Hillary Clinton's ‘Wow’ Moment Coming Face-to-Face With Melania Trump at Rosalynn Carter Tribute
Hillary Clinton's ‘Wow’ Moment Coming Face-to-Face With Melania Trump at Rosalynn Carter Tribute
It was a ‘positive thing for Mrs. Trump to show up,’ Clinton says.
Hillary Clinton recalled the “wow” moment when she came face-to-face with Melania Trump at a tribute service for former First Lady Rosalynn Carter last November during an interview on ABC’s The View Thursday.
In a discussion about her newly released book Something Lost, Something Gained, former First Lady Sec. Clinton talked about flying on Air Force One with President Joe Biden, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden and former First Lady Michelle Obama. They arrived in Atlanta and were driven in a presidential motorcade to Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church on the campus of Emory University where the service was held days after Rosalynn Carter died at the age of 96.
Clinton recalled the moment when they walked into the basement of the church where all the dignitaries were being rounded up.
“I saw Laura Bush, who is just absolutely delightful, talking with Melania Trump,” Clinton said, to which a panelist responded with an audible ‘Oh.’ “And none of us knew she was going to be there. Michelle and Jill Biden and I were like: ‘Wow.’”
Despite the polarizing political climate, immediately, Clinton said, everyone’s training and “our good manners” kicked in. Clinton then described how the first ladies each greeted Mrs. Trump.
“Everybody went up. Michelle gave her one of her hugs. And even Jill, you know, said how glad she was to see her,” Clinton said. “I said hello to her.”
Clinton went on to say that in her book she writes about how she thought that was a very positive thing for Mrs. Trump to show up.
“I think it was a little scary,” Clinton said. “[Melania Trump] looks like the kid on the outside of the birthday party, like am I going to be accepted? Do I belong here?”
The story Clinton shared was part of a greater discussion about “the sisterhood of presidential wives.” Clinton noted she never thought about her relationships with first ladies as a “sisterhood.” That phrase, she said, was used by President Jimmy Carter’s grandson, Jason Carter, at the tribute service and that it got her thinking about the eight years she spent in the White House serving as first lady.
“When Jason Carter talked about the ‘sisterhood’ there are certain experiences, even though we are obviously very different people,” Clinton said.
Although Clinton didn’t affirm the “sisterhood” term, Diana Carlin, co-author of Remember the First Ladies: The Legacies of America’s History-Making Women and vice president of First Ladies Association for Research and Education (FLARE), said it's a term often used in their book. Carlin professor emerita of communication at Saint Louis University and a retired faculty member and administrator at the University of Kansas where she taught a course on the Rhetoric of First Ladies, said she also uses examples of the first ladies “sisterhood” in the classes she teaches on presidential spouses.
“I always use that term. Maybe [first ladies] don’t use it among themselves, but it certainly is a term that I think those of us observing first ladies over time and their support of one another would begin to call it that,” Carlin told East Wing Magazine in a phone interview Thursday.
First ladies’ support of one another dates back to the relationship between the first president’s spouse, Martha Washington, in helping the second president’s spouse, Abigail Adams, after the first peaceful transfer of power, according to Carlin.
“[Martha Washington] and Abigail [Adams] corresponded after Abigail became first lady,”Carlin said.
In Remember the First Ladies, Abigail is described as close to Martha Washington and in deciding how to manage her social duties as first lady, Abigail Adams followed Martha’s more formal entertainment style based on the English systems.
“There are multiple examples of where first ladies have banded together for various charitable events,” Carlin said. “And the fact that Jason Carter used [“sisterhood”] might suggest that it was a term his grandmother [Rosalynn Carter] had used.”
During her appearance on The View, Clinton mentioned the extraordinary friendships that were extended to her from former First Ladies “Lady Bird” Johnson and Jacqueline Kennedy when she first entered the White House. At the time, Clinton noted she was working hard to make sure their daughter, Chelsea, had a normal childhood. Mrs. Kennedy had endorsed Bill Clinton early on and extended to Hillary Clinton an open invitation to reach out to her.
Not long thereafter, she called Mrs. Kennedy and asked, “Can I come see you?” The two spent the visit in Mrs. Kennedy’s New York apartment talking about Kennedy’s children John and Caroline and raising children in the White House.
“It made such a difference at critical times. I mean I was in the White House for maybe a week and it’s pretty overwhelming,” Clinton said. “I mean it was so kind and so extraordinarily helpful to me.”
The interaction between Mrs. Trump and the other presidential spouses at Rosalynn Carter’s tribute service suggests that a “sisterhood” does exist, Carlin said. For example, Betty Ford had left instructions for Rosalynn Carter to give the eulogy at her funeral, which she did, Carlin added.
Clinton’s observations of what took place in the church basement furthers the idea of a “sisterhood” between the women specifically when she notices Melania Trump and Laura Bush talking followed by the others following suit.
