Transcripts For CSPAN3 First Ladies Influence Image - Laura Bush 20240712

Knowing some very well, like my own motherinlaw, or one that i admired very much, is that we benefit, our country benefits by whatever our first ladys interests are. She is the wife of one president and daughterinlaw of another. Laura welch bush became first lady after a controversial election brought her husband, george w. Bush, to the white house. Less than nine months later came the 9 11 attacks while she helped comfort the nation with education, literacy and womens health. Welcome to cspans series, first ladies. Tonight, well tell you the story of the wife of our 43rd president. Here to do that are two people who know her well. Ann is a laura bush biographer. Her 2000 book the tells the story of her as she covered her since 2001. Welcome. Mark is a president ial historian, the author of several books about the presidency and is working on one about the relationship between president s bush 41 and 43. In your biography, you refer to the role of a job of first lady as, this is a quote, the most bizarre volunteer job in the world. Whatever thoughts and we heard laura bush talk about having her motherinlaw as a role model, whatever thoughts you might have had about how she would perform the role of first lady were upended september 11th. She talked about that day. Id like you to watch that then have you come back and talk about how she responded to that and how it redefined what her years as first lady would be. I was on my way to capitol hill to brief the Senate Education committee on Early Childhood education. Id hosted a summit on Early Childhood education that summer and i was going to brief that committee on Early Childhood education when i was getting into the car and my agent, secret service agent, leaned over to me and said, a plane has just flown into the world trade center. And we went ahead to the capitol. We got in the car. We just assumed as we started driving, that it was just a some strange, you know, accident. So, but by the time we got to the capitol, we knew the second plane had hit and we knew what it was. How did you leave . Well, the secret service came to get me and said its time to, at first, they were thinking they will take me back to the white house and so they, they had to regroup and figure out where i should go because obviously people at the white house were getting, the staff at the white house was getting the word to run and people who, in my office, young women, who worked for me, were kicking off their high heels and running from the white house. And i know they expected to have glamorous, really interesting jobs a at the white house and no one ever thought they would have to run from the white house like they did. So any way, the secret service came to get me and senator greg and kennedy walked me out to the door then i drove0n0ngp to the i went, really, was the secret service . the girls and then of course my mother was the one i really wanted to call because i wanted my mother to say everything is going to be all right. And of course i called her and said everything is going to be all right and i wanted her to say certainly is. Ann, how did she respond . How did she redefine her role after that day . I was with her that day because i was covering her for the Washington Post and so there was some confusion initially, as to whether anyone was going to disappear or speak or anything then the hearing was suspended but then she and senator kennedy made a brief statement to the press who were there. And i can remember looking at her and when she, was always remarkably composed, but she twisted her fingers at her side when shes struggling with something that ogec clearly ver dramatic and i remember thinking, she is wise enough, her motherinlaw was in this white house. She knows her life has change nd this moment and she said in that moment, what really, she came to say over and over again, which is you know i think we just have to make sure we tell children that we love them and that america is a strong country and that well get through this. It was spontaneous and sincere. Very much in keeping with her as a librarian and teacher. I think she dedicated herself to that. But things were very different immediately. In fact, laura bush wrote a letter to the children of america the day after 9 11 and heres some of what it said. 6 ur jjrj r t hahp hc muchfnr i care about you. Be tind to each other, take care of each other and show you love for each other. Mark, as a nation, we had not experienced anything of this level of catastrophe since the attack on pearl harbor. There wasnt a role model for this. What do americans want from the white house, from their president and firstrr] lady, i times of extreme National Crisis like this . Were fortunate in our country, there are many moments where we have in place the right person for the right moment. She was the right first lady for that moment. We didnt know what to do after this. We didnt know how to react to that. One of the things she said and sheepjl mentioned this in the c you just showed. She said comfort your children. Go out there, reach out to your kids. They want you right now. They need you right now. And i think that helped us to get through this very trying moment. You know, laura bush is the very picture of eck wii. Shes texas strong. Theres a strength that imnaemas from her and we benefitted from having her in the white house during that period. That tech connection is where were going next as we learn more about her life. Both bushs say that to know them, you must know midland, texas. So where was laura welch born and tell us about her Early Childhood. Its west texas. It is boom and bust oil country. It is the kind of place that you can see it from miles away. Shimmers like oz from 30 miles away. Her father was a builder. And her mother was a homemaker. Her mother came from texas Strong Female stock. Her mother had managed a dairy farm when her grandfather was away and i think it is very much a place of who she was. And gave her a sense of strength about the land and the prairie and doing for yourself. I can remember when i went there the first time, people were talking about crying. They say they cried, a friend said when she moved from western pennsylvania having been educated at smith and her husband came back so were going to move out tehc and make our fortune in oil and she said, whats it like . He said, well, let me say theres a town nearby called no trees. Ox3 then her friend, jan, who introduced her to george bush, say she came home from thm well, shes an only child, so i think thats also always insulate ng a way.  a lonely existence and there werent a lot of folks who came in from the outside. Or when they did and they came into the oil business, it took them a little time to get adjusted. Think that it, people had their own ways of being and their own  you raised hell in odessa, but raised your kids in midland. She went to the episcopal church. People also depended on each other and had to because it could be harsh. Midland today has a large hispanic population, as much of texas does. What was it like when laura was growing up . Well, i cant really speak exactly as to how it was then. There were three different high schools and when they all got together for a reunion, when the bu bushs were in the white house, nobody even really remembered about the high school and invite so many kids from that. I dont think it was a matter of overt separation as much as within a certain class of people. There was almost an obliviousness. Even when i went back there to do reporting, i was going across town to do an interview, what are you doing that for. So many ways, people kept to their own ways and that had its own shaping. When she went off to smu, she said they didnt necessarily have remembrance of Martin Luther king and some of the race riots going on. I think they were the sock hops and there was sodas at the drive in. Were going to put the parents names on the i; jy her father was harold bruce welch. Died in 1995. And her mother was born in 1999 and is still very much alive. In car crash in midland, texas and resulted in the tet of a close friend of hers. She wrote about it in her book and spoke about that in a recent interview, lets listen. Mrs. Bush, you write and spoken from the heart about difficult period, november 1963. And a loss of faith. Your faith. Why . Well, i was in a a car wreck. I wrote about a extensively in my book. Folh and the whole time i was in the hospital, not injured, really. I mean i had a cut on my leg and a brokenxkli ankle. I was praying that a the other person in the car would be okay. And the other person in the car was one of my best friends. Which i didnt know. I didnt really recognize that. At the site of the crash. His father came up. They lived just passed where the corner where the car was and if recognized his father but didnt understand that was mike that was there and i think because i prayed over and over and over for him to be okay then he wasnt, you know, i thought well, that, nobody listened, god was not[5xn listening. My prayer wasnt answered. So i went through really a very long time of not believing. And not believing that prayers could be answered. And it took me a long time, really, and a lot of growing up to come back to faith. The car wreck shaped her in what way . I think what she has said about it and mentioned to me ooz up when youre young and you expect that the world is going to be a attained that maturity any way, but it came to her quickly. I think that she is an emp thetic person by nature and i think it probably made her less judge mental about other people. In a way that we dont often see in washington. I think she is much more given to thinking people may have interior backgrounds and things that shape them that we dont know. So i think that that has certainly made her the kind of person. I think she worried more about her own daughters. Husband