and have children. And that was not necessarily the same agenda that he had. The interesting thing is she made the decision after about three years to divorce him. And then he went into a diabetic coma and she spent the next two years nursing him back to health. And then and then she filed for divorce. 1947. So, altogether five years. Five years. Well, i want to get she called it her fiveyear misunderstanding. I want to get to the story of how she met and married gerald ford. But let me take a call and well learn more about how the match was made. First is susan who is watching us in texas. Youre on the air as we discuss betty ford. Caller i just wanted to say i have thoroughly enjoyed the whole series. Its been wonderful. Thank you. Caller and love i love the way this is being done. I just love it. And my question is, did betty ford support her husband, gerald ford, when he wanted to run for the presidency . You know, he became president by, i guess, just being the Vice President. But when he wanted to run for president , did she support him in this . Yeah, good question. She supported him very vigorously. Both of the fords its interesting. People forget now, president ford, right at the beginning of his presidency, had sort of more or less let it be known that he would not be a candidate in 1976. And i think Henry Kissinger helped persuade him that would undermine his presidency from the outset. I think both sides kind of decided they like life in the white house. For mrs. Ford, it was a great improvement. You know, her husband is House Minority leader was on the road 200, 250 nights a year. She actually spent much more time with him once they were in the white house. So, they were both determined to do their best to extend the ford presidency. And i think for him, particularly, to have the mandate of a popular election as the only appointed president , almost a president with an asterisk next to his name. She may have supported his bid for the white house, but when they first met, she didnt know she was getting a politician. Isnt that true . Thats what she says. You know, its hard for me to believe that she was as totally naive i mean, jerry ford was kind of big man on campus, local hero from his High School Days playing football. Its not terribly surprising that he should decide to go into public life. But there is no doubt she was surprised. They were married in october 19 48. Heres regina on twitter. I want to get her question because she asked about that. Did the fords schedule their 1948 wedding for october 15th after the republican congressional primary and why . Yes. I think the simple answer is yes. You have to know west michigan to appreciate. West michigan, considerably more than now, was a very culturally conservative place, a place with a Dutch Reform Church held sway. And ford, who was certainly always a fiscal conservative nevertheless was running against an entrenched rerepublican income wen income bent. Ford went into politics really with an idea which was that america would have to play on a continuing role, a significant leadership role in the world. Mrs. Ford was a divorcee, and the concern was he told her when he proposed, he wanted to get married but he in effect couldnt tell her when and couldnt tell her why he couldnt tell her. The fact of the matter is his political advisers were concerned he was already facing an uphill campaign that having a divorcee in the family might add might lengthen those odds even more. So, but october 15th, youre right, about three weeks before the election, he showed up late. Actually he showed up at the rehearsal dinner late. Showed up in time for dessert at the rehearsal dinner. He was late for the wedding. He showed up in brown shoes and a dark suit. Their glamorous honeymoon was in michigan sitting outdoors listening to thomas e. Dewey and then a Football Game in ann arbor, his beloved university of michigan. She stayed in the hotel in ann arbor, he went to the game. They went back to grand rapids on monday. And he said he had to campaign that evening, could she make him a sandwich. He said number of times he said later on that she never let him hear the end of it. I think they took a number of second honeymoons to compensate. I think there are a lot of women around the country thinking the same thing. Owe her big after that. They were born in 1938, michael in 1950, jack in 1952, steven in 1956 and susan in 1957. Return to steve ford talking about their congressional years because in fact the politician won that race for the house of representatives and was then to spend the next 25 years as a member of congress. Lets hear steve ford talking about that life. You know, dad was on the road 150 nights, maybe 200 nights a year sometimes, out campaigning for other republicans, trying to get a majority in congress. He wanted to be speaker of the house. And mom, to her credit, was the one, like many wives of congressmen, back home making sure we got to the dentist, making sure we got our homework done, making sure we got to football practice, wrestling practice and all those kind of things. And the glue that held the family together while dad was out, public servant. It was later in the presidency that she finally had a chance to, i would say, blossom or shine, you know, and get her chance in the spotlight. But during dads 26 years of being a congressman, she was the one that kept the family, drove the family. Its interesting because, you know, every family, there would be some blow up and one of us would get in trouble and we got in trouble a lot and it would always be wait until your father gets home. We knew by the time dad got home the storm would be blown over and he wanted to be the good guy anyway. He would come home with a president. My heart goes to mom because she kept the ship pointed in the right direction. Keeping the ship together starts another important chapter of her life. Lets listen to michael from atlanta. You are on the air, michael. Go ahead. Caller thank you. My question is what opinion or influence did mrs. Ford have in president fords decision to pardon Richard Nixon . That is a great question, and it is one of the illusive areas. She said very little about the pardon. She thought it was necessary. She thought it was an act of courage. She said what you would expect her to say in her first memoir. I will say this, toward the end of his life and im sure viewers may recall when the john f. Kennedy library chose to give him the profiles in courage award, specifically for the nixon pardon, he was initially reluctant to go, to go all the way across the country at his age. I mean, he didnt see in effect the emotional significance of this. And it was mrs. Ford who, i think, convinced him, jerry, this is the greatest honor thats been bestowed on you since leaving office. And he said after that for 20 years everywhere he went people asked him about the pardon. And after the profiles in courage award, people stopped asking. Robert is in chicago. Youre on the air. Hi robert. Caller hi, thank you very much for your time. I understand two president