TRANSITION | Forming the next government
10 July 2008
Presidential Spouses Play Important Role in American Politics
Will Cindy McCain or Michelle Obama be the next first lady of the United States?
Washington -- One of the highest-profile jobs in U.S. government comes with no official duties, no paycheck and is awarded based on family connections. But first lady of the United States is a job with almost limitless possibilities.
During their husband’s terms, Eleanor Roosevelt wrote a daily newspaper column and hosted a weekly radio program, and Claudia “Lady Bird” Johnson promoted environmental conservation. Current first lady Laura Bush has championed women’s rights and promoted reading programs.
Each brought her personal style and passions to a post Patricia Nixon, wife of President Richard Nixon, described in a 1972 news conference as “the hardest unpaid job in the world.”
In the United States, the role of first lady is an unelected, unpaid position without constitutional responsibilities. But the first lady, who acts as White House hostess, is also highly influential.
American first ladies are political celebrities, according to Myra Gutin, a first lady historian and professor of communications at Rider University in New Jersey. “If they go somewhere, if they advocate an idea, if they use the White House podium and say ‘I care about this,’ it’s something that gets a lot of attention,” Gutin said. “Other first ladies around the world are not treated in the same manner.”
FIRST LADIES IN WAITING
In the United States, a presidential candidate’s wife commands attention on the campaign trail, something Cindy McCain, wife of presumed Republican presidential nominee John McCain, and Michelle Obama, wife of Barack Obama, the presumed Democratic presidential candidate, understand well.
A spouse is one of many factors Americans consider when deciding which candidate deserves their votes. “Candidates’ wives open a window into the role that the men play in their families and provide a reflection of their husbands’ character,” said Carl Sferrazza Anthony, historian at the National First Ladies’ Library and author of books on presidential families.
Besides attesting to their husbands’ character, the wives provide support and guidance to their husbands, now and throughout the campaign. “History has shown that they provide wise, intuitive and often bluntly honest advice to their husbands,” Anthony said.
The campaigns offer voters a glimpse of what kind of first lady a candidate’s wife might be.
MICHELLE OBAMA
According to Gutin, Obama would be an activist first lady, someone likely to be involved in policy decisions. “She certainly seems to be someone who would take advantage of the podium the White House affords her,” Gutin said. “She is bright, she is articulate, and she has professional experiences in management.”
Obama, 44, is a Chicago native who received her undergraduate degree in sociology from Princeton University, and later earned a law degree from Harvard University. After graduation, she worked at a Chicago law firm where she met Barack Obama. The couple married in 1992.
Since leaving corporate law to pursue a career in public service, Obama has held several positions in the Chicago government, and she helped found Public Allies - Chicago, an organization that encourages young people to choose careers in the public sector.
Most recently, Obama served as vice president of community and external affairs at the University of Chicago Medical Center. “Michelle Obama’s position as a hospital administrator has given her experience in the practicalities and realities of delivering health care in the United States,” according to Anthony.
CINDY McCAIN
McCain also has experience that would help her in the role of first lady, Gutin said, but he predicted McCain would be less of an activist than Obama. “She certainly has the credentials, but I don’t see her getting involved in public policy,” Gutin said.
Instead, McCain, 54, probably would devote her attention to humanitarian work, perhaps as an advocate for children’s health care issues. “Cindy McCain has experience working with international charities and going to many areas of the world that are considerably less advantaged than the United States, which gives her a unique perception of the reality of life around the world,” Anthony said.
McCain attended the University of Southern California, where she earned an undergraduate degree in education and a master’s degree in special education. After graduation, she taught disabled children in her home state of Arizona. She met John McCain while vacationing in Hawaii and the couple married in 1980.
In 1988, McCain founded the American Voluntary Medical Team, a nonprofit organization that coordinates humanitarian aid trips for medical professionals. She also has worked with international nongovernmental organizations including HALO, Operation Smile and CARE, and currently chairs the board of Hensley & Company, a family beer-distribution business.
No matter who assumes the role of first lady, it is likely the president’s wife will continue to perform an essential function: Providing a voice of moderation for her husband.
“She is the one person that can turn to the president and say ‘You’re full of baloney and be quiet,’” Gutin said. “In a place like the White House, it’s very valuable to have a voice of reason and one that is not connected to a particular political point of a view.”
