The Oval Office Felt Square to Some
Richard Nixon said it stifled creativity. Gerald Ford says it was too "grand and luxurious for some of the mundane work" he did, or the to-go lunches brought up from the White House mess. Jimmy Carter preferred one near his bedroom. And Ronald Reagan felt it was too formal to be relaxing. In what might be one of the biggest ironies of the modern presidency, many of those who spent their lives trying to get into the Oval Office actually hated working there. "I never used the Oval Office for creative work," Nixon revealed to legendary Time White House correspondent Hugh Sidey before the president died. Nixon, reports Sidey in a new collection of presidential memories about the White House, chose instead to work in the Lincoln Sitting Room. "I got my best ideas," Nixon told Sidey, "in the Lincoln Sitting Room or at Camp David."
The book is called The White House Remembered and is one of the last things Sidey did for the White House Historical Association before his death last week. While short--just 95 pages--the copy provided to Whispers reveals how presidents avoided the Oval for all but ceremonial duties. "I had a little cubbyhole office where I did much of my work," says Ford. "I did my private work in the office adjacent to where Rosalynn and I slept," fesses Carter. Reagan preferred a study in the private quarters and a "hideaway" near the Oval where he often lunched.
Born to Run--but for Public Office?
On the 30th anniversary of the release of Bruce Springsteen's Born to Run, Sens. Jon Corzine and Frank Lautenberg, both New Jersey Democrats, proposed a resolution congratulating The Boss on his contribution to American culture. It's the sort of thing that normally sails through Congress. But the resolution was shot down by Senate Republicans, presumably for the support Springsteen lent John Kerry last year. Now, as Corzine mulls over possible replacements for his Senate seat (he was elected governor of New Jersey earlier this month), there is a push among his constituents for him to name--who else?--The Boss. Anthony Coley, Corzine's press secretary, says it's not a bad idea--"especially," he adds, "if you're a Springsteen fan."
From Algebra Class to the City Council
As the new mayor of Hillsdale, Mich., 18-year-old Michael Sessions will face some unique challenges--like suggestions from high school classmates that he might consider, say, lowering the legal drinking age. "You have to disregard it," he told Whispers. He also has to give up some extracurriculars: He used to run track and play football, but no more. "I've got bigger things to do now," says the high school senior.
A Panda Promise Tough to Keep?
Panda cubs are the latest bicoastal craze--the San Diego Zoo has 3-month-old Su Lin (her name means "a little bit of something very cute"). And at the Washington National Zoo, 13,000 free tickets to see the 4-month-old Tai Shan (or Peaceful Mountain) were snapped up in two hours. Nicole Kidman even stopped by for a visit. It all sounds great, but National Zoo spokesman Matt Olear says the cub might be a little too cute--cute enough to incite an international incident in two years, when the zoo is slated to give him to China. "He is so cute that it's a possibility," Olear jokes. Chinese Embassy spokesman Chu Maoming reminds us that the U.S. government "has an agreement to honor." But he remains optimistic that there will be "new ways to further exchange."
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