s, kennedy and hoover, never received an income as president. Did mrs. Ford receive any kind of income after president ford had passed away . Thank you. First of all, youre right about hoover and jfk, in fact, rejecting federal salaries as president. In hoovers case, he never accepted payment for any of his various positions, whether s secretary of commerce or the hoover commissions, whatever. The question about whether mrs. Ford did she get a widows pension, more or less, as i understood it. Do you get compensation if your husband dies and if you served as president . No, i dont believe you do. I dont think so. So, back to the amount of time we heard steve ford now, ill no. In term of payment or pension, no. The theres an office, of course. The president s office remained in operation, and she had franking privilege. Whats a franking privilege. Very good. Youre the franking privilege is basically free postage. And of course there was secret Service Protection until the end of her life. And did the public pay for that office . Yes. So, there were benefits, not salary. Absolutely. So, back to their days in congress. Steve ford talked about his dad being on the road 200, sometimes 250 days a year. Thats a lot of time. What were his aspirations . Was this all for himself . You have to remember, yeah. In 1963, there was kind of a Youth Movement among republicans who were really tired of being in the minority. And there was kind of an uprising and ford was catapulted into i believe it was the number three position in the leadership at that time. But of course in 64 came the goldwater debacle. And at the beginning of 65, fords hat was thrown in the ring to become House Republican leader. He ran against a man named charlie halak who had himself staged an uprising against joseph martin, his predecessor. This was not ideological. It was generational. It was the young turks. And the people who ran fords campaign, the two people who were most instrumental in his victory by three votes overcharlie halak, one was a young congressman from illinois named Donald Rumsfeld and the other was a republican from kansas named bob dole. But what that election really signified was the Republican Party was moving the center of gravity of the Republican Party was moving away from the old eastern establishment. At that point it was in the midwest. But theyre already beginning to be a significant number of republicans in the south in both houses of congress, a trend that would of course accelerate. And you know, 40 years later, you could argue that the midwestern party has become a largely southern and western party. Allegheny on twitter asked this question, besides her familiar predisposition, did her being alone to raise the kids contribute to the drinking. Ill let betty fords own words answer that question. She wrote two memoirs. Heres some of what she writes. I hated feeling crippled so i took more pills. Now i know some of the pain i was trying to wipe out was emotional. I was beginning to feel sorry for me. It was poor me. He gets the headlines and applause but what about me. In 1965 about a year after i began mixing pain medication with alcohol, i snapped. I packed, went to the beach, took susan with me and let me whole ungrateful family worry about where i was and if i was ever coming home. 1965, thats the year her husband has become House Republican leader. So, over the years between his first election to congress and their Vice President ial pick, talk about her drug and alcohol use and what she has written about it and what people should know about how big a problem that had become. I think it became a real problem in the 60s. First of all, there were a number of contributing factors. There was actual a physical she had developed arthritis. She was in and she had a pinched nerve which may or may not have been the result of reaching out to raise a window. Whatever it was, she had a pinched nerve that was excruciatingly painful. And i think it became easy, frankly. She had pills prescribed for her and the pills make her feel better and the alcohol made her feel better still. One of the things that you realize is as we went through this oral history project that i just mentioned, although we werent particularly looking for this information, People Volunteer it. Talk about a cultural change. Its really remarkable how much more people drank, how routinely people drank to excess in washington 40 years ago. And the argument can be made, it may have lubricated somewhat more civil culture. But obviously it had serious consequences too. So, from the job of House Minority leader, how was he Richard Nixons pick to replace spear row agnew as president . He had been considered in 1968 as a possible nixon running mate. Again, he wasnt interested in the executive branch. He loved congress and he wanted very much to be the first republican speaker in a very, very long time. That was his goal. In 1973, arguably, while watergate is unfolding, it becomes apparent that Vice President agnew is also under investigation for unrelated offenses, many of them stemming from his time as governor of maryland. Make a long story short, he resigns the office in october of 1973, and the 25th amendment which has never been applied until now is applied. Richard nixon have to find a Vice President. But critically he needs to find a Vice President who can be confirmed. And in the Political Climate of that time, there were very few people. If he left his brothers, he would have picked john connelly. But connelly, a former democrat turned republican, could not sbrn confirmed. Neither could Ronald Reagan or Richard Nixon. In the end basically the democrats on the hill, mike mantsfield told the white house if you want someone who can be confirmed easily, pick jerry ford. And thats what the president did. Their time as Vice President ial couple was very short. December of 1973 until that day in august, 1974 when president nixon resigned and they moved to the white house. Much of that time was consumed the country was consumed with the unfolding wat watergate scandal. So, it was a time the fords didnt do much. He hit the road. Hed get out of town. And she was back at the house in alexandria. She was back at the house in alexandria. She said she realized for the first time in her life, she had to be on time. That was a life long issue. She was not the most punctual of people. There are those who think that it was a passive aggressive it was one of the few things in their marriage that she could control. But in any event, all that changed once she became the Vice President s wife. She also had she had caused that she was involved with. She had been involved from an early age with disabled children. The washington Childrens Hospital was something she was involved with. But in addition to that, she also had a Vice President ial residence that had never been occupied before that had to be decorated. And they never got to it. Two days what was it . A few days before Richard Nixon resigned, the Vice President agreed to accompany his wife to the house that he, by then, knew they