because she had seen at instant, miscalculation, can change everything. Her faith. Wouldo;o you spend a little tim talking about faith and George P Bush . Sure. Let me just mention though, one of the things she said in the interview i did with her, she sort of grew up out of that experience and there are things that happened in your life that you cant change and you have to experience, while very formative for a young girl in midland, texas, waswtj very helpful to h in the days after jke9 11. She had seen the role that faith can that fate can play, and realized that you have to move on. You have to be strong, you have to move on. So i think its very helpful. I think faith plays a great role in both of their lives. Ej it changed his life in a will the of w she is less i think vocal about her religious faith than he is. Shes a little bit more low key about it. But i think its important to both of their lives. From smu and teaching and said she wanted to go on to the university of texas and get a library of science degree and she said her father said, now well never get her a husband. To go on and get her masters degree when many people thought if you went to college at all, it was for an mrs degree. And then she very purposefully moved into a part of east side and taught at an almost entirely spanishspeaking school. And in a very dedicated fashion, deliberately chose this school where she thought she could have impact helping kids learn to read and fell as if they were exposed to other kinds of parts of life they werent getting. And, you know, i think thats a part thats a part thats really important and that she maintains to this day. I want to tell you how you can be involved in the program. There are three ways you can do it. We have a robust conversation going on facebook. If you go to see cspan Facebook Page youll see the picture of laura bush and join the conversation there. You can also tweet us using the twitter handle at first ladies, the address at first ladies and well mix as may tweets as we can. And you can call us. Use the oldfashioned telephone and be part of the conversation. Wed like to hear your voice. There are two phone lines. If you leave in the eastern and central time zone. The number is 2025853880, if you live in the mountain pacific time zones or farther west, 205853881 and well get your calls adjust a little bit. A question from twitter, someone named muppetsfan1968 asked i have a question about laura bush was she always a republican . Well let me just start off by saying im not a fan of the muppets but i will answer the question. They have their movie coming out. Everyone is a fan of the muppets. No, i think she supported eugene mccarthy. I think she was a card carrying democrat for many years. And i think she married into a republican family and loves her husbane pe pe pe pe p in his judgment and i think supported his platform. But, no, she is not a natural republican. Before we leave the midland days one set of relationships that has carried her through her entire life a group girlfriends that she made in midland how important are they to her, what do they provide for her and she for them . I think both she and the president have a very strong set of friends who have been their friends forever. And that has been a really sustaining aspect for them. They come to washington, its best to import your own friends. They have been with you at the beginning and, you know where they stand and, you know that they trust you and you have their loyalty. And she particularly has always treasured going off with them and did that even when she was in the white house once a year, they would go have these trips where they would go rafting in the wild and they would kind of care for each other and you noted they are mostly progressive democrats, this group of girlfriends, what clue should they give us about her own politics . Well, you know, its interesting i think that she as mark said i think that she loves her husband. And shes very loyal to her husband and one of the things that i have come to admire and appreciate about laura bush that she has navigated this bizarre volunteer job in the aftermath, is to find areas of commonality with people with whom she might find differences. So she would campaign for republicans for instance but i saw her once change a speech in, you know, script because the person who she was campaigning for, she was not going to attack a Texas Democrat this person was running against in that specific way. I think that she has things that are very interesting to her with her friends. You know, they care about literature, care about the book festival, shes very much of an avid conservationist and environmentalist. And so she finds those ways. Shes pretty active in womens rights and taking those things on. I think that that set of friends you referenced from midland, texas, really kept them grounded too and i think that theres a people who knew them when. And i think that gave them great comfort when they were in the white house and both of the bushes talk about the story of bringing their friends in. And president bush having his pals in the oval office. And one of his friends looks in and says, gosh, bush can you believe it . Im in the oval office. They looked at george, like and youre in the oval office, you know, and they sort of did bush i think are both very selfdeprecating and that and having that circle of friends around again gave him great comfort during the stresses of the white house. Laura welch and george bush were both Young Persons in midland, texas, did they ever meet as children . They did not actually. They attended the same schools but she says that she doesnt recall him and they didnt, then i think she knew who he was after a time. He was a roustabout, you know, from a good family and a wellknown family certainly in midland and at one point, they lived in the same building at the chateau in houston. But i think she thought he was a bit carousing so hes had other pursuits and then her friends from midland fixed them up and they were both, she was 30 and he i guess was about the same age. Yes. He was ready to settle down and they got engaged and married very quickly, you know in three months. Thats one thing that i wanted to ask you about because this is a portrait you both have painted of a woman, a librarian who is very orderly. A very measured and she did something rather impetuous, marrying after four months of meeting someone. How does she describe that very brief courtship in the decision to marry so quickly after she met george w. Bush . Okay, shes had a lot of suitors in her life but none of them quite clicked in and in texas at the time, she talks about her feeling like kind of an old maid. And, you know, by texas standards she probably was and then here comes this guy george bush who was so different from her in so many respects and yet so complementary. They really clicked, and so it was somewhat uncharacteristic that she would be sort of swept up in this romance. One thing that she talks about is that they went out on the campaign trail right after they got married. George bush campaigned unsuccessfully for a seat in congress in west texas. And they got to know each other so well on the campaign trail. Theyd have these endless hours of driving around the plains of west texas talking about their lives and i think that really helped their marriage begin on the right footing. Janice harold wants to know more, what attracted laura to george, she asks on twitter, they seemed so different in their younger years. Well, she always said that he made her laugh, you know, and she said she wanted somebody who would make her laugh. I mean again, she had grown up and in some ways sort of only lonely child. She didnt have a brother or sister. Her mother had had some miscarriages. I think she really longed to have a sibling and she really liked his boisterous kind of cutup nature. And he wanted someone who was steady, you know, laura steady down and i think that i see that in them still and you can never know whats in someone elses marriage. But i was struck when i saw them recently on the tonight show. He said something and she sort of tossed her head back and kind of giggled and laughed and i think they still have that bond that he is funny. One of the great moments i think for her during her first, you know, in her tenure as first lady is when she was at the white house for the Correspondents Dinner, you know, i think it was 2005 and she took the podium in place of her husband and talked about the fact that he goes to bed at 9 00 and she stays up to watch desperate housewives and says i am a desperate housewife. You know, they just have this great rapport and again they can sort of read each other and its very sweet. Jane is watching us in killeen, texas and youre on the air, hi, jane. Caller hi, good evening, well is it true that lauras interest in afghanistan actually began in the sixth grade . Ive never heard that. Can you tell me a little bit more about that . Its in her book i cant give you the page number but she had to write a report on a country and she and her father mr. Welch went to the globe and spun the globe and her finger landed on afghanistan. And she wrote that in her own book. I think she talked about how exotic it felt, you know, to write about afghanistan at that time. I do think that when she i traveled with her to europe and she toured the museum in paris, guimet. Im probably not pronouncing that precisely right, where there were a lot of the antiquities from that country and some of the artifacts that had been saved, pieces of the buddhas that had been destroyed by the taliban. I think she is very taken by this idea that you could have this robust civilization. And then it could be blown to bits in a matter of days and really was quite compelled by that, i mean it certainly might have been in her roots from early on too but, she thought that was a cause worth right. To be engaged in. So he ran for