Barbara Bush
Barbara Bush in 1989
First Lady of the United States
In office January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993
Preceded by	Nancy Reagan
Succeeded by	Hillary Rodham Clinton
Second Lady of the United States
In office January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989
Preceded by	Joan Mondale
Succeeded by	Marilyn Quayle
Personal details
Born	(1925-06-08) June 8, 1925 (age 87) Flushing, New York
Spouse(s)	George H. W. Bush (m. 1945–present)
Relations	Marvin Pierce (father) Scott Pierce (brother)
Children	George W. Bush, Pauline Bush, Jeb Bush, Neil Bush, Marvin Bush, and Dorothy Bush Koch
Residence	Houston, Texas
Alma mater	Smith College (attended)
Occupation	former First Lady of the United States
Religion	Episcopal
Signature

Barbara Pierce Bush (born June 8, 1925) is the wife of the 41st President of the United States George H. W. Bush, and served as First Lady of the United States from 1989 to 1993. She is the mother of the 43rd President George W. Bush and of the 43rd Governor of Florida Jeb Bush. Previously she had served as Second Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989.

Barbara Pierce was born in Flushing, New York attended Rye Country Day School from 1931 to 1937, and is an alumna of Ashley Hall School in Charleston, South Carolina. She met George Herbert Walker Bush at age 16, and the two married in 1945, while he was on leave during his deployment as a Naval officer in World War II. They would have six children together. The Bush family soon moved to Midland, Texas; as George Bush entered political life, Barbara raised their children.

As wife of the Vice President and then President, Barbara Bush has supported and worked to advance the cause of universal literacy. She founded the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy while First Lady. Since leaving the White House, she has continued to advance this cause.

Early life[link]

Barbara Pierce was born at Booth Memorial Hospital in Flushing, Queens in New York City, and raised in the suburban town of Rye, New York.^[1] She was the third child of Pauline Robinson (1896–1949) and her husband Marvin Pierce (1893–1969), who later became president of McCall Corporation, the publisher of the popular women's magazines Redbook and McCall's. Her siblings include Martha Pierce Rafferty (1920–1999); James Pierce (1921–1993), and Scott Pierce (born 1930). Her ancestor Thomas Pierce, an early New England colonist, was also an ancestor of Franklin Pierce, the 14th president of the United States. She is the fourth cousin, four times removed of President Franklin Pierce.^[2]

Barbara attended Rye Country Day School from 1931 to 1937 and later boarding school at Ashley Hall in Charleston, South Carolina from 1940 to 1943.^[1] She was athletic as a youth and enjoyed swimming, tennis, and bike-riding.^[1] Her interest in reading began early in her life; she recalls gathering with her family during the evenings and reading together.^[1]

Marriage and family[link]

Barbara Bush, center, surrounded by her family, early 1960s

She met George Herbert Walker Bush, a student at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts at age 16 during a dance over Christmas vacation.^[3] After a year-and-a-half, the two became engaged to be married, just before he went off to World War II as a Navy torpedo bomber pilot. He named three of his planes after her: Barbara, Barbara II, and Barbara III. When he returned on leave, she had dropped out of Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts;^[1] two weeks later, on January 6, 1945, they were married at the First Presbyterian Church in Rye, New York.^[1]

For the first eight months of their marriage, the Bushes moved around the Eastern United States, to places including Michigan, Maryland, and Virginia, as George Bush's Navy squadron training required his presence at bases in such states.^[1]

Over the next 13 years George and Barbara Bush had six children: George W. Bush (born July 6, 1946), Pauline Robinson Bush (December 20, 1949 – October 11, 1953, died of leukemia), John Ellis "Jeb" Bush (born February 11, 1953), Neil Mallon Bush (born January 22, 1955), Marvin Pierce Bush (born October 22, 1956), and Dorothy Bush Koch (born August 18, 1959). And from their 5 living children they have 14 grandchildren.

Texas years[link]

After the war ended, George Bush graduated from Yale University and the young family soon moved to Odessa, Texas where Bush entered the oil business. They moved to several small suburbs around Los Angeles, California before settling in Midland, Texas in 1950. The Bushes would move some twenty-nine times during their marriage.^[1] Over time, Bush would build a business in the oil industry and found the successful Zapata Corporation. Barbara raised her children while her husband was usually away on business.