were never going to live in. But because, if he didnt, the press would have sensed that were in the end game. And he didnt want to give that away. And he finally said to her a short time after, betty were never going to make it to that Vice President ial house. That night somehow. They went to a dinner party and kept all of this. He had been august 1st, he had been told by general hague, the white house chief of staff about what had become known as the smoking gun tape. And it was pretty clear what the consequences of that would be. And after midnight that night, he said, betty, were never going to live in that house. Lets listen to robert in leesburg, florida for our next question. Youre on. Caller hello. Enjoying everything. Betty ford wrote wonderful autobiographies. Are they in print . And secondly, i cant commend them too strongly, professor smiths address these. Thank you. Well show them both on screen. The first was betty ford the times of my life cowritten with chris chase. And the second was the one we showed earlier betty a glad awakening. We had a little bit of trouble finding them in print. Are they still available. I think a glad awakening is. Chris who worked on those volumes passed away within the past month. Which is the better of the two . Oh gosh, a glad awakening is a very candid sometimes almost painfully candid. But its much its much more mrs. Ford. Theres also this wonderful, rye sense of humor. And you can experience her rebirth. In print. In print. Were going to listen to betty ford herself next, just one month after they were sworn in as first couple, as the president was sworn in and they became the first couple, she held a News Conference at the white house. Were going to listen to one question that was asked of her and her response. How would you like to be remembered . For what . Well, id like to be remembered very in a very kind way. Also as a constructive wife of a president. I dont expect to come anywhere near living up to those first lady who is have gone before me. Theyve all done a great job, and i admire them a great deal. And its only my ambition to come close to it. Ill never forget one day out of the blue we were talking and she said to me, i dont even know what prompted it. But she said, i dont know why everyone thought it was a bad thing i admired Eleanor Roosevelt. Turned out Eleanor Roosevelt was one of her heroes. And i dont think it was just the public aaccomplishments of mrs. Roosevelts life or her life in the white house as it was the private challenges that Eleanor Roosevelt confronted along the way in becoming Eleanor Roosevelt. Clearly she was a role model. And also i think Lady Bird Johnson was a first of all, she was a very good friend. But i also think she was very much a role model for mrs. Ford. The ford presidency was just 865 days but this was a tumultuous time in our countrys history. We chose a few events as some of the hallmark events of the ford years beginning with the pardon of Richard Nixon in 1976, the nation celebrated its bicentennial. There were two assassination attempts on gerald fords life during his time in office. Rising inflation was hallmark of his years in office. And the vietnam war ended with the fall of saigon. And you will remember the scenes of those helicopters leaving the American Embassy as the city fell. So, a very continuing, lot of history unfolding. History accelerated in those two and a half years. And by all means all of it of course pleasant. On a personal front, just a couple of months after they came into office, mrs. Ford discovered she had Breast Cancer. Yeah, this was in some ways this was the indelible moment that she, i think, first impressed herself on the American People. Or maybe the whole ford family. It is really hard 40 years later to conceive of the degree to which people didnt talk about this disease. I mean, euphemisms were employed. Even in obituaries. People didnt die of Breast Cancer. They died of a wasting illness. And what mrs. Ford did was to bring this out in the open. And overnight transformed the way women, in particular, looked at this disease. For her, it was also a lesson. I mean, she had it was her first maybe and most important lesson in the influence that a first lady could have, just by being herself, by shining the light on a dark corner, by educating the public. Next up, well listen to president ford himself afou announcing the results of her surgery. I just returned from the hospital where i saw betty as she came from the operating room. The doctor has assured me that she came through the operation all right. [ applause ] its been a difficult 36 hours. Our faith will sustain us, and betty would expect me to be here. In a few weeks, i will complete my chemotherapy treatments, and that will be another milestone for me. Since that first year, i have not talked much about the difference, my experience with cancer, but at that time my mastectomy and the discussion about it, i was really pleased to see it because it prompted a large number of women to go and get check ups in their local communities. It made my recooperation easier because i knew that i was helping others. I make this Progress Report to help cheer up those who have just had an operation for cancer and to encourage them to keep up their good spirit. Part of the battle against cancer is to fight the fear that accompanies the disease. And of course, famously, one of those women who was inspired by her example was happy rockefeller, the wife of the Vice President who two weeks after mrs. Fords surgery was diagnosed herself with the disease and who went on to have surgery of her own. When you see president ford making the announcement, you can see his lips quivering. Oh yeah. This was terribly emotional for the whole family. He said that night when he went home alone to the white house, the night before that, was the loneliest night of his life. Gary robinson on twitter wants to know what was the result of her candor . Was there anything else beside what is you suggested, that more people got check ups . Anything else that changed about the way we treat Breast Cancer in this country as a result . I think it initiated what had been missing. It initiating a National Conversation, a conversation among women, a conversation between women and their doctors. I mean, when it comes to Womens Health issues, literally history is divided into two periods, before betty and after betty. We have a photograph of the fords in her hospital room looking at the card with all the get well wishes from across the country as she begins her recooperation. Next up is james whos watching us is key port, new jersey. Hi james, youre on. Caller hello, let me congratulate you on a wonderful series. Ive been watching since mrs. Jackson. Thank you. Caller and it is wonderful. I was wondering. President ford was a member of the warren commission. And i was wondering what mrs. Ford thought of his involvement on that commission and the results and the controversies that have since occurred while the Commission Results . Thats a great question. You know, im sorry to say, i