congress right after they got married. When she married him, did she know she was going to be marrying a politician . Well not exactly, i mean he promised her shed never have to give a speech. And he broke that nearly immediately. So i think she knew he was from a very political family and she described herself as not being very political. You know, i always think when people use that, it means that they find politics distasteful, usually i find if people say im not very political. It means, they just dont like it. It seems like its nasty and full of oneupsmanship and she really didnt have much appetite for that. So now i dont think she did but Gary Robinson wants to know, was laura interested in politics or thrust into it because of her relationship with george w. . I think thrust very quickly and again in a whirlwind fashion because the sooner had they married and they have to campaign through west texas. And with that campaign being unsuccessful whats life like for them after that . Well, i think he sort of had to figure out what he wanted to do and he went into the oil business in midland and thats where, i think they were there for the first 10 years of their marriage. Its where their daughters were born and where they raised them in their toddler and childhood years. So it was it was i think it was a pretty middleclass existence for a long time until he decided to do other things later in his life. Was it middle class by choice or by necessity . I mean they came from very he he came from a very wealthy family and he was in the oil business. Did they choose to live more modestly . Well, i think they did both have a certain modesty about them in that way that continues today. I mean they dont have the worlds hugest most wellappointed house in dallas, you know, its certainly nice. I think he felt a strong need to make it on his own. I mean i would defer to you. Because you are working on this book about the relationship between them but as you find with a lot of sons, you didnt want to feel as if he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, you know, or that expression hes thought he, you know hes a single and right, hes yes. Was born out there basically yes. Triple . Yes, exactly. Right exactly. I think that the other thing is that midland is both a boom town which it is right now, and a bust town, depending on the oil industry and when he was coming up in the oil industry, it was really in bust mode. That was not a very prosperous business to be in at that time. So he struggled in that business before finding Great Success as the owner of the texas rangers. And so he always had his fathers friends who were there to bail them out. D[d[n so certainly they were not uncomfortable by any stretch of the imagination. But twins barbara and jenna were born on november 25th, 1981. But you write in your book and laura bush and hers that they had considered adoption before the babies were born. What was parenthood for them and can you talk about how their children were raised . Well, i think that she very much wanted to have children. She always knew she wanted to have children and she always imagined herself as having a family. And i think she they described that both as being a very idyllic time. She really loved reading to these darling little girls and raising them and being very immersed in caring for them. I think that, you know, you your children find a way to challenge your preconceptions of what its going to be like. And they had a set of twins, one who probably has her daddys personality a bit more. And one who has her mothers. I think they delighted in that and think the years that they spent in austin where they were all together and what is in some ways a very close town and a very easy town to be in. They describe as being idyllic years too. Lucy is watching us in waupaca, wisconsin. Hi, lucy. Caller hi, good evening. Thank you, im enjoying this. My question is when youre talking about lauras lack of faith after the accident, was there something that had happened that caused her to to find god back in her life or or was it an influence of somebody like george had billy graham. I was just a little curious while she said that she later came back. I wonder if there was something that drove her back to believing in god. Thank you. I dont know that there was a catalyst then. Do you know about anything that would have been catalytic in her life that would have led her to god . No, i agree with you. I think that the kind of modesty that she projects and the privacy that she shepherds means that shes not really given in the same way that her husband is to talking and witnessing her faith in a public fashion. You know, she was raised a methodist, certainly always attended church it was part of community life. To the comfort of that, i think certainly she has talked about the comfort of scripture in a way that is part of her interest in literature. I remember her picking the bible verse out after september 11th, you know, she was looking for words to give her meaning right. And give her strength. So i dont know if there is a catalyst, i think its probably more complicated on that. I wont presume to speak for her in that way as to how she found her footing again. And that caller mentioned billy graham and he had a role to play in george w. Bush embracing faith and stopping drinking alcohol. You mentioned that when the two bushes, or mrs. Bush and george bush met each other that he was a bit of a carouser. And he made that decision to give up alcohol and im wondering if we know whether or not laura bush had a role on that decision or whether that was a personal one for him. Well, she said to him, famously, its either me or jim beam. I think she realized that he was drinking too much. I think he realized that at a certain point and i think that there was a conversation that george w. Bush had with billy graham in kennebunkport. Billy graham was a guest of his fathers at their compound Walkers Point in kennebunkport maine. And i think that as he began talking to billy graham again i think embracing god in a way that he hadnt before in his life. And that was i think im not sure, the threshold of middle age, you turn 40 when he gave up drinking and when he took god into his his heart and i think mrs. Laura bush was extremely supportive of all the decisions that her husband made including i know his embracing christianity in the way he did. He made the decision that he Governors Mansion in texas. Laura bush right was concerned because of the twins being very young at that point. Ultimately, she agreed to support him on this. Allegheny tableau wants to know what was lauras experience like as first lady of texas . Seems like shed be embraced easily by the people there, was she . I think she was embraced pretty easily and i think in many ways is very low key position. She would talk about how she like ducking out the backdoor and going around the corner to the drug store or going to post office to buy postage stamps. Its kind of hard to imagine with everything thats happened after september 11th that so many could live like that today. I think she really enjoyed it. I think she had a rich life. She started the texas book festival, she very quietly once again without calling and much attention to herself i think had influence on him with his education initiatives. Not in the sort of you will do this way, but as is the case wn with lots of married people, he learned about what role Early Childhood education have about environmental print, early literacy. And she talked about the importance of that. He adopted that. I think that they very much enjoyed that life in those years. And for the girls it was a little easier for them there too. I mean, they could be part of a set of wellconnected upper middleclass kids in austin. Kind of knew each other and nobody really looked at them too harshly. As the son of a president , he certainly understood what life would be like in the house, what the rigors of a campaign would be like. When he decided that he would like to throw his hat into the ring for the president ial election, how supportive was laura bush at that point . Well, i think she was she was supportive of his his intentions. Theres no question about. And i think she was confident hed win. When he had his his mind set on the the state house in texas, when everyone thought he was going to lose to ann richards, she knew he was going to win. He knew that he was sort of tenacious in his in his drive for things. And i think she had that same faith when he tossed his hat in the ring in 2000. For a woman who was promised shed never have to make a speech, in 2000, she was asked to address the National Audience at the republican convention. Im going to show you a clip from that one. Many people in the public got to hear her voice for the first time. Lets watch. Im so thrilled and im honored to be here. And ill have to say, im just a little bit overwhelmed. To help open the convention that will nominate my husband for president of the United States. [ cheers and applause ] the president is our most visible symbol of our country of its heart, its values, and its leadership in the world. And when americans vote this november they will be looking for someone to uphold that honor and that trust. You can see it in the pictures. The pictures are one of the most compelling stories of this campaign. We first saw them on our very First Campaign trip. They are the pictures of americas future. Moms, and dads, and grandparents bring them to parades and picnics. They hold out pictures of their children and they say to george, im counting on you. I want my son or daughter to respect the president of the United States of america. [ cheers and applause ] ann gearhart, that comment about respect came on the heels of the clinton impeachment and it would unfold to be a very Contentious Campaign in 2000 of course with the ultimate recount in florida, et cetera. Can you talk about their transition of the