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** EXCERPT ** The National Archives announced on Tuesday that 11,046 pages of Senator Hillary Rodham’s White House schedules will be released on Wednesday. The records were the subject of a legal fight between Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog group, and the National Archives, which has been slow to comply with a request to release the records, arguing that the vetting process takes time. Mrs. Clinton’s schedules have attracted close attention throughout the campaign, partly because Mrs. Clinton has frequently held up her eight years as first lady as evidence of her experience. ~snip~ Of the more than 11,000 pages...

Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle told Meet the Press host Tim Russert that being First Lady doesn’t exactly constitute an apprenticeship for the Presidency. Daschle wanted to boost Barack Obama over a suddenly resurgent Hillary Clinton, and he attacked her experience argument. Daschle pointed out that Obama has more time in elective office than Hillary, but he somehow managed to avoid noting that John McCain has more than the both of them put together: Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) on Sunday questioned Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s (N.Y.) pitching of herself as the most experienced candidate in the...

You get the feeling Michelle Obama is never going to be boring to cover. (See here, here, here and here.) Hot Air and JammieWearingFool already noted the most eye-opening comment from Mrs. Obama... Obama begins with a broad assessment of life in America in 2008, and life is not good: we’re a divided country, we’re a country that is “just downright mean,” we are “guided by fear,” we’re a nation of cynics, sloths, and complacents. “We have become a nation of struggling folks who are barely making it every day,” she said, as heads bobbed in the pews. “Folks are...

God-o-Meter caught up with Fred Thompson and his wife Jeri at various South Carolina events this week and has cobbled together this Q&A from a few separate exchanges. God-o-Meter has lots more to say about the Thompsons' answers--and will--but it has to head off to interview Ron Paul at Bob Jones University. God-o-Meter: Do you think religion is playing too big a role in the presidential race? Fred Thompson: I don’t have any feelings a long those lines. I think people have a right to express themselves, including people of faith, no question about it, and they’re participating and I’m...

1. Jeri Kehn was born on Sept. 30, 1966, in Hastings, Neb. Her family moved to Naperville, Ill., when she was 3. Growing up, Jeri spent summers on her grandparents' farm in Nebraska. 2. Her parents divorced when she was around 12. Her mother, Vicki, a librarian, married Ronald Keller, a music teacher, about three years after her divorce. 3. Jeri is a 1984 graduate of Naperville North High School. While at Naperville North, she was a member of the school's dance squad, the Starlettes. During Jeri's junior year of high school, the Starlettes won the state championship. 4. She...

Greencastle, Ind. - "Four years ago in this cycle there was a front-runner and his name was Howard Dean," recalls Jeri Kehn Thompson, in an interview with Kentucky's Lexington Herald-Leader. "John Kerry was running about eighth. You can ask President Dean how things went in Iowa." Thompson, a 1988 graduate of DePauw University, is the wife of Republican presidential hopeful Fred Thompson, who is currently running third among GOP candidates in an Iowa poll. She was in Louisville campaigning for her husband yesterday. The article notes that Jeri Thompson returned home to Washington immediately following her Kentucky stop so she...

If Hillary's "experience" is her time spent as a resident on Pennsylvania Ave... would Laura Bush's candidacy amount to a clash of the titans? Just noting the absurdity by being absurd...

This is a rush transcript from "The O'Reilly Factor," November 20, 2007. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated. Watch "The O'Reilly Factor" weeknights at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. ET and listen to the "Radio Factor!" LAURA INGRAHAM, GUEST CO-HOST: One candidate is seeing some challenges, though, in the polls. And that's Fred Thompson, who was in last place in the latest New Hampshire survey, second place in most national polls. And joining us right now from Washington is Jeri Thompson, the wife of Fred Thompson. Jeri, it's great to see you. JERI...

CHARLESTON — West Virginia supporters of Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson expect to welcome his wife to the Mountain State on Monday. Jeri Thompson is scheduled to meet with supporters and volunteers in Charleston, though the campaign’s state chapter says details were still being finalized. Thompson would be at least the third presidential candidate’s spouse to include West Virginia on the 2008 campaign trail. Former President Bill Clinton raised cash for his wife’s Democratic bid while in town for last month’s Jefferson-Jackson Dinner keynote appearance. The wife of Democratic White House hopeful John Edwards was to headline an October fundraiser...

This next election is shaping up to be the most important decision America has made in many decades. In fact, depending on how Americans choose to vote in the democratic primaries, it could be the most important election since the very first, way back in 1789. For the first time in history, the United States has two candidates — one a woman, one a man of color — who have very good chances of becoming the next leader of the free world. That’s not to say that there weren’t others before Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama who threw their hat...

This year the US Mint issued $1 Presidential coins. Also, in June 2007 the mint released "The First Spouse Gold Coins". These are one-half ounce $10 gold coins honoring the "First Spouses". We have been calling these women "First Ladies" for centuries. Only now that Hillary comes on the scene suddenly everyone, including the US Mint, starts kowtowing and trying to influence our language to get ready for her. By the way, the first two coins sold out completely within 3 to 3 1/2 hours of being released at over $400 each.

WASHINGTON, Oct. 25, 2007 – First lady Laura Bush visited troops in Kuwait today to thank them for their service, calling them a force for good in the Middle East. (Video) First lady Laura Bush greets U.S. Air Force Col. Brian O'Connor, vice commander of the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing, in Kuwait, Oct. 24, 2007. The visit highlighted the accomplishments of the Middle East Partnership Initiative programs of the State Department. Defense Dept. photo by Staff Sgt. Tia Schroeder, U.S. Air Force   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “At the heart of your mission to protect America's freedom...

Jeri Thompson: The woman behind the man Naperville-raised Jeri Thompson is GOP hopeful's biggest cheerleader Recent months have seen Jeri Thompson painted a variety of ways in the press, from