In 1953, the Bushes' daughter Robin died of leukemia. It severely affected Barbara Bush, and is the incident that is credited with beginning to turn her hair from a light brown color to chalk-white.^[1]

Political wife[link]

Over the ensuing years, George Bush would be elected or appointed to several different positions in the U.S. Congress or the Executive branch, or government-related posts, and Barbara Bush would accompany him every step of the way.

While in Texas, in 1959, George Bush was elected Harris County Republican Party chairman, in the first of what would become many elections. His first run for a prominent political office was in 1964, for U.S. Senator from Texas and although he lost, the exposure of the Bush family put George and Barbara Bush on the national scene.^[1] He would be elected as a U.S. Representative in Congress from Texas two years later; while her husband campaigned, Barbara raised her children, occasionally joining him on the trail.

As the wife of a Congressman, Barbara immersed herself in projects that piqued her interest, included various charities and Republican women's' groups in Washington, D.C.^[1] Though her husband lost a second bid for the Senate in 1970, President Richard Nixon appointed him the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, which enabled Barbara to begin forming relationships in New York with prominent diplomats.^[1] As the Watergate scandal heated up in 1973, Nixon asked Bush to become Chairman of the Republican National Committee; Barbara advised her husband to reject the offer because of the harsh political climate,^[1] but he accepted anyway.

Nixon's successor, Gerald R. Ford, appointed Bush head of the U.S. Liaison Office in the Peoples Republic of China in 1974, and thus the Bushes moved internationally. Barbara enjoyed her time spent in China, and often rode bicycles with her husband to explore the cities and regions that few Americans had traveled to.^[1] Just three years later Bush was called back to the U.S. to serve as Director of Central Intelligence during a crucial time of legal uncertainty for the agency. Her husband was not allowed to share pertinent aspects of his job with Barbara, as they were classified; the ensuing sense of isolation, coupled with her perception that she was not achieving her goals while other women of her time were, plunged her into a depression.^[1] She did not seek professional help and instead began delivering speeches and presentations about her time spent in the closed-off China and began volunteering at a hospice.^[1]

Barbara Bush joins her husband, the Vice President, on a trip to Great Britain to meet with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and her husband Denis, 1984

Barbara Bush defended her husband's experience and personal qualities when he announced his candidacy for President of the United States in 1980. She caused a stir when she said that she supported ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment and was pro-choice on abortion, views that her husband shared.^[1] This placed her and her husband slightly at odds with the conservative-wing of the Republican party, led by California Governor Ronald Reagan; Reagan would receive the presidential nomination over her husband. Reagan, however, chose Bush to be his running mate and the team was elected in 1980.

Second Lady of the United States[link]

Barbara Bush's eight years as Second Lady allowed her to become a common household name. She took an interest in adult and childhood literacy issues after her son Neil was diagnosed with dyslexia and began working with several different literacy organizations. She spent much time researching and learning about the factors that contributed to childhood and adult illiteracy – she believed homelessness was too connected to illiteracy^[4] – and the efforts underway to combat both.^[1] She traveled around the country and the world, both with the Vice President on official trips and by herself. In 1984 she wrote a children's book about her family told from the point of view of her dog C. Fred entitled C. Fred's Story. She donated all proceeds from the book to literacy charities.^[4] Now comfortable speaking in front of groups, she routinely spoke to promote issues she believed in and became famous for expressing a sense of humor and self-deprecating wit.^[1] During the 1984 presidential campaign, Barbara made headlines when she told the press that she could not say on television what she thought of Vice-Presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro, but "it rhymes with rich".^[5] She later apologized to Ferraro.

In 1988 Vice President Bush announced his candidacy for President to succeed Reagan. By this time Barbara had experienced two presidential campaigns, but broke new ground by becoming the first candidate's spouse who was not first lady to speak at a national party convention.^[1] She promised voters that she would be a traditional first lady and campaigned actively for her husband.^[4] The campaign at times focused on the large Bush family, and contrasted her with the First Lady, Nancy Reagan, by highlighting her interest in domestic staples such as church, gardening, and time spent with family while placing less emphasis on style sense and fashion; she drew attention to both her famous white hair and disinterest in wearing designer clothes.^[1] She generally avoided discussion of political issues during the campaign, particularly those on which she and her husband differed, and those closely involved with the campaign have reported that she was actively involved in campaign strategy.^[1] Bush was elected in November 1988 and sworn in on January 20, 1989 – and the nation had a new first lady.