clintons transition into the bushes and all of that acrimony politically . And how the bushes established themselves in the white house after that election . Well, it had a very important advantage. They had been there before in a way because george bushs father was the president of United States. Theyd spent plenty of time there i think that they had some guidance as to what that felt like, and what that looked like, what the contours of that are like. Running for president is a marathon and if you get there or you dont, youre in for a surprise either way, thats a very steep learning curve. And i think they had some exposure to that. So that transition was somewhat eased for them by that. It was a famously bitter recount, laura bush spent most of the time in austin as did george bush. And she talked about how, you know, she tried to keep herself busy, there was just this time to wait and not to you couldnt really get too much started very much because you couldnt really be sure of whats going to happen. And once they were sworn in, she spent many months not being in washington, you know, she had two daughters who were going up to college. She want to make sure she got them settled. She saw that as her first responsibility. And i think that she was only beginning to figure out what she was going to do and how shes going to focus her attention when september 11 came along. So staying with that theme Mark Updegrove there, here again historic proportions. We have the second impeachment in history just before the election. We have a Supreme Court making a decision and the outcome of the election how difficult is it for a presidency to establish itself in the wake of all of this turmoil. Well, i think that and lets go back to what anne said i think they had transitioned into white house life relatively easily. And its interesting right before 9 11 occurred. Laura bush started hitting her stride as first lady. She just had a first state dinner, i think for the president in mexico. She had just done the First National book festival using the texas book festival as a template. She was really starting to get to hit her groove as in that role. And then 9 11 occurred. And its interesting, she talked about a friend of hers who had called her and said, you know, when you first took on this role, i thought, oh, man, i dont envy her at all, but now i envy you because you have a role to play. A very Important Role to play as our nation picks itself back up in the wake of this strategy. And she did an admirable job of it. Michael is watching us here in washington, dc. Hi, michael, youre on. Caller hi. I have two questions. Is laura bush is conservative in her politics, you know, like abortion, gay marriage, she recently, you know, spoke out with gay marriage as her husband is. And does she still Smoke Cigarettes like, she like jack kennedy, she was a closet smoker. Thanks very much. She began smoking as a teenager in midland, texas. Does she still smoke today, do we know . We dont really know that. I mean i think that there have been some people who have said they have seen her do that once in a while, shell sneak a cigarette once in a while, but she has said that she gave that up because she knew it wasnt good for her because her daughters didnt like that. And knew that it wasnt healthy. About her politics, you know, i think that she like many like her motherinlaw before her, barbara bush who was married to a congressman from houston who championed, you know, funding for planned parenthood 40 years ago, like those women, they sometimes will give that sense that they are more liberal than their husbands and that can work well for the party. Theres not necessarily evidence that that is true. So i dont know that we can really answer that. I think that in terms of her personal view of the world, i would say that she is not a judgmental and harsh person. But i think that she also certainly has never felt that it was her role to crusade on behalf of causes such as reproductive rights or benefits for samesex couples. I think she has tried to have her impact in areas which we might consider safe subjects that everyone can get behind. But what she would feel and i would argue correctly can have impact, you know, her Foundation Gives a Million Dollars away to libraries every year which are woefully inadequately funded across the country. They book festival remains and is a persistent legacy of hers, 200,000 people went to it last year. And i think that she admired Lady Bird Johnson because all these years later, after what was considered a sort of flimsy initiatives to put wild flowers on the nations highways, they bloom year after year and bring a sense of beauty. So i think shes trying to make her impact were she could and let her deeds speak for herself rather than her spouse in political positions which i think thats fine. I dont think shes not that ideologue. I think thats such right, i think what she saw with Lady Bird Johnson is, alluded to this a first lady could take on a cause they had their own bully pulpit in a sense. I could take on a cause and make a real difference without, you know, world events sort of coming across their desk and their having to react. And then 9 11 occurred and instead of getting deeply involved in education or literacy, as she would have liked, she had to do other things. You both referenced the National Book festival which she emulated on her model that she built in texas. And she was working on it in just days before the 9 11 attacks. We have a clip next from september 8, 2001, when First Lady Laura Bush was on the National Mall in washington. Shes actually in the library of Congress Talking about the first annual National Book festival. Lets watch. One thing that i like about both this festival, the National Book festival and the texas book festival is that theyre right here in the capital. Were right now in the steps of the library of congress with the United States capitol behind us. And i love the whole idea and the symbolism of books and the ideas in books with our National Government and our democracy because the ideas in books are really what are so important to our democracy. So both of you are authors and the Publishing Industry generally has been thought be a little bit left of center over the years. Was there any skepticism on the part of book writers or publishers about a conservative first lady getting involved in a National Book festival . And if so, how did they she mitigate it . I think the texas book lvlvlo successful and she gathered writers as first lady of texas who didnt necessarily share the politics of her husband and they had a wonderful experience. And i think that might have helped. But i think books are an easy cause to get behind whether youre liberal or conservative. And so that was an easy rallying point for all. Well, she did have an issue in the white house then after the war began in which she had been having a series of symposiums while on the libraries, and history of libraries and the role they have played. And one that she was going to do on poetry and she had invited a number of american poets, some of who were very much left of center and very much opposed to the war and, you know, quite outspoken on that subject. And spoke out about it, said they wouldnt come, if they did, they would protest. And in the end the hue and cry got loud enough that she cancelled it in a face of that. So, it was not with that controversy, she certainly wasnt universally accepted. And there have been a number of librarians overtime i think who have questioned whether she has thrown her might into the fights over educational text and the idea of whether we teach evolution or whether, you know, we teach Sex Education and emphasize abstinence. So i mean those kinds of i would say intellectual arguments have sometimes sort of ensnared her despite her efforts to stay away from that. Well, on that note Pablo Miguel Martinez on facebook references that and so then mrs. Bush invited and then disinvited posts to the white house, has mrs. Bush ever commented directly on that debacle as this viewer calls it whos has she ever spoken out about the bottom of it . Not that im aware of. No . No, i dont think that not that im aware of. I think that she has a tendency to say that it is unfortunate that people cant come together and have a civilized discussion that, once again, you might be able to find some Common Ground if you can get beyond that rhetoric but i think that shes spoken about it directly. Martha is watching us alexandria, virginia, in the washington suburbs. Hi, martha, youre on. Caller hey. Thank you so much for taking my call. You know, its interesting that between laura bush and last week, Hillary Clinton, theyre two women of my generation. One is chosen one path. One is chosen another path. Both women i admire very much. The one success that they have had is that they have both raised strong, successful young women. Can you comment on the difference between the two . And why . Thank you. Thanks very much. I guess, on the difference between the two and why they have both managed to raise strong women or thats what shes implying yes, very different women and yet their children are both strong. Well, i guess what i would say and i guess i believe this myself i would like to think as a strong woman who i hope has raised strong and successful daughters. I think there should be room in america for all kinds of women to have all kinds of personalities and temperaments and paths. And to devote our attention in whatever ways we want to whether we set aside our own careers for a time, whether we picked them back up again, whether we stitch our lives together through those decades, make it work within our own families. We each have our own ways we can pursue that, yet we can all reach the same kinds of levels of what we would feel as satisfaction and success in raising our children. Yes, i think they are very different women. I think they also are