Susan swain Grace Coolidge was enormously popular as first lady, and influenced the taste of american women by becoming a style icon. Married to a man known as silent cal, she never spoke to the press, but she did use her office to bring attention to issues she cared about. Susan swain good evening, and welcome to cspan series, first ladies influence and image. Tonight, well be telling you the story of first lady Grace Coolidge who came into office with her husband, the president , in 1923 after the sudden death of president harding. Susan swain here to set the stage for us as we learn about the fiveplus years of their time in the white house is amity shlaes, who is a coolidge biographer, syndicated columnist, author of other books on that period. Welcome to the program. Susan swain lets have you just tell us about of the arrival of Calvin Coolidge into the white house. How prepare was he for the job . Amity shlaes actually, quite prepared because hed been a politician all his life. Pr
Havoc up and down the coast. The vacationing firefighters tell us how they got it out. And highway heimlich. An nypd officer in the right place at the right time. Are you choking . Yes, sir. Put your hands on your chest. He helped save a woman driving on a busy highway. His heroic efforts today, saturday, september 20th, 2014. Announcer from nbc news, this is today, with lester holt and erica hill. Live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. Good morning. Welcome to today on saturday morning. Im lester holt. Im erica hill alongside jenna wolfe. Dylan is in baltimore this morning where we are sponsoring a health fair. We will check in with her for a preview. We will check in after the show. We want to get to todays top story. The Security Breach at the white house. A man was able to get through the executive doors after jumping the fence. Luckily the first family was not home at the time, but a lot of questions about how he got so far. Kristen welker is at the white house with more on thi
Welker is at the white house with more on this. Kristen, good morning. Reporter lester, good morning. I was here last night when the man entered the residence causing the secret service to evacuate the white house and press corps. This is the first time it has happened in the three years i have been covering the white house. Take a look. This Instagram Video captured the dramatic moments of the man running across the lawn and secret service yelling for the crowd to get back. 42yearold Omar Gonzalez of texas jumped the fence at 7 20. He made it up the north lawn and apprehended inside the nor nortnorth north portico doors. We have video trying to stop the man. Gonzalez did not appear to be armed or holding a backpack. The first family was never in danger. They left for camp david. Gonzalez may have been mentally distu disturbed. No shots were fired. Fence jumpers are not unusual, but normally stopped as they jump the fence. The secret service says quote this is under investigation and t
Havoc up and down the coast. The vacationing firefighters tell us how they got it out. And highway heimlich. An nypd officer in the right place at the right time. Are you choking . Yes, sir. Put your hands on your chest. He helped save a woman driving on a busy highway. His heroic efforts today, saturday, september 20th, 2014. Announcer from nbc news, this is today, with lester holt and erica hill. Live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. Good morning. Welcome to today on saturday morning. Im lester holt. Im erica hill alongside jenna wolfe. Dylan is in baltimore this morning where we are sponsoring a health fair. We will check in with her for a preview. We will check in after the show. We want to get to todays top story. The Security Breach at the white house. A man was able to get through the executive doors after jumping the fence. Luckily the first family was not home at the time, but a lot of questions about how he got so far. Kristen welker is at the white house with more on thi
The sudden death of president harding. Is ato set the stage coolidge biographer, syndicated columnist, and author of other books. Welcome to the program. Arrival ofut the Calvin Coolidge into the white house. How prepared was he for the job . Why prepared, because he had been a politician all his life. President coolidge is one of those men who started small on the city council as City Solicitor in massachusetts, and went all the way up the ladder in the state of massachusetts, and then to Vice President. One can never be prepared for a shock like the death of a president , but he was quite prepared professionally. Raise coolidge was at his side all along that way in public life. How ready was she for the white house . She didnt think she was. She wrote to her Sorority Sisters and pray for me, friends. Wifead been a politicians and she had quite a realistic view of politics and that particular job. She called this kind of marriage a double harness. That is not a phrase we would use now