wish i had. But i never had a conversation with her. I never heard her discuss it. He felt, you know, very strongly that he was once trapped on an airplane. I shouldnt tell this, but i will. He was on an airplane, and of course the movie was oliver stones jfk, and he was not happy. Artistic license is one thing, but he really worried that young people, people who were not alive at the time of the assassination would see this and conclude that in fact was history. He also it was interesting. He we had a number of conversations about the warren commission. He and his fellow congressional members remember dick russell was on hail bogs. Anyway, the members of congress who were on that commission were very careful in the language that they chose. They rewrote, as i understand it, the staffs initial report to say we have found no evidence of a conspiracy, which is a little bit different in a subtle way from saying flat out there was no conspiracy. Were speaking of assassinations, we mentioned that gerald ford had two attempts on his life within very short order. Is he the only president to have had assassination attempts or successful assassinations carried out by women . Oh, thats a good question. I cant think of any . Yeah, i think yeah, i think youre absolutely right. The first was again, its a classic instance of the times. You know . Squeaky from who wm who was a m of the manson family take it for whatever its worse and a housewife on the fringes of radical politics. Only in the 70s would either of those characters have emerged in a public notice. And what about the ford familys reaction to these assassination attempts . And how did the president take it . Did the security increase . Were they greatly concerned about his life . I think the secret Service Really did change things thereafter. For a while he support sporadically wore bullet proof vests. The day of the squeaky from ibs dent, he was there to meet with jerry brown. And the remarkable thing, and this is so typical of gerald ford. You know, he went in and he had his meeting with Governor Brown and never mentioned what had happened outside. And he said later on he thought it would really be kind of ungracious to know the governor well, you know, some lady tried to shoot me in your front yard. There we have him being escorted away from the secret service agents. Of course he couldnt have kept it from the sitting governor today as he did then. That is true, but its also very unlikely that he would be out strolling through the grounds of the State Capitol has they decided really on the spur of the moment this morning in september 1975. Tim is in denver. Hi, tim. Whats your question . Caller hi, very good show. I saw betty Ford Campaign for in 1976. Who are you for and betty ford said may the best team win. My question is i hear the relations between the fords and reagans were kind of frosty. Is that true . Thank you. Well, you know, its interesting. Let me answer that this way. Certainly in 1976, they thought they were rather frosty. They were running a very intense, very close, really uncertain battle for the republican nomination. I think quite frankly the Ford White House underestimated Ronald Reagan. And they almost paid the ultimate price for doing so. But in fact, in later years, remember crazy as it sounds, you know in 1980, president reagan very seriously thought about having gerald ford on his ticket as his running mate. And i also know that in the 90s, particularly after well, after president reagan wrote his letter to the American People revealing his alzheimers, i know president ford visited him more than once after that. And whatever old animosities there may have been were long, long since evaporated. And of course even more so with jimmy carter. Were going to talk about her interest in issues. Noreen asks us on twitter how political was betty ford in her own right . Was she simply a supporter of her husbands beliefs and values . You know, its a good question because publicly she was arguably the most political first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt. She was certainly the most outspoken advocate for the equal rights amendment. She publicly disagreed with her husband during the presidency on roe v. Wade case she famously discussed on the 6 ominutes interview and other venues. She was very much an independent force. And initially, that terrified people in the white house. After the 60 minutes interview, the president said, he says jokingly, youve lost me, 10, no 20 million votes. It was only a few days later when the first polls came in and the people in the white house were astonished that in fact, there was an overwhelming 70 of those who were polled sympathized with the first ladys candor, if not necessarily her specific views. Heres the first lady herself talking about the equal rights amendment to the constitution and urging its ratification. The equal rights amendment, when ratified, will not be an instant solution to womens problems. It will not alter the fabric of the constitution or force women away from their families. It will help knock down those restrictions that have locked women in to the old stereotypes of behavior and opportunity. It will help open up more options for women. But it is only the beginning. The debate over e. R. A. Has become too emotional because of the fears of some, both men and women, about the changes already taking place in america. Within the Republican Party itself, this party that had barry gold wawater and the earl 60s and the split developing in the party. How did the republicans feel about betty fords Public Statement on these, abortion rights issues and the like . Was it going over well within the base . There was no doubt she was a polarizing figure. When i said 70 voiced approval, that meant 30 disapproved. And you can be sure that that 30 was disproportionately the republican base, certainly conservative republicans, traditionalist traditionalists, if you will. So, she there was a legitimate debate. Its interesting. I would recommend john robert green who wrote a book on the ford presidency as part of the university of kansas series also did a book on mrs. Ford. Its very wellresearched and really a great read. And he makes the case probably stronger than i would that she was on balance detrimental to her husbands reelection prospects, particularly within the Republican Party but not exclusively within the Republican Party. Youve a couple times mentioned the 60 minutes interview. How significant was it for her to sit down for the partys view of her . I think it defined her for millions and millions of people. First of all, it was the first time they had seen her in that kind of setting. But i also think for millions of remember how americans were accustomed to seeing their first ladies on television . Wed seen mrs. Kennedys unforgettable white house tour, but it was a very orchestrated presentation. People were not accustomed to a first lady being asked or answering, as i say, the kinds of questions. Her view was, look, people are talking about these around their dinner tables