both women however who is first ladies and i would say a lot of these first ladies. Theyll tell you that they saw their time in the office as being primarily to be a support to their husband. And i think there are people that rubs the wrong way, feels like its an antifeminist position. You should be able to work, you should be able to certainly pursue your own interests. Maybe you can disagree with your husband. But in that particular hothouse of being in the white house and the stresses on any couple who is in that job. If you dont have a strong partnership, that president is not going to be as successful as he can be, will be or to put in another way or even less successful than he might have been. Yes. And i think certainly george bush has spoken about that directly and every one of them has spoken about that. I think its a partnership that is an integral one to the health of the american democracy. In november of 2001, just shortly after the attacks, laura bush made a bit of first lady history by becoming the first first lady to deliver the president s weekly radio address which is a custom and many of you probably listen to them even today with president obama. Heres her reflections on that experience. And youll also hear a little bit of that address that she gave. Laura bush, did it surprise you at first when you first became first lady at the platform yes. That you were given in the voice you had . I didnt real i knew it. I mean i knew that of course, i knew it intellectually because id seen my motherinlaw and the platform that she had to talk about literacy which was her particular interest. Id seen Lady Bird Johnson and how she influenced me even here at home in texas because o q0 interest in native plants but i didnt really know it until i made that president s radio address, president ial radio address in that fall of 2001 after the terrorist attack to talk about what other way women and children were treated by the taliban in afghanistan. Good morning, im laura bush. And im delivering this weeks radio address to kick off a worldwide effort to focus on the brutality against women and children by the Al Qaeda Terrorist Network and the regime it supports in afghanistan, the taliban. That regime is now in retreat across much of the country. And the people of afghanistan especially women are rejoicing. Afghan women know through hard experience what the rest of the world is discovering. The brutal oppression of women is a central goal of the terrorists. Not only because our hearts break for the women and children in afghanistan but also because in afghanistan, we see the world the terrorists would like to impose on the rest of us. All of us have an obligation to speak out. We may come from different backgrounds and faiths but parents, the world over love their children. We respect our mothers, our sisters and daughters. Fighting brutality against women and children is not the expression of a specific culture. Its the acceptance of our common humanity. And thats the first time i really realized that people heard me. And that what i said people listened to. And so then i knew from then on although i think you dont ever really know intellectually until maybe after you leave and see what the platform is. Mark updegrove that experience helped laura bush find her voice as first lady . Yes, she did find her voice in that issue, and she talks about going to austin to visit her daughter at the university of texas. Jenna was attending college there at that time. And going to, with jenna to a Department Store and there were a couple of middle eastern women behind the counter who thanked her for making that speech and raising awareness about the brutal treatment of women under the taliban in afghanistan. And she realized at that moment what a profound difference that she could make. You know, i guess when youre in a studio making radio address, you dont see the people that it affects but it was at that moment that told her that she was making a difference. And how did she use that voice when she found it . Well, you know, i think shes always been torn because she is one of few people i have ever encountered in washington who refuses to take credit to what she has accomplished. I mean this is the city where people are always taking credit for things that they had nothing to do anything with. And for instance, she was instrumental in spurring a program whereby Liz Claiborne and the Singer Sewing Machine Company donated services and goods to women in afghanistan so that they could become selfsufficient. You know, thinking about our previous caller, one of the things that she and Hillary Clinton certainly share as very different women is this fervent belief that societies cant be successful if they dont take advantage of half of their population and those half of their populations repressed in poverty. So she was very interested in doing that although i can remember pressing her repeatedly to say well, you know, how does secretary chao got involved, you know, how did Liz Claiborne get involved and finally she mumbled out, you know, i just talked to secretary chao but i think finding a voice for her she is in her bully pulpit is results based i guess i would say and she has liked to use it in a way that she thinks will get results people will embrace. She continues to do that today. She really travels quite a bit ive noticed and speaks on behalf of a lot of organizations who are raising money for things she believes in. Like a couple of times a month, from what i can see. Connie is watching us in east lansing, michigan, hi, connie. Caller hi, how are you . Great, whats your question for us . Caller Hillary Clinton and laura bush have either a project or foundation that they both worked on or their staffs both worked on . And im wondering if you could explain or talk about that a little bit, im sorry we dont hear more about it. Okay, both first ladies have foundations. Can you talk about how this works even in the world of campaign giving in finance and how one can be in public life and accept contributions like this and what it does politically . Well, and just alluded to the fact that laura bush continuous to work on the issues that were an importance to her as first lady through the Bush Institute. So that the bush center is a conglomeration of the number of Different Things including the Bush Foundation which is a benefactor to all things bush including the bush library and the Bush Institute. And so the bushes continue to further the causes that they began to take initiative toward in the white house during the but they do that with the help of donors . With the help of donors, yes, and they said the Bush Institute raises money that in turn goes into the Bush Institute. And the projects relating it to the the bush library as well. Now the case of laura bush, her husband isnt going to be running for president again and she certainly isnt going to be running for president herself. So in some ways, while there could be influence that those donors might gain, if there were another bush for instance to run for president , yes, i think thats possible. But in some ways i guess i think that theyre sort of protected at this point from that, that i think thats right. However in the case of mrs. Clinton and the clinton global initiative. I think that that remains an area that the public rightfully wants the watchfulness on and i think that those of us in journalism continue to try to track because if she were to run again, then those people who have paid her money for speeches or have donated to her various causes have a relationship with her that we would want to examine. Everyone watching this program knows about the many challenges this country faced during the eight years of the Bush Administration. It was a difficult time for the country not only the 9 11 attacks. But after that the decision to pursue the wars in iraq and afghanistan, also during that time period, there was hurricane katrina. And that ultimately the 2008 financial crisis and on the domestic policy side of the Big Initiative was no child left behind the major Education Administration the administrations major education initiative. Laura bush continued to pursue her own interests even as the country responded to the various Bush Administration policies. How challenging is it this is a weve seen this throughout the series about first ladies standing beside their husbands as the Public Opinion of their work changes. How challenging is that for a spouse to see the increased criticism that the person that youre married to is receiving in the public eye . I think its very difficult for them to see the scrutiny exacted at their husbands. You know, i think because they know the man. They know the real person and very often, we can get caught up in the heat of the moment when we scrutinize our president s. And they have almost because caricatures in a way. And so for laura bush who is so deeply in love with her husband to see the way he was treated must have hurt deeply. She continued to stand by him, i think she traveled far more in his second term, than she did in the first term and she was, because again, she had found a voice on so many issues particularly relating to women, and try to further that cause by hitting the road and trying to be trying to better explain his policies to our nation and to the world. In 2004, the reelection bid laura bush was on the road extensively during the Campaign Year and this next clip shows you one of the challenges of being a first lady when youre trying to pursue your own agenda and that pesky press corps continues to ask questions, lets watch. Im very proud of the no child left behind act and im proud of the way schools and states all across the country are rallying to meet the goals of that act, and also theyre theyre the same goals. We all have the same goals. And thats to make sure every child has a great education. And theres a very large achievement gap between poor school