First Lady of the United States[link]

Bush with children and White House staff in the China Room. The first lady is attempting to make a paw print of her pet Millie for a holiday card.

This section requires expansion.

Barbara Bush's cause as First Lady was literacy, as it was when she was Second Lady, calling it "the most important issue we have".^[6] She became involved with many literacy organizations, served on literacy committees and chaired many reading organizations. Eventually, she helped develop the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy.^[7] During the early 1980s, statistics showed that 35 million adults could not read above the eight-grade level and that 23 million were not able to read beyond a fourth-grade level. Mrs. Bush appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show to discuss the situation. She also appeared regularly on Mrs. Bush's Story Time, a national radio program that stressed the importance of reading aloud to children.^[1] Through her influence, Virginia's former First Lady Jeannie Baliles was inspired to form the Virginia Literacy Foundation, which supported Virginia's grass roots adult literacy programs. Through her support and the publicity she generated as First Lady, grass roots adult literacy programs began to spring up around the country.^[8]

She was also active with the White House Historical Association and worked to revitalize the White House Preservation Fund, which she renamed the White House Endowment Trust. The trust raises funds for the ongoing refurbishment and restoration of the White House. She met her goal of raising $25 million towards the endowment.

Bush was known for her affection for her pet English Springer Spaniel Millie and wrote a child's book about Millie's new litter of puppies. Barbara Bush became the first U.S. First Lady to become a recipient of the Henry G. Freeman Jr. Pin Money Fund, receiving $36,000, most of which she gave to favorite charities.

During her husband's 1992 presidential campaign, Barbara Bush stated that abortion and homosexuality are personal matters and argued that the Republican Party platform should not take a stand on it, saying that "The personal things should be left out of, in my opinion, platforms and conventions." Her personal views on abortion were not known, although her friends reported at that time that she "privately supported abortion rights".^[9] She explained, "I hate abortions, but I just could not make that choice for someone else." ^[10]

Bush disclosed she was suffering from an overactive thyroid ailment known as Graves' disease when she lived at the White House. George H.W. Bush came down with the same malady not long after his wife. It is rare for two biologically unrelated people in the same household to develop Graves disease within two years of each other.^[11] The Bush dog, Millie, came down with Graves' disease, too, although there are reports that she had a different auto-immune disease, lupus.

Because of the remarkable coincidence of three cases of auto-immune disease in one household, the Secret Service tested the water in the White House, at Camp David, at the Vice President's residence, and at Walker's Point (Bush's home in Maine) for lithium and iodine, two substances "known to cause thyroid problems".^{[citation needed]}

Life after the White House[link]

Since leaving the White House, she and her husband reside in River Oaks, section of Houston, Texas and at the Bush Compound in Kennebunkport, Maine.

Several schools have been named for her: three primary schools and two middle schools in Texas and an elementary school in Mesa, Arizona. Also named for her is the Barbara Bush Library in Harris County, Texas^[12] and the Barbara Bush Children's Hospital at Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine. She serves on the Boards of AmeriCares and the Mayo Clinic, and heads the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy.

On March 18, 2003, two days before the beginning of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, ABC's Good Morning America asked her about her family's television viewing habits; she replied:

I watch none. He [former President George H.W. Bush] sits and listens and I read books, because I know perfectly well that, don't take offense, that 90 percent of what I hear on television is supposition, when we're talking about the news. And he's not, not as understanding of my pettiness about that. But why should we hear about body bags and deaths, and how many, what day it's gonna happen, and how many this or that or what do you suppose? Or, I mean, it's not relevant. So, why should I waste my beautiful mind on something like that, and watch him suffer.^[13]

George and Barbara Bush attend the christening ceremony for the USS George H.W. Bush, October 2006

While visiting a Houston relief center for people displaced by Hurricane Katrina, Bush told the radio program Marketplace,