all over america. Why shouldnt the first family have the same privilege . And they covered issues such as divorce, use of marijuana, her daughters dating and sex before marriage, things of that nature. Absolutely, but she also talked about her use of pillow talk to get a woman in the cabinet. She also mentioned she was working on getting a woman on the Supreme Court. John paul stevens, its safe to say, would probably not have been her first choice. But then she wasnt doing the choosing. Denise is in tampa, florida. Hi, denise. Youre on the air. Caller thank you very much. I just love the show. Thank you. Mrs. Ford was older than president ford. I wonder if thats true. No, actually he was five years her senior. Weve talked you will amino acid long in the series about the use of the white house for entertaining but that entertaining has a political purpose. To start that, were going to go back to or go to the ford museum in grand rapids where the curator there shows us a bit of her elements of style and how she approached that aspect of her job. Lets watch. Hand in hand with mrs. Fords love for dance was her love for design, for fashion as well. Particularly she wanted to promote American Fashion. These are some of her dresses and gowns from her first ladys period. This is a grown that she wore to her first head of state event, king hussein of jordan. It was designed by a lady named franky welch who had a boutique in alexandria, virginia. This also, next one, also is a franky welch dress, and this, she wore, mrs. Ford wore for her official portrait as first lady. This is the dress, next one, that some people might recognize. Its by louie estevez. She wore this gown for a portrait that was taken of the family on the cover of time magazine. But she also loved very practical design as well. And a fellow from new york designed a number of dresses and gowns for her, very practical, very inexpensive but, for her, very functional. She would Albert Capraro pieces to arrival ceremonies for dignitaries, but also to the hairdresser, to church, on trips, for campaign events. They were the ones she could get most comfortable in. This is the piece that she wore for the 60 minutes interview. And so, she faced morley safer while wearing these dress, as he she fielded his many questions. We know a lot of this because one of the things that mrs. Ford was careful about, as organized as she was, was she kept, what we call secretarys card for each of these dresses. And there would be notations made on where she wore them, when she wore them. And you can see that, for many of them, she wore them multiple times. Some of this is in the handwriting of her secretary, some of this is in her handwriting herself and many of this extend beyond the first ladys period and to the her post first ladyship period. She would wear this into the early 1980s. And her love for design, her promotion of American Fashion led to in 1976 her receiving the prestigious Parsons School of design award. And this is the accolade she received for her promotion of american designers in fashion. We have you have a comment . Well, ive got she loved clothes. And people forget, you know, shed been a model in her early days. One of the way she supported herself in new york was as a professional model. Oh, back to twitter. Heres a question from lizzy g, who wants to know, how did betty ford balanced being first lady and being a mother . You know, she said its funny, for people who one reason why i said i thought that Lady Bird Johnson was a role model because mrs. Johnson is exhibit a in exactly how to do that. Mrs. Ford said, she thought that, being a good housewife and mother was a much tougher job than going to the office and getting paid for it. So, she was both a traditionalist and a trail blazer. And as weve already said, she not only balanced the job but, of course, before they were in the white house, she was, in a sense, mother and father. During that very brief presidency, they hosted 33 state visits. Oh yes, well because the reason it was so concentrated was, of course, it was the bicentennial year. So 1976, in addition to being this very hotly contested, you know, republican race for the nomination and then, of course, the fall campaign, it played out against the backdrop of the american bicentennial. And she loved entertaining. This is why i think when steve talked about her blossoming, this is what he meant. You know, i said earlier, this was a woman who was accustomed to being on the stage. Well, as first lady, she was back on the stage. She really enjoyed the entertaining part of the job. The entertainments were really personalized. President sadat of egypt, for example, was a great fan of the american west. And so, she rounded up original remington sculptures to decorate every table in the dining room. What i call a circumstantial alcoholic if there is such a thing. And as far as the pills are concerned, you mentioned 33 state dinners. She was in all of them, and by all accounts, a very vital hostess. So, im not sure the problem really erupted when they left washington. I mean there was a significant problem before the presidency. And it was a almost lethal problem after the presidency. But ironically, those 21 2 years in the white house i think was it was much less of a problem than we read. Well speaking of state dinners, the fords welcomed Queen Elizabeth, as we said, during the bicentennial. And were going to go back to the ford museum and learn more about that visit. On august 9, 1974, Vice President ford was sworn in as president of the United States. This is the dress that mrs. Ford was wearing at the swearingin ceremony in the east room of the white house. She was less than excited about becoming first lady but president ford encouraged her, saying we can do this. She resolved that if im going to have to do this, im going to have fun doing it. And the fun for her started almost immediately. Within 10 days, she had a state dinner to entertain king hussein of jordan. And it was something that she had to prepare for as her role as first lady, and she hit the ground running. While she was first lady, she had a number of opportunities to entertain because president fords administration overlapped the bicentennial. Some of the most coveted events act of white house were held during that year and people wanted these invitations, wanted to receive these invitations. So, this one is for the may 17, 1976 event when they entertained Valery Giscard destaing, president of france. But there were a number of notable people who came to the white house and among them, emperor hirohito of japan. This is a letter received from him in appreciation for hosting him in 1975. The first time an emperor had ever left japan. But here are some of the invitations, dinner menus, from probably the biggest event and that is when we hosted Queen Elizabeth in july of 1976. This is the gift that the queen of england presented to president and mrs. Ford and to the people of the United States. Its a gilded and enameled soup tureen. On its face, is a hand painted image of the white