districts, title i schools and students in poor schools and students in more affluent schools. And thats what we have to address its not fair in our country to have that much of an achievement gap. And how has been, in the last couple of weeks for you, watching your husband be criticized so widespread around the world for the behavior of the american military. No, im sorry about that but i know that those prison photos dont reflect the vast majority of our military men and women. And they certainly dont reflect the values of the people of the United States of america and i know that. And its terrible. But the the good news in our country is those people will be prosecuted. There will be transparency in what happens. And you know, thats one of the benefits of living in a free country. So but im sorry about those photographs and im sorry about what happened to the iraqi prisoners because it doesnt reflect our country. Ann gearhart, what are you seeing there . What i was really thinking about when i watched that is i think one of the things we had never really talked much about with first ladies is their qualities of leadership. You know, we talked about leadership in terms of chief executives. And people who we elected to put in charge, think of leadership as also being really specific and targeted and focused about how much time you have and what you can accomplish with that time you have. And so in the case of laura bush, particularly in that second term when she realizes that its her last chance to have an impact, there are many, many things that she may be concerned about that she may discuss privately with her husband, shes certainly not going to relate to the rest of us. She may have issues that she disagrees with him on. But the idea of trying to remain focused on the areas where she would like to have impact and knowing that she can fritter her time away if she doesnt remain what we would call on message but which also can be highly specific and focused is something that we see her do there. And i think that with the, you know, 10 years passed, i would leave it to viewers to decide if they think they see sincerity there or not, whether she does in fact, say, im very sorry about that or whether she seems as if she is just trying to take a pass on it. What we do know now is that we have had other horrible incidents with our military but for the most part, for all of the people who are in service, it is in fact an anomaly, and you heard her address that there. She was speaking at a school about education initiatives, no child left behind, so we mentioned was a major one of the Bush Administration, allegheny tableau wants to know what was lauras role in no child left behind. As a teacher did she support the direction that the president s reform policies were taking . Well, she certainly did publicly i mean she i think she was making a speech about education there. And supporting this policy, they talked about the, like president bush campaigned talking about the soft bigotry of low expectations. And they really wanted to, to narrow that gap, the achievement gap. So i think that what she said at you know, at night when behind closed doors, we dont know as she said to her reporter once if i have differences with my husband i wouldnt be telling you. So we, we dont know what she thought but she certainly again as we can see there supported his policy by by speaking about it publicly. On the international front, she traveled extensively as you mentioned. And she ultimately visited nearly 75 countries during her years in the white house. In addition to afghanistan she became very much involved in the president s african aids relief effort. And malaria eradication effort efforts and also met with burmese refugees and exiles at the white house, what was, when she chose to be involved internationally, what drove those decisions . I think what drove a lot of those decisions was again the issue of womens rights and their full participation in the societies in which they were. And an extension of that was women, she felt wanted to know that they could raise their children in live to have lives that were sustaining and successful as best they could. And you know, the human rights flowed out of that. I think that the teachings of the dalai lama have been of interest to her in a way philosophically, there have been a couple members of the family who are engaged in that. The president has a cousin, Leslie Walker has been very engaged in that. I think through those conversations she once again saw a female leader in a country who had been repressed. And under arrest for many years, sort of moved her to that. What do you think about that . Yes, its its when you talk to george w. Bush about this and why he got involved in aids relief in africa where no other president had given much thought to africa, remarkably. George w. Bush is did by far more for the country of africa than any of this predecessors. And the reason is is that to whom much is given, much is required. And he saw that the aids was eradicating much of subsaharan africa. And that he could do something about it. He could make a measurable difference. And he thought if he didnt do that, if he didnt take a chance and invest money in that cause in the eradication of that insidious disease that we would be judged in years to come. To do with his religious faith. And again i think laura bush shares that faith. Next is cathy in du quoin, illinois. Hi, cathy. Caller hello. The reason i was calling is earlier in this program the question was raised about when laura found her faith once more. And i had read her book and she mentioned i lost my faith that november, lost it for many, many years. And if i recall correctly when she was on the book tour program for people who were interviewing her about her books she had written, she was asked when did you find your faith and she said that it came back to her gradually. And she mentioned like when her twin daughters was born that that you know, she said good things started happening. And i found my faith gradually. And i found it interesting on that subject in her book, she also mentioned, she said the one thing, the one wrenching fact is i have faith that one is never alone. And i think thats probably sums up how she felt about her faith. Cathy, thank you very much for calling and adding to our discussion. Turning to her book also on another issue and that is social policy issues like abortion and earlier a caller mentioned gay rights. Heres what she writes and spoken for the heart, her memoir. On the issue of abortions, ive always been struck by the deep divide between the sides. And how rarely the alternative of adoption is raised. We have so many friends and family members who found their children through adoption. George and i were fully expecting to be one of those. Today, for women in their 20s, 30s, and 40s, infertility is the issue that is most personal to them and is a private struggle that breaks their hearts. We are a nation of different generations and beliefs, seeing issues through different eras and different eyes while cherishing life. Ive always believed that abortion is a private decision and there, no one can walk in anyone elses shoes. Its something that she and george w. Differ on one with well, i think she said publicly when she was first lady that she would not in favor of overturning roe vs. Wade, and i think she she was asked whether you know that invited whether gay people had slept at the white house while she was first lady. And she said probably and the interviewer asked would you object if that were the case and she said certainly not. I think she she let her views be known in subtle ways i think. Interestingly enough, you mentioned that the she and president bush had trouble conceiving, in fact they had, went to an Adoption Organization to see if they could adopt twins and then they ended up conceiving their own set of twins, quite unexpectedly, i believe. Weve been talking a lot in this program about the amount laura bush did all the time that she spent on the road and certainly throughout the 20th century first ladies that has been a story told again and again. In the interview that we do with laura bush, we asked her about whether or not first ladies should earn a salary for all this work. Heres her answer. Mrs. Bush, should the first lady receive a salary . I dont think so. There are plenty of perks, believe me. A chef, that was really great, i miss the chef. I dont think so, no, i dont think so. And i think the interesting question really is not, should they receive a salary but should they be able to work for a salary at their job that they might have already had . And i think thats whats well have to come to terms with. Should, you know, will, i mean, for certainly a first gentleman might continue to work whatever he did if he was a lawyer, or whatever, so i think thats really the question we should ask, is should she have a career during those years that her husband is president in addition to serving as first lady. Certainly at the state level, some first spouses have been able to pursue their own careers but could this work on a National Level . What about conflict of interest and whatever job that a spouse would hold . It is possible for someone in this day and age to migrate from having a life fully outside the white house as well as being first spouse . Well, i think we have to give it a try and see how we think it works out. I think that certainly the ceremonial aspects of the job are ones that you might be able to find some flexibility in, i mean, we have had other president s who were not marriedu and had hostesses who carried that on for them. So certainly, some of those really oldfashioned ways of being the gracious spouse in the white house we could change. As i said it i think that its a relational job. Its not a political job in many ways being first lady. It is a job about tending to the primary, the principle in its highest form as Staff