Almost everyone I've talked to says, 'We're gonna move to Houston.' What I'm hearing, which is sort of scary, is they all want to stay in Texas... Everybody is so overwhelmed by the hospitality, and so many of the people in the arenas here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this (as she chuckles slightly) is working very well for them.^[14][15]

The remarks generated controversy.^[16] In 2006, it was revealed that Barbara Bush donated an undisclosed amount of money to the Bush–Clinton Katrina Fund on the condition that the charity do business with an educational software company owned by her son Neil Bush.^[17]

In November 2008 Bush was hospitalized for abdominal pains. On November 25, a dime-sized hole in her small intestine, that was caused by an ulcer, was closed by surgeons. She was released December 2, 2008 and was reported to be doing well.^[18]

Bush underwent aortic valve replacement surgery on March 4, 2009; she was released from the hospital on March 13, 2009.^[19]

In a November 2010 interview with Larry King, Bush was asked about former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Bush remarked, "I sat next to her once, thought she was beautiful, and I think she's very happy in Alaska, and I hope she'll stay there."^[20] Palin responded, "I don't want to, sort of, concede that we have to get used to this kind of thing, because I think the majority of Americans don't want to put up with the blue-bloods — and I say it with all due respect, because I love the Bushes — but, the blue-bloods, who want to pick and choose their winners, instead of allowing competition to pick and choose the winners."^[21]

Barbara Bush was portrayed by Ellen Burstyn in the 2008 film W.

Footnotes[link]

References[link]

• Bush, Barbara. Barbara Bush: A Memoir, New York:Scribner, 1994. ISBN 978-0-02-519635-3

External links[link]

• Official White House biography of Barbara Bush

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Laura Bush
First Lady of the United States
In office January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009
Preceded by	Hillary Rodham Clinton
Succeeded by	Michelle Obama
First Lady of Texas
In office January 17, 1995 – December 21, 2000
Preceded by	Rita Crocker Clements
Succeeded by	Anita Thigpen Perry
Personal details
Born	Laura Lane Welch (1946-11-04) November 4, 1946 (age 65) Midland, Texas
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	George W. Bush (1977–present)
Relations	Harold Welch (father) and Jenna Hawkins (mother)
Children	Barbara Pierce Bush (b. 1981) Jenna Bush Hager (b. 1981)
Alma mater	Southern Methodist University (SMU) University of Texas at Austin
Occupation	Author, Teacher, Librarian, First Lady
Religion	United Methodist
Signature

Laura Lane Welch Bush (born November 4, 1946) is the wife of the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush. She was the First Lady from January 20, 2001, to January 20, 2009. She graduated from Southern Methodist University in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in education and soon took a job as a second grade teacher. After attaining her Master's degree in Library Science at the University of Texas at Austin, she was employed as a librarian. She met George Walker Bush in 1977, and they were married later that year. The couple had twin daughters in 1981.

Bush's political involvement began with her marriage. She campaigned during her husband's unsuccessful 1978 run for the United States Congress and later his successful Texas gubernatorial campaign. As First Lady of Texas, Bush implemented many initiatives focused on health, education, and literacy. In 1999, she aided her husband in campaigning for the presidency in a number of ways, most notably delivering a keynote address at the 2000 Republican National Convention, which gained her national attention. She became first lady after her husband defeated Democrat Al Gore in the 2000 election.

Polled by Gallup as one of the most popular first ladies,^[1] Laura Bush was involved in both national and global concerns during her tenure. She continued to advance her trademark interests of education and literacy by establishing the semi-annual National Book Festival in 2001 and encouraged education on a worldwide scale. She also advanced women's causes through The Heart Truth and Susan G. Komen for the Cure. She represented the United States during her foreign trips, which tended to focus on HIV/AIDS and malaria awareness. In May 2010, Bush released her memoir, Spoken from the Heart, in conjunction with a national tour.

