Washington Whispers
Adorable First Pets or PR Nightmares?
That sweet image of modern-day presidents romping with first pets—FDR with Fala, Reagan with Lucky, Clinton with Buddy—hides a not-so-adorable truth: Most were props. In the first-ever critical look at presidential pets, a new exhibit at the White House Visitor Center reveals how important these critters were—or were not—to their masters.
Researcher Katie Schank, who opens the show June 21 by speaking on "Pets With a Purpose," tells us: "Not that everything in the White House is calculated, but I knew there was sort of something behind the pets that presidents chose to keep and pets they decided to get rid of." Yes, pets were exiled, she explains, because they were PR disasters. Consider FDR's first dogs: Meggie bit a reporter, and Major bit a senator before being shipped to Hyde Park. Roosevelt then got a Scottie, Fala, used mightily for publicity when he donated his chew toys to the WWII rubber drive. Or Reagan: Lucky was banished when pictures showed him yanking the Gipper around. Some were "philanthropic pets," others "paparazzi pets" acquired to help a president's image. Buddy, for example, helped Bubba with voters distrustful of cat owners, Schank suggests. Then there's Bush's Barney. Says Schank: "I sometimes wonder if Bush got a Scottie because FDR had such good luck with one."
Honoring the First Antiwar Candidate
George McGovern, now there was a real antiwar candidate. And in what some think is a historical dÃÂÃÂÃÂéjÃÂÃÂÃÂàvu moment, the man who famously opposed the Vietnam War is to be feted by many in the current antiwar movement to mark his 85th birthday and the 35th anniversary of his Democratic presidential nomination. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, former Sen. Gary Hart, actor Warren Beatty, and others are hosting a weekend of events July 13-14 in Washington and hope to turn it into a 1972 reunion and a fundraiser for McGovern's favorite charities like the World Food Program. Organizers, looking for a big turnout for the reunion and symposium on McGovern's legacy, say it's been hard reaching the old crew despite a very snazzy home page: McGovern72.org. "Thirty-five years is so long," says organizer Polly Bishop.
Big Hitters Steer Bush Legacy Plan
President Bush isn't leaving it to strangers to take care of his legacy project, the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum. Playing key roles are political aide Karl Rove, first lady Laura Bush, and former Chief of Staff Andy Card. The trio has been interviewing architects and touring similar research campuses for tips. We hear that some are urging Bush to put Rove in charge once it's built.
Skip the Shoes, and Change the World
Women, you've been challenged. By skipping the next shoe purchase at Payless and instead sending that $26 to a political candidate, you could forever change politics. "They need to start enjoying that pleasure instead of pinched toes," says Democratic fundraiser Susie Tompkins Buell, the founder of Esprit clothing. The idea was suggested by the Woman's Campaign Forum in a new report that found women to be poor political donors. "What if you could change the world for the price of a pair of shoes? Women can," says the report. Consider: The average pair of shoes costs $26.75, and if women gave up one purchase in 2006 to a candidate, they would have donated $1.3 billion. "If we think about all the women who are buying shoes at $50, $100, $500, the power is enormous," adds the report.
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