Members do not suggesting that a first lady is a staff member. But im saying that you know, she once said to me, being the wife of george bush is her most important job whether her husband is president or not. And by that i took her to mean that, that is her primary relational core of life. And she has other pursuits and she certainly has hobbies, many of which she doesnt share, that she takes on her own. But i think anyone would be hard pressed to continue but there is always a first time for everything. You know, i dont think there are many first ladies who wouldnt say that the most Important Role they played was as a sort of pillar of strength to their husbands in times of need, being there for them. And i would hope that when we have a female president which i am sure we will if she has a spouse, that spouse will feel the same way about supporting her. Well, speaking of support, we referred to this earlier, but we have a chart which were going to show the audience about the president s popularity ratings during his eight years in office and as you can see peaked enormously after the 9 11 attacks and then continued downward through the years of his presidency. Laura bush however remained popular with the American Public and in 2006 gallup poll, she was at a much, much higher rate than the president , 82 Approval Rating in january of 2006. What does that say about the American Public and their ability to see separately the roles of people in the white house . Well, i think that the American People are pretty wise, and in many ways. And they certainly know that she hasnt been elected to that position, that she somewhat is there by virtue of her relationship to the president. She carries on. She does what she can do. She cant be held responsible entirely for the political decisions he makes. I suppose that probably sounds naive to a lot of people but i was always really struck when i was covering her, people would say, but she seems so like this, or she seems so like that, or, you know, she reads dostoyevsky and, you know, she really likes bob marley so what does she think when she talks to him because hes a warmongering man and id always say, thats the wrong question. You are speaking as a voter and a citizen and you have concerns about what youve elected this president to do and you feel hes fulfilling that. But shes his wife. She too is a constituent but that is certainly not her primary role and the way she looks at it and i do think people discern that. Dennis is watching us in brooklyn. Hi, dennis, youre on. Caller hi, susan, how are you . Thank you for the series, its great. My question for the panel is was mrs. Bush less political and more compassionate and sympathetic than most other recent first ladies . I remember her being so aware of the victims of september 11, saying that she would daily read the New York Times profiles of the dead that were published at that time and recall her many visits to the Walter Reed Hospital to visit veterans. Was this rooted in her being a war time first lady or is this consistent with her personality and demeanor in general . Thank you. Thanks so much. Mark . I think the answer is both. You know, there arent many first ladies who are overtly political, really. I think she played a more traditional role as first lady than say, Hillary Clinton or eleanor roosevelt. But frankly, i think the two things the gentleman mentioned were very much consistent with her personality reading the obituaries of the dead, comforting the people in need, thats very much a part of her personality. So, im going to interrupt, because our time is actually getting short. You referenced this earlier and that was her trip to the white house Correspondents Dinner and in fact just as nancy reagan had done two decades earlier, she went to the press corps to have people see her in a different light than perhaps they did, with covering her regularly. Lets watch and those of you who saw it originally will remember this time when she spoke up as surprisingly. And so the city slicker asked the old guy how to get to the nearest town not that old joke. Not again. [ cheers and applause ] george always says hes delighted to come to these press dinners. Baloney [ laughter ] hes usually in bed by now. Im not kidding. I said to him the other day, george, if you really want to end tyranny in the world, youre going to have to stay up later. [ cheers and applause ] i am married to the president of the United States, and heres our typical evening. 9 00, mr. Excitement here is sound asleep, and im watching desperate housewives [ laughter ] with lynne chaney. Ladies and gentlemen, i am a desperate housewife. [ laughter ] laura bush at the 2005 white house Correspondents Dinner, so you can tell and see as an event that was wellreceived. One of the things weve talked about with each of the first ladies profiles is their stewardship of the white house. During her time in the white house, laura bush did a restoration of the lincoln bedroom. Were going to watch as she talks about that next. Weve refurbished the lincoln bedroom. I would say thats the biggest renovation project that weve worked on. That lincoln bedroom was last done by truman, when he set it up to be the lincoln bedroom, to have the lincoln furniture in it. When lincoln lived here the room was his office, and when truman redid the house in the late 40s and early 50s, he set up that room, the room now we call the lincoln bedroom to commemorate the fact that it was lincolns office and it was the room that he signed the emancipation proclamation in. So the room itself is really a shrine i think to American History. Truman redid the room then in that renovation and ot had never been refurbished since and really needed it. The carpet was the over 50 years old and so i have worked with the white house, a historical association, the Preservation Board who are furniture curator historical association, furniture curators, wallpaper specialists, they are the real scholars and the white house curator, of course. And we looked back at the wallpaper lincoln had in his office, at the carpet he had in his the office. And we did reproductions of those. Then we had photographs of the way the lincoln bed was draped with the purple and gold and fringe and lace, high victorian decoration. We had later photographs, but the bed still dressed the way she dressed it. We did that again. How did the bushes use the white house as a social instrument during their years . How did they use it to advance policy . What was entertaining like while we had wars going on . I think had only begun to entertain. They had fireworks and they hadnt warned anybody it was happening. Everybody was alarmed. After september 11th, i think theres a great deal of thought as to who was appropriate and how to do it. I think laura bush has been instrumental in seeing the white house as a living historical institution, and using it as a way to help people understand what the lives have been like for people who lived there at the time. Ten and the way it reflects the period and the context of the time. The need to recreate from mary lincoln has done is about showing the tenor of the times and what was considered the right way to be. I think mostly, they brought friends in and did that, but they favored smaller gatherings, and not much she was right. He went to bed at 9 00 at night. She was the one who might stay up reading or prefer dancing. Lets take a call from david in utah. Reporter i was calling to ask about laura bushs influence on the politics or the democratic rights in ber ma. I know she was really championing that toward the second half of the second Bush Administration. Thank you. Either of you know . I first found it curious. I wish i knew more about that. I havent been able to understand exactly what moved her to do that. She really became quite outspoken in a way i would argue that is her most forceful and surprising role as a first lady to wade into Foreign Policy in an area where the United States had been kind of not all that engaged, speaking out against the generals and all that. Shes been persistent, and i think that continues to this day along with her interest in womens rights in afghanistan. She just recently appeared with secretary kerry and former secretary clinton. The issue about burma is a fascinating one. I dont know what weather that came from. In the clip she mentioned the White House Historical association. As the series winds down, the White House Historical association has been our partner helping us extensively with research and photographs along the way. Weve also partnered with them and this biography book, the special edition of the first ladies of the United States and many thousands of you have had a copy of that to learn more about the lives of the first ladies. Im cognizant of our time. As we leave the white house years, i want to put on the record some of laura bushs accomplishments in office. As we mentioned as the start lady to deliver the president s weekly radio address. The founder of the National Book festival which continues to this day. Visited more than 75 countries during her eight years in the white house and renovated the lincoln bedroom, among those we are high liglighting. In 2009 she became a private citizen again. How has she approached that aspect of her life . I think the bushes comfortably went back into their lives. I think theyve eased very gracefully into private life and went back to their lives in dallas. Mrs. Bush continues to be very much involved the with the bush center. That includes the bush sthut and library. She was instrumental in the plan of bush library. I think her touch can be seen in the grounds surrounding it with native grasses and plants. Something she has a great passion for. I think she continues to lead a very full life. As i mentioned earlier, continues to pursue some of the causes that were dear to her as first lady through the Bush Institute. One of the nice things about being first