Early life and career[link]

Laura Lane Welch was born in Midland, Texas, the only child of Harold Welch (1912–1995) and Jenna Louise Hawkins Welch (born 1919).^[2] Her father was a home builder and later successful real estate developer^[3] while her mother worked as the bookkeeper for her father's business.^[2] Early on, her parents encouraged her to read, leading to what would become her love of reading.^[2] She said, "I learned [how important reading is] at home from my mother. When I was a little girl, my mother would read stories to me. I have loved books and going to the library ever since. In the summer, I liked to spend afternoons reading in the library. I enjoyed the Little House on the Prairie books and Little Women, and many others... Reading gives you enjoyment throughout your life."^[4]

She attended James Bowie Elementary School, San Jacinto Junior High School, and Robert E. Lee High School in Midland.^[5] She graduated from Lee in 1964^[6] and went on to attend Southern Methodist University in Dallas where she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta.^[7] She graduated in 1968 with a Bachelor of Science degree in education.

On the night of November 6, 1963, Laura Welch ran a stop sign, causing a fatal car accident that killed her friend in another car.^[8][9] The driver of the other car was her close friend and classmate Michael Dutton Douglas. By some accounts, he had been Welch's boyfriend at one time.^[10] Welch and her passenger, both 17, were treated for minor injuries.^[11] According to the accident report released by the city of Midland in 2000, in response to an open-records request, she was not charged in the incident.^[11][12] Bush's spokesman said, "It was a very tragic accident that deeply affected the families and was very painful for all involved, including the community at large."^[11] In her book Spoken from the Heart, she says that the accident caused her to lose her faith "for many, many years".^[13]

After graduating from SMU, she began her career as a second grade school teacher at Longfellow Elementary School in the Dallas Independent School District.^[7] She then taught for three years at John F. Kennedy Elementary School, a Houston Independent School District school in Houston, until 1972.

In 1973, Welch attained a Master of Science degree in Library Science from the University of Texas at Austin.^[7] She was soon employed as a librarian at the Kashmere Gardens Branch at the Houston Public Library. The following year, she moved back to Austin and took another job as a librarian in the Austin Independent School District school Dawson Elementary until 1977. She reflected on her employment experiences to a group of children in 2003, saying, "I worked as a teacher and librarian and I learned how important reading is in school and in life."^[4]

Marriage and family[link]

She met George W. Bush in July 1977 when mutual friends John and Jan O'Neill invited her and Bush to a backyard barbecue at their home. He proposed to her at the end of September and they were married on November 5 of that year^[14][15] at the First United Methodist Church in Midland, the same church in which she had been baptized.^[16] Laura bought a tan, two-toned dress off the rack for the wedding.^[17] The couple honeymooned in Cozumel, Mexico.^[14]

Laura and George W. Bush with their daughters Jenna and Barbara Bush, Kennebunkport, 1990

The year after their marriage, the couple began campaigning for George W. Bush's 1978 Congressional candidacy. According to George Bush, when he asked her to marry him, she had said, "Yes. But only if you promise me that I'll never have to make a campaign speech."^[18] She soon relented, and gave her first stump speech for him in 1978 on the courthouse steps in Muleshoe, Texas.^[19] After narrowly winning the primary, he lost the general election.^[15]

The Bushes had tried to conceive for three years, but pregnancy did not happen easily. On November 25, 1981, Laura Bush gave birth to twin daughters, Barbara and Jenna.^[16] The twins were born five weeks early by an emergency Caesarean section, as Laura had developed life-threatening pre-eclampsia (toxemia).^[15] The twins graduated from high school in 2000 and attended Yale University and the University of Texas at Austin, respectively, in 2004. To date, Bush is the only First Lady to have given birth to twins.

George W. Bush credited his wife with his decision to stop drinking in 1986.^[7][20] She is also credited with having a stabilizing effect on his private life.^[15] According to People magazine reporter Jane Simms Podesta, "She is the steel in his back. She is a civilizing influence on him. I think she built him, in many ways, into the person he is today."^[15]

Several times a year, Bush and her husband travel to their sprawling family estate, the Bush compound, better known as Walker's Point. Located in Kennebunkport, Maine, the compound is where Bush family gatherings have been held for nearly 100 years.