“They sensed the discomfort that Melania obviously had and they gathered together to make her feel like she belonged,” Carlin said. “So to me, that’s another example of how they are in a unique position, just like the former presidents are.”
However, what stood out about that interaction was how none of the first ladies were informed that Mrs. Trump would be in attendance.
“I would have thought in the preparations that they would have known that because obviously Mrs. Carter wanted them all to be there,” Carlin said.
Jill Biden to Host First-Ever Back-to-School Night at the White House Saturday
First Lady Dr. Jill Biden, a life-long educator, will host the first-ever Back-to-School Night at the White House Saturday afternoon. The event will celebrate the start of the new school year with educators, school professionals, students, and families.
The first lady and U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona will speak to guests at the gathering that will include a number of family-friendly activities on the South Lawn.
Occupants and Objects of the White House Are Featured in New Issue of White House History Quarterly
The White House Historical Association this week released "After the White House," the 74th issue of White House History Quarterly. While the White House may be the defining moment in either a life story or in the provenance of an inanimate object, the adventure doesn’t always end at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The issue follows some interesting people and their things out the door, taking a look at what happened next after life at the White House.
Marcia Anderson, editor of White House History Quarterly, said in a news release that the magazine’s opening articles tracing the journeys of White House building materials and furnishings prompt some questions: Why are discarded household furnishings celebrated on their return to the White House Collection? Why would a bent nail from a White House wall be a collectible treasure? And why has a velvet evening gown worn to a single White House dinner been sought after, auctioned, preserved, and exhibited?
A fitting answer, according to Anderson, comes from the late historian William Seale who once said, “The old stones of which this house is made are saturated . . . by history.”
The opening article “Going, Going… Gone!: A Survey of White House Auction” by Scott H. Harris, takes readers back to the public auctions when White House furnishings deemed “decayed, out of repair, or unfit for use” could be acquired for nickels and dimes.
“As these pages reveal, no matter whether made of silver, velvet, or brick, the objects that set the stage for the American presidency will forever be primarily White House objects, attracting attention, desire, and even reverence for the history they hold,” Anderson added.
Other articles in this issue of White House History Quarterly include:
“Cataloging History’s Return to the White House” by Lauren McGwin explores how First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy brought a wholly new perspective to the White House when she appeared on the scene in 1961. Furnishings once considered worthless to the White House became treasured for their historic value as Mrs. Kennedy established a museum-quality collection and bringing pieces back to the White House became a priority. Once the returning tables, chairs, China, and more began to fill the first White House curator’s office in 1962, a much-needed catalog documenting and describing the new acquisitions was compiled. McGwin explains and highlights some of the objects found in the catalog completed in 1964.
“Fit for the First Ladies: A 1902 East Room Mirror Frame Returns to the White House” by Melissa Naulin tells of a mirror frame installed in the East Room in 1902, removed during the Truman renovation, repurposed by the Smithsonian Institution, and returned to the White House in 2018.
“After the White House: Edith and Woodrow Wilson Go House Hunting” by Historian Rebecca Boggs Roberts describes for White House residents there is also an “after the White House.” Roberts explains that for President and Mrs. Woodrow Wilson the first step was deciding where to live.
“An After the White House Sanctuary: Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Gettysburg Farm” by Colleen Shogan tells the story of how President and Mrs. Dwight D. Eisenhower knew exactly where to head “after the White House”—their Gettysburg farmhouse, a long-awaited sanctuary for their retirement.
“Worn at the White House: Princess Diana’s ‘Travolta Dress’ Is Celebrated, Auctioned, Exhibited, Replicated, and Preserved” by Christina Ewald focuses on a dress worn to the White House by Princess Diana to show how a single event can forever associate an object with the White House.
Tudor Place Launches Digital Audio Tour for Visitors On and Off Site
Tudor Place Historic House & Garden in Washington, D.C., this week launched a new, digital audio landscape history tour on Bloomberg Connects that allows people to discover the historic site whether in person or offsite.
The free arts and cultural app, created by Bloomberg Philanthropies, allows onsite visitors to use their mobile phones to access Tudor Place’s content and essential information. Offsite, Bloomberg Connects allows users to experience and explore Tudor Place from anywhere, anytime. Tudor Place joins hundreds of international museums, galleries, sculpture parks, gardens and cultural spaces on Bloomberg Connects.
“Tudor Place is excited to work with Bloomberg Connects to create new tools for discovering and exploring our site,” says Tudor Place Executive Director Mark Hudson in a news release. “The audio guide for the garden is the first of many collaborative projects we foresee.”
With Bloomberg Connects, Tudor Place becomes accessible for onsite or offsite visits through photo, audio and video features, offering insights into the 5.5-acre estate. Bloomberg Connects offers free digital guides to cultural organizations around the world.
Tudor Place preserves the stories of six generations of descendants of Martha Washington and the enslaved and free people who lived and worked here.
Weekly Wrap
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Washingtonian
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