house. And it was the official gift of Great Britain to the United States, celebrating the 200th anniversary of the United States. And she wrote a nice letter back to the fords thanking them for their hospitality and for the friendship that they extended to the queen and to the people of england. And in this letter, the queen writes to the president and mrs. Ford, it was the greatest pleasure for us to visit the United States and to be able to join in the bicentennial celebrations. And she signs it, we send our warm good wishes to you and mrs. Ford, your sincere friend. Elizabeth. We have a couple of questions that followed from that, so let me ask them. Norma steelburman on facebook. The cherry trees and pandas have been mentioned as foreign gifts for an asian in past episodes. Please comment on any other significant gifts that are still in the white house and how the rules have developed over history about gifts being given to the nation that were what were considered personal gifts. Also, what gifts have first ladies and well say, in this case, the fords, typically, theyve been to foreign dignitaries during their trips of the white house . Oh, gosh. Well, you know, im not sure exactly when the law changed that made all gifts, in effect, federal property. I know if you go to the Woodrow Wilson house here in washington for example. You can see all sorts of gorgeous things that president wilson was given on his european travels toward the end of his presidency. I think it begins with the kennedy presidency. regina crumpky on twitter asked, did betty start any white house traditions . Youre thinking hard there. I know. You know, its interesting, she broke the mold more than she started traditions. In some ways i think weve regressed in terms of what we expect a first lady to address. What issues, what controversies and the like. So, no, i would thats a tradition she didnt start. Would this be would that be your answer to Sheldon Cooper on twitter who asked, how did the Ford White House differ from previous administrations . Well, it differed in a number of ways. And in some of them are purely social. For example, she restored the round tables at dinner. She thought it was much more informal and led to conversation. One of the things that she did, she did not, for example, do a lot of decorating. But she did remove the there was a there is on the second floor a private family dining room and mrs. Kennedy had located some spectacular and historically invaluable french wallpaper describing portraying the American Revolution in very graphic military term. And mrs. Ford who had the utmost respect for mrs. Kennedys taste nevertheless said, i just i cant sit there and watch these people shooting each other on battlefields. And so she had the paper removed. I think Rosalynn Carter actually had it put back. Before we leave the white house here, so elizabeth anvonmot said they lived in vail, colorado for a while. Yeah. The places associated with the ford family alexandria, virginia; washington, dc. ; grand rapids, michigan; vail, colorado and palm springs, california. Thats right and in fact at the time the president passed away, when we were planning his funeral, there were a number of personal touches and one was, when they there was no caisson. No horse, you know, drawn procession through the streets of washington. Instead, the hearse drove through their own neighborhoods in alexandria, where large crowds turned out. And, of course, they stopped at the world war ii memorial to recognize his service in the war. 1976 the bicentennial and also a very hotly contested president ial election. Yeah. The campaign included a slogan vote for bettys husband. How was betty ford used during the 1976 campaign . Well, theres some controversy about that. Theres a debate about that. There are people who think that she was misused, overused, that she was a rather fragile, delicate figure. She was certainly very active in the primary campaign in the fordreagan race. There are people who remember that the convention sort of a dueling candidates wives, the entrance of mrs. Reagan to the convention hall. The entrance of mrs. Ford who, by the way, was had the great good fortune in her mind to be introduced by cary grant, which is, you know, pretty impressive. In the fall campaign, again, theres a school of thought that she wasnt used as well as she might have been. Dan is watching us in west bloomfield, michigan. Hi, dan. Hi. Appreciate the time and i was just going to say that the museum in grand rapids, ive been there a couple of times and its a great place to visit and enjoy. And im, you know, glad ive gone there. And im just curious, their postwhite house years, how much time did they spend in grand rapids and where did they go after they left the white house ended up in california . Good question. They had been out to the area around palm springs in the past. They had vacationed out there. And the weather was perfect for her for her health. Her arthritis, which was a significant issue in addition to her other health problems. So, you know, they decided they changed their plans which originally envisioned going back to grand rapids. The president came back to grand rapids very often. I know because i was director at the library for six years. And he would come back gosh, we started it every year at christmas time he would come back and turn on the christmas tree. He would come back. We did a series for the 25th anniversary of his inauguration, where we had John Paul Stevens and alan greenspan. And he would fly from california. He would come back just to introduce those people. He felt so honored that they would make that effort. Mrs. Ford came less frequently. They had a running gag, they divided the country in half for fund raising purposes. He had america east of the mississippi. She had the United States west of the mississippi. Aj is in alexandria, virginia. One of the homes to the ford family. Hi, aj. I have to push the button. Hi, aj. Yes. Im curious if there is a specific reason why the first lady invited king hussein for the first dinner she hosted at the white house . Well, thatyou know, its interesting. She the president became president on august 9. On august 10th she was informed, almost matter of factly by the way, you do know that king hussein is coming in a weeks time. So, she had nothing to do. This was something that had been arranged during the nixon administration. And she, literally, within her first 24 hours, was kind of, you know, thrown in sink or swim, to organize a state dinner for the king of jordan. The 1976 campaign, there was the big challenge in the party from Ronald Reagan as Richard Norton smith suggested. A lot of work during the primary when president ford had the nomination, a hardfought campaign against jimmy carter, the governor of georgia. And by the time Election Night came and the fords had lost, president ford had lost his speech. He asked the first lady to give his concession speech. Well watch a little bit of that now. The president asked me to tell you that he telephoned president elect carter a short