First Lady of Texas[link]

Laura Bush with husband Governor George W. (right) and father-in-law George H. W. (left) at the dedication of the George Bush Presidential Library, 1997

Bush became the First Lady of Texas when her husband was elected as the Governor of Texas and served as first lady of that state from January 17, 1995, to December 21, 2000.^[21] When asked about her interest in politics, she responded, "It doesn't drive me."^[22]

Though during her years in the Governor's Mansion, she did not hold a single formal event,^[23] Laura worked for women's and children's causes including health, education, and literacy.^[21] She implemented four major initiatives: Take Time For Kids, an awareness campaign to educate parents and caregivers on parenting; family literacy, through cooperation with the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy, she urged Texas communities to establish family literacy programs; Reach Out and Read, a pediatric reading program; and Ready to Read, an early childhood educational program.^[21]

She raised money for public libraries through her establishment of the Texas Book Festival,^[21] and established the First Lady's Family Literacy Initiative, which encouraged families to read together.^[24] Bush further established "Rainbow Rooms" across the state, in an effort to provide emergency services for neglected or abused children.^[21] Through this, she promoted the Adopt-a-Caseworker Program to provide support for Child Protective Services.^[21] She used her position to advocate Alzheimer's disease and breast cancer awareness as well.^[21]

Her husband announced his campaign for President of the United States in mid-1999, something that she agreed to. She did say, however, that she had never dreamed that he would run for office.^[22] In July, she delivered a keynote address to the delegates at the 2000 Republican National Convention, which put her on the national stage.^[18][25] In December 2000, her husband resigned as Governor of Texas to prepare for his inauguration as President of the United States in January 2001.

First Lady of the United States[link]

As First Lady, Bush was involved in issues of concern to children and women, both nationally and internationally.^[26] Her major initiatives included education and women's health.^[26]

Education and children[link]

Romanian children greet President and Mrs. Bush upon their landing in Bucharest, 2002

The First Lady shares a laugh with fifth graders in Des Moines, Iowa, 2005

Early into the administration, Bush made it known that she would focus much of her attention on education. This included recruiting highly qualified teachers to ensure that young children would be taught well.^[27] She also focused on early child development.^[27] In 2001, to promote reading and education, she partnered with the Library of Congress to launch the annual National Book Festival. To promote American patriotic heritage in schools, she helped launch the National Anthem Project.

Immediately following the September 11, 2001 attacks; Bush spoke regarding America's children:

"[W]e need to reassure our children that they are safe in their homes and schools. We need to reassure them that many people love them and care for them, and that while there are some bad people in the world, there are many more good people."^[28]

The following day, she composed open letters to America's families, focusing on elementary and middle school students, which she distributed through state education officials.^[29][30] She took an interest in mitigating the emotional effects of the attacks on children, particularly the disturbing images repeatedly replayed on television.^[31] On the one-year anniversary, she encouraged parents to instead read to their children, and perhaps light a candle in memoriam, saying, "Don't let your children see the images, especially on September 11, when you know it'll probably be on television again and again — the plane hitting the building or the buildings falling."^[31]

Later in her tenure, she was honored by the United Nations, as the body named her honorary ambassador for the United Nations' Decade of Literacy. In this position, she announced that she would host a Conference on Global Literacy.^[32] The conference, held in September 2006, encouraged a constant effort to promote literacy and highlighted many successful literacy programs.^[33] She coordinated this as a result of her many trips abroad where she witnessed how literacy benefited children in poorer nations.^[33]

Women's health[link]

Another of her signature issues were those relating to the health and well being of women. She established the Women's Health and Wellness Initiative and became involved with two major campaigns.

Bush first became involved with The Heart Truth awareness campaign in 2003.^[34] It is an organization established by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to raise awareness about heart disease in women, and how to prevent the condition.^[35] She serves in the honorary position of ambassador for the program^[34] leading the federal government's effort to give women a "wake up call" about the risk of heart disease.^[34] She commented on the disease: "Like many women, I assumed heart disease was a man's disease and cancer was what we would fear the most. Yet heart disease kills more women in our country than all forms of cancer combined. When it comes to heart disease, education, prevention, and even a little red dress can save lives."^[34] She has undertaken a signature personal element of traveling around the country and talking to women at hospital and community events featuring the experiences of women who live, or had lived, with the condition.^[34] This outreach was credited with saving the life of one woman who went to the hospital after experiencing symptoms of a heart attack.^[34]