lady in a way, too, is you think you have a brief period of time, but your impact continues and she has more room to continue to be involved in these policy initiatives than certainly the former president does or would or has suggested he wants to. He doesnt think its right for a president to be criticizing another one. But she and mrs. Obama, for instance, have both been together in africa. Have had a summit for first ladies of africa and worked together on a number of things. Mrs. Clinton and she and the secretary have carried on those things, and she has been happily engaged in a way she thought she might not be. We have a clip with her and Michelle Obama. Thats why were launching the first ladys initiative at the Bush Institute. We want to support first ladies around the world by convening them annually to highlight the significant role they can play in addressing pressing roles in their country. We get asked especially in the first time are you more like laura bush or Hillary Clinton . Im like is that it . Those are the two choices . Reporters said, or are you Hillary Clinton or barbara bush . I always just said, well, i think ill be laura bush. I knew her pretty well having grown up as her in mittland, texas. Youve had the opportunity to host some of the Panel Sessions with first ladies talking about the role. What you hear is the desire on the part of the public and the press to typecast and also the desire of the woman in the role to be their own self despite the enormous pressure to be something other than that. Theyre always going to be compared to predecessors. Are you more tradition al or activist. What one are you . I think they all put their unique stamp on the role. Laura bush was no exception. We have heard from laura bushs memoir. Youve talked along the way about what a guarded individual she was. When you read the memoir, did you learn more about her than your reporting . I was interested in hearing from her in her own words. What she wants to reveal about who she is and what she reveals about whats important. One of the keys about understanding her is shes a reader. Thats an integral part. And that gentleman david, i think who called from who wanted to know about whether she was more empathetic. I think she pounds powfinds pow narrative and human story. Thats what she responds to. That touches her. That is what compels her to act in many ways. And i gathered from her deeper understanding from that book of the meaning of the west texas land, the sound of the wind, the great giants of texas literature who have come before her. She returns to again and again. I think thats really a key to understanding who she is. Shes not a crusader as much as a reader. Thats what informs the way she moves through life. And in a way transported her from west texas. She talks about being in texas and reading plato and classic writers, and leaving midland through those pages, through those narratives. I think her book is exceptionally well written. I was more interested in the first part of it about growing up in midland. As first lady, one ceremony after the next, its difficult to write compellingly about ones tenure as first lady. Again, it is so ceremonial in a way. Debbie, youre on. Caller we have many influential first ladies through history. It could be Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama or laura bush. What is the most important thing you believe that laura bush has done for the americans, for womens rights and susan, of all the first ladies, which one impressed you the most . Thanks. Im going topaz on that answer since ive been in this chair in the role of interviewer along the way, but shdid she make any advances for womens rights . I think with all the first ladies, its hard to judge them in almost the contemporary times in which were in now. I would defer to my historian colleague here. I write about the now in many ways. I think its too soon for us to know exactly what kind of impact laura bush has had. In terms of womens rights, i think she has been a representative in her own way for rights in way that is not as expected as someone who has crusaded. What people see from her traditional mean, to speak from that position, it makes it more effective because its not expected. Shes championing it in a way we wouldnt expect to hear it. I think both the bushes take the long view of history. And actually, laura bush talks about the fact that she admired her husband for taking the long view of history and making difficult decision during the course of his presidency that wouldnt necessarily manifest themselves in popularity ratings. Youre right. I think his presidency and how its reflected is very much in the balance. Well see what happens. He knows that. And i think most historians know that. I think her contributions as first lady will be revealed as we begin to see the forest for the trees and the tenures of both of them in the white house. We have a couple minutes left. People asked along the way, and i have been negligent in asking it on their behalf. Since she is historically the only first lady to have a motherinlaw who served in the role, people are curious about the relationship between the two women. What can you tell them . I think they have a good relationship. And a strong relationship as best as i can tell. I wouldnt presume to say its exactly a marriage and i wouldnt presume to say to know exactly whats between a motherinlaw and her daughterinlaw. She famously stepped to with barbara bush who has a large personality. When she first came to that part, and barbara was to say somewhat, dear, what did you do, when they were the boys were all running around competing and she said i read, i smoke, and i admire. That was her way of saying well, this is who i am. This is what im going to be doing, and i may not fit some mold. I think shea[a[a[a[a[a[a[a[a[a[. And i think that barbara bush, for her part, has been very grateful, said she was in the beginning for settling down her boy. And is steady and once said shes the one with the real first lady potential. I think thats right. Theres great admiration. There are different women. But i think thats right. I think barbara bush saw in laura bush the qualities of a greet political partner, a great spouse for her husband as he embarked on a political career. The two daughters, jenna is a journalist correspondence. They gave george and laura bush their first grandchild. Barbara is the ceo of Global Health corpse. As we close, i want to say thank you to our guests for helping us understand more about the life and times and the still unfolding legacy of laura bush. Thank you for being here and taking our callers questions throughout the evening. Were going to close with thoughts about the members of the bush family, the president himself, and the two daughters on their mother, first lady, laura bush. Thanks for being with us. I dont want to steel barbaras. I feel like i always steal hers. You want to go first . Okay. You can go first the next time. I would say probably her work for women. And all over, really. And we were so lucky because our parents took us on travels to africa. We got to see things being unrolled and being in clinics and meeting people whose lives would be forever changed. I would say her work for women, and my dad, im very proud of him for that. I think echo that and also as was brought up before by anita. I think after 9 11 mom played such a im going to cry its okay. I know. In front of a a lot of people. I think the work she did after 9 11 and how comforting she was to everyone in the country is an incredible legacy and was really critical to the country healing after 9 11. If i were doing a series of first ladies, i would be probing this question. Could the first lady handle the pressure . If the answer is no, then the life of the president is going to be pretty miserable. Laura was unbelievably calming and a pillar of strength in the midst of the all the noise and finger pointing and yelling and all the stuff that goes on in washington. Shes a great first lady. A great first lady. Tonight at 8 00 p. M. Eastern, a look at the life of Michelle Obama. Cspan in cooperation with the White House Historical association produced a series on the first ladies, examining their private lives and the public roles they played. First ladies, influence and image features individual biographies of the women who served in the role of first lady over 44 administrations. Watch American History tonight and over the weekend on cspan3. If you enjoyed watching first ladies, pick up a copy of the book first ladies, influence and image featuring profiles of the nations first ladies through interviews with top historians. Now available in paperback. Hard cover, or as an ebook. American history tv on every weekend. Coming up this weekend, saturday, at 2 00 p. M. Eastern on oral histories, an interview with civil rights activist courtland cox, covering his and serving as secretary channel as the 1964 pan an. The American Revolution of 63. A program on the status of the Civil Rights Movement with protests from albany, georgia, alabama, maryland and in the northern says of englewood, new jersey. Chicago and brooklyn. At 7 00 p. M. , a discussion on congress, political parties, and polarization with historians edward airs and Joanne Freeman as well as norman ornstein. Moments that defined jfks response to the nuclear arms race. Watch American History tv this weekend on cspan3. And more now from our first ladies influence and image series with First Lady Laura Bush. We spoke with her in 2013. This is about an hour and 20 minutes. What was your initial reaction the first time your husband said i think im going to run for president . Well, i cant really remember exactly what my initial reaction was. I think it was a little bit slower than all of a sudden saying im going to run for president. He was governor and had been governor for one term and reelected and i slowly think we both started talking about it