time ago and congratulated him on his victory. The president also wants to thank all of those thousands of people who worked so hard on his behalf and the millions who supported him with their votes. Its been the great honor of my husbands life to have served his fellow americans during two of the most difficult years in our history. The president urges all americans to join him in giving your united support to president elect carter as he prepares to assume his new responsibilities. Lots of pain on the peoples faces, in that as they always are. Its tough. On those concessions speeches. Yeah. It was tough. But remember that theyve come from so far behind. And i think, i mean every candidate believes theyre going to win but but you know, hed never lost an election. And you could see the well, the look on the kids face. So, he went into history as the only person in American History to serve both as Vice President and president of the United States without ever having faced the public and won the electoral vote. It wasnt very much longer after that that the intervention as weve talked about with the family members occurred. Were going to listen to steve ford tell the story of that intervention as the family realized the extent of betty fords problem with alcohol and with drugs. You know i think we sensed something during the presidency because she had legitimate pain from several pinched nerves and she was getting medication for that. And what we didnt know is that the combination of, you know, alcohol and those pain medications produce that cocktail that, at times, took away some of her sharpness and those kind of things. But eventually it had to play out. I mean, it had to get to the other side of the presidency where i think it created a time for mom after the presidency where she wasnt first lady anymore, she was out in california and dad was traveling again a lot. They were building a new home, the kids were were all gone and slowly over months and months and months, she developed a melancholy and it eventually turned into a depression and pulled back from life. You know, started canceling appointments and not showing up. Sleeping in late, slurred speech. All those things but it that takes months and we didnt know what were looking at. I mean were like millions of other families that, whats wrong with mom . There was not the education about alcoholism and drug dependency that there is now. So it took time. Dad searched through several doctors before he finally found a doctor that would maybe have the courage to say, i think your wifes an alcoholic. I mean, that was just not the image anybody accepted. Finally found the right doctor, dad excuse me had the courage to say, were going to do this intervention. The whole family went in. We did the intervention with mom. And you know at that time, id never heard of the word intervention, now you got tv shows about it. So it was a different time. We did it. Dad led that intervention and you know, my memory of that is very clear. He we walked in the door that morning and all the kids and dad surprised mom and he took her hand and said, betty were here because we love you. You know, the kids want their mother back, i want my wife back. And those interventions were tough. I mean that is tough, hard, hard, hard work. A lot of tears. A lot of crying. A lot of raised voices. A lot of hugs and then more raised voices and denial and not denial. I mean, it goes back and forth. Its a tug of war and dad just never gave up. He kept holding her hands and said, betty we love you, trust us. And we woke her up, she did the work. As many of you probably know, 16 years ago, the state where i participated in a Treatment Program for prescription drugs and alcohol dependence. Today i am a very grateful recovering alcoholic. And i know firsthand that treatment does work. We see her talking about her successful treatment. We have to see her command of speechmaking, versus the other clips weve shown is yeah. Is markedly different. Yes. Well, once she became sober. Yes. Well, no, thats true. One thing that might surprise people particularly seeing this very confident commanding figure from 1994, till the end of her life, she had butterflies before she went on stage. Which is why i also am very curious. She was terrified. And a part of that is the perfectionism that i think was bred in her by her mother. You know one thing we dont talk about is we talked about a genetic disposition to alcohol. There was in ways, i think, an emotional disposition as well. You know, she writes particularly in the a glad awakening, about the emptiness and the low selfesteem. You know, she was very sensitive about the fact she didnt have a college degree, for example. And i think, again, at a time when earlier in her life her husband was his career was taking off. By the time they came back to southern california, he was out on the road and look at that he was out on the road, almost as often as he had been before, and now the kids were gone. And so that emptiness, in effect, became everything. And it was easier for her to slip back into the old habits. We should just tell you that what you just heard was Richard Norton smiths cell phone going off here, that was the sound. From a technological illiterate. laughter so, we have a lot to cover in a very short time. So, would you would tell us of how her treatment at a facility in california led to the creation of the Betty Ford Center . Yes. She after the intervention in april of 1978, she was checked into long beach hospital. And you know, it shouldnt be sentimentalized or romanticized, it was a very gritty, very demanding, somewhat risky period. She didnt want to be there. She made it very clear, for example, that she didnt want to share a room with, you know, three other patients. Her selfimage she reads the statement that said that she was there because she was overmedicated, which was true, but far from the whole truth, and they had to push her and push her to, in effect, reveal a full truth that she had an alcohol problem. She was detoxified there and that was not pleasant. But within a week, she was toasting the future in fruit juice. And well, it was the beginning of a whole new life in a lot of ways. Her neighbor in Rancho Mirage was a man named Leonard Firestone, a successful businessman. Hed been ambassador to belgium, he was an alcoholic as well. And about a year after her successful intervention, the fords and their friends staged one with the firestones. To make a long story short, Leonard Firestone and betty ford decided together to go to the Eisenhower Medical Center with the idea for what became the Betty Ford Center. And it was cofounded in 1982. How long did she serve as its chair . Until i want to say 2005. So she was or late 80s. Really. Yes. And with an active chairperson raising money for that . Very active, very handson. She said her friends hated to see her coming because they knew she was going to put the touch on them for fundraising. She was a phenomenally successful fundraiser. Do you have any sense about how many people have been successfully to or have been treated . I dont know, thousands. I dont know. And ill tell you, they used to have every year they would have an alumni and may still, i dont know they have an alumni event. And the president was so proud of her. At the alumni event, you could find her sort of Holding Court and he was cooking hotdogs, for the alumni. He also said that about 10 years ago that when the history books were written, her contribution to america would be considered greater than his own. Susies in eugene, oregon. Hi, susie. Youre on. Susie, you there . All right. Were going to move on, samuel is in ashburn, virginia. Hi. Question hi. Hi, professor smith. This is samuel. Ive really enjoyed being in your a student in your classes this semester at george mason university. Ive really enjoyed your class a lot. Thank you. Its great to see you on television. Thanks. Question professor, last week in class you talked about how the president ford and president carter became friends in 1981 on the way to anwar sadats funeral on the plane. I wanted to ask you didnt talk about how betty ford and Rosalynn Carter became friends. I wanted to know how that event transpired. Im glad you asked because, just as this unlikely friendship developed between the two former president s, likewise mrs. Ford and mrs. Carter, they discovered they had a whole lot in common. They teamed up, for example, to become a pretty formidable lobbying pair, they would testify before congress for funding, for example, for Mental Health programs, which, of course, had been a special interest of mrs. Carters and for the work that mrs. Ford was doing on alcohol and drug dependency issues. Kyle goulage wants to know, what kind of relationship did the fords have with the nixons after leaving washington . I think, perfectly friendly. I think, to be perfectly honest with you, you couldnt go through watergate and the pardon and have it not affect the kind of old casual friendship that they had enjoyed. But i remember seeing them together at the time that the Nixon Library was dedicated in 1990. Gerald ford post presidency, very active in corporate boards, very active in party politics. He lived until the age of . Ninety three. He is the longestlived american president to this date. We have some video of his funeral his casket in state in the capitol building. Can you talk about theres mrs. Ford there can you talk about her role in planning that Funeral Service . Well, she was a very much a part of it. She we would we had a number of meetings that began actually several years out and of course involved the military district of washington, who were the professionals at this. And said the one thing he was adamant, he did not want a horsedrawn caisson through the streets of washington. And she kept saying, keep it simple. Keep it simple and think of the kids. Because to her, this was only partly a national or public event. This was first and foremost a family event. And there you see the family together. Jeff bucard, wants to know, did any of the four children ever entertain political careers themselves . Well i know jack was very interested for a while. He gave serious thought to running for office, but i dont think any of the others have. How long after her husband died, did betty ford herself die, and how did she die . She died on july 8th, 2008, which is about 41 2 years, and she died of being 93. We have a photograph of their grave sites. Can you tell us about this site and what their design was for it . Yes. This was something that was always, in effect, built into the plan. The ford museum is located on the banks of the grand river in downtown grand rapids. And from the beginning, it was planned as, of course, is the case with many recent president s that they would be interred at the site of their libraries or museums. Very simple design, as you can see, built into the hillside there. Its a really pretty spot and they chose the words themselves. I will tell you very quickly, right after the president passed in december of 2005, yes, mrs. Ford had the house in Rancho Mirage. There were olive trees out front. And for christmas, theyd put white lights in the trees and she left them on that year past the christmas season. And someone asked her why. She went on every night, she turned on the lights, said, thats how gerry knew she was okay. Both of them living to 93 years old, of course the five years separated them in age, so she was a widow for five the last five years of her life. We always close this program by asking our guest about the legacy of the woman that were profiling. But tonight were going to put it in the words of another president. In 1999, gerald and betty ford received the congressional gold medal. And at that ceremony, president bill clinton spoke about betty fords legacy and her work with helping people with alcohol and drug addiction after she left the white house and well close with that. Perhaps no first lady in our history, with the possible exception of Eleanor Roosevelt, has touched so many of us in such a personal way. Because i lost my mother to Breast Cancer, betty ford was a heroine to me. Because my family has been victimized by alcoholism and i know what its like to see good, fine people stare into the abyss of their own personal despair, i will be forever grateful for the betty ford clinic and for the millions of other people, whose lives have literally been turned around and often saved, may not have gone to that clinic but went somewhere because she showed them it was not wrong for a good person and a strong person to be imperfect and ask for help. You gave us a gift and we thank you. applause music if you enjoyed watching first ladies, pick up a copy of the book, first ladies influence an image featuring profiles of the nations first ladies. Two interviews with top historians. Now available in paperback, hardcover or as an ebook. Tonight, American History tv beginning at 8 pm eastern, a look at the lives of nancy reagan and barbara bush. Cspan in cooperation with the White House Historical socially shun produced a series on the first ladies examining their private lives and the public roles they played. First ladies influence an image features individual biographies of the women who served in the role of first lady over 44 administrations. Watch American History tv tonight and over the weekend on cspan three. Cspan as on filtered coverage of congress, the white house, the Supreme Court and Public Policy events. You can watch all of cspan Public Affairs programming on television, online or listen on our free radio eight. Can be part of the National Conversation through cspan daily Washington Journal Program or to our social media, cspan created by American People television company. As a Public Service and brought you today by your television provider. I have learned that you can do anything you want to. They used to ask me if i thought the first lady ought to be paid. If you get paid, then i have to do what the first lady is supposed to do. But you can do anything you want to. And its such a great soapbox. I mean its just such a