Bush meets with women in the Pink Majilis in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates to discuss cures for breast cancer in the Middle East, October 22, 2007

With her predecessor, former First Lady Nancy Reagan, Bush dedicated the First Ladies Red Dress Collection at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in May 2005. It is an exhibit containing red suits worn by former First Ladies Lady Bird Johnson, Betty Ford, Rosalynn Carter, Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush, Hillary Clinton, and Laura Bush meant to raise awareness by highlighting America's first ladies.^[36] She has participated in fashion shows displaying red dresses worn on celebrities as well.^[37]

Bush's mother, Jenna Welch, was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 78. She endured surgery and currently has no further signs of cancer. Laura Bush has become a breast cancer activist on her mother's behalf^[38] through her involvement in the Susan G. Komen for the Cure. She applauded the foundation's efforts in eliminating cancer and said, "A few short years ago, a diagnosis of breast cancer left little hope of recovery. But thanks to the work of the Komen Foundation... more women and men are beating breast cancer and beating the odds."^[38] She used her position to gain international support for the foundation through the Partnership for Breast Cancer Awareness and Research of the Americas, an initiative that unites experts from the United States, Brazil, Costa Rica and Mexico.^[39]

In November 2001, she became the first person other than a president to deliver the weekly presidential radio address. She used the opportunity to discuss the plight of women in Afghanistan during the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, saying, "The brutal oppression of women is a central goal of the terrorists."^[40] In May 2002, she made a speech to the people of Afghanistan through Radio Liberty, a radio station in Prague, Czech Republic.

Laura W. Bush Institute for Women's Health[link]

In August 2007, the Laura W. Bush Institute for Women's Health (LWBIWH) was founded at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. This institute aims to integrate research, education and community outreach in a multidisciplinary approach to women’s health and has begun efforts to establish a multi-campus women's health institute in Amarillo, El Paso, Lubbock and the Permian Basin.^[41]

A subsidiary of the center, the Jenna Welch Women’s Center, opened in Midland, Texas, on August 10, 2010, to deliver expert medical care to women and their families. Operating in partnership with the Laura Bush Institute, the Jenna Welch Center, named for Bush's mother, strives for excellence in research, education and community outreach.^[42]

Popularity and style[link]

Laura's husband, President George W. Bush, is sworn into a second term on January 20, 2005 by Chief Justice William Rehnquist, as Laura Bush and daughters Barbara and Jenna look on.

Laura Bush's approval ratings have consistently ranked very high.^[43] In January 2006, a USA Today/CBS/Gallup poll recorded her approval rating at 82 percent and disapproval at 13 percent.^[1][44][45] That places Bush as one of the most popular first ladies.^[1] Former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said, "She is more popular, and more welcome, in many parts of the country than the president... In races where the moderates are in the most trouble, Laura Bush is the one who can do the most good."^[44]

She disagreed with Fox News' Chris Wallace in 2006 when Wallace asked why the American people were beginning to lose confidence in President Bush, saying, "Well, I don't think they are. And I don't really believe those polls. I travel around the country, I see people, I see their response to my husband, I see their response to me. There are a lot of difficult challenges right now in the United States... All of those decisions that the President has to make surrounding each one of these very difficult challenges are hard. They're hard decisions to make. And of course some people are unhappy about what some of those decisions are. But I think people know that he is doing what he thinks is right for the United States, that he's doing what he — especially in the war on terror, what he thinks he is obligated to do for the people in the United States, and that is to protect them... When his polls were really high they weren't on the front page."^[46]

During the January 2005 second inauguration ceremonies for her husband, Laura Bush was looked highly upon by People magazine, The Washington Post, and others for her elegance and fashion sense.^[47] At the inauguration she wore a winter white cashmere dress and matching coat designed by Oscar de la Renta.^[48] Following the inauguration were the inaugural galas, to which Bush wore a pale, aqua lace gown, sprinkled with crystals, with long sleeves in a silver blue mist.^[48] The tulle gown was also designed for her by de la Renta. According to The Washington Post, "[I]t made her look radiant and glamorous."^[48]

Foreign trips[link]

Laura Bush talks with Raphael Lungo of Zambia as a part of her 2007 African trip

Laura Bush with her husband and several other dignitaries from around the world at the funeral of Pope John Paul II.

During her husband's second term, Bush was more involved in foreign matters. She traveled to numerous countries as a representative of the United States.

As First Lady, she took five goodwill trips to Africa.^[49] The purpose of these has mostly been to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and malaria, but Bush has also stressed the need for education and greater opportunities for women.^[50] She has taken many other trips to other countries to promote and gain support for President Bush's Emergency Plan for AIDS relief;^[51] these countries include Zambia (2007),^[52] Mozambique (2007),^[53] Mali (2007),^[54] Senegal (2007),^[55] and Haiti (2008).^[51]

In mid-2007, she took a trip to Burma where she spoke out in support of the pro-democracy movement, and urged Burmese soldiers and militias to refrain from violence.^[56] Later that October, she ventured to the Middle East. Bush said she was in the region in an attempt to improve America's image by highlighting concern for women's health, specifically promoting her breast cancer awareness work with the US-Middle East Partnership for Breast Cancer Awareness and Research.^[56][57] She defined the trip as successful, saying that stereotypes were broken on both sides.^[56]

Views on policy[link]

Bush is a Republican and has identified herself with the GOP since her marriage.

When asked about abortion in 2000, Bush said she doesn't believe that Roe v. Wade should be overturned. She did not comment on whether women had the right to an abortion.^[58] She did say, however, that the country should do "what we can to limit the number of abortions, to try to reduce the number of abortions in a lot of ways, and that is, by talking about responsibility with girls and boys, by teaching abstinence, having abstinence classes everywhere in schools and in churches and in Sunday school."^[58]

Bush responded to a question during a 2006 interview concerning the Federal Marriage Amendment by calling for elected leaders not to politicize same-sex marriage: "I don't think it should be used as a campaign tool, obviously. It requires a lot of sensitivity to just talk about the issue... a lot of sensitivity."^[59]

On July 12, 2005, while in South Africa, Bush suggested her husband replace retiring Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O'Connor with another woman. On October 2, during a private dinner at the White House with his wife, President Bush nominated Harriet Miers to replace O'Connor.^[60] Later that month, after Miers had faced intense criticism, Laura Bush questioned whether the charges were sexist in nature.^[61]

On May 11, 2010, during an interview on Larry King Live, Bush was asked about same-sex marriage. She said she views it as a generational issue and said she believes it will be made legal in the future. Bush offered support for the issue by saying, "...when couples are committed to each other and love each other...they ought to have the same sort of rights that everyone has." Bush referred to her 2000 interview, reaffirming her support for Roe v. Wade: "I think it's important that [abortion] remain legal. Because I think it's important for people - that for medical reasons and, and other reasons."^[62]

Awards and honors[link]

Bush is awarded the Living Legend Medallion from Dr. James H. Billington, the Librarian of Congress, for her work in support of the National Book Festival, September 2008

During her tenure as the First Lady, Laura Bush received a number of awards and honors. In October 2002, the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity honored her in recognition of her efforts on behalf of education^[63] and the American Library Association honored her for her years of support to America's libraries and librarians in April 2005.^[64] The Progressive Librarians Guild opposed her being honored, because of her support of the USA PATRIOT Act and her cancellation of a poetry forum due to concern that some of the poets would express opposition to the war in Iraq.^[65]

She received an award in honor of her dedication to help improve the living conditions and education of children around the world, from the Kuwait-American Foundation in March 2006.^[66] She accepted The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal on behalf of disaster relief workers around the world in May 2006 from Vanderbilt University.

Four learning facilities have been named for her: the Laura Welch Bush Elementary School in Houston, Texas,^[67] the Laura W. Bush Elementary School in the Leander ISD just outside Austin, Texas,^[68] and the Laura Bush Education Center at Camp Bondsteel, a U.S. military base in Kosovo and the Laura Bush Middle School in Lubbock, Texas.^[69] She was awarded the 2008 Christian Freedom International Freedom Award.^[70]

She is portrayed by Elizabeth Banks in Oliver Stone's film W.^[71]

Curtis Sittenfeld's bestseller novel "American Wife" is based on much of Laura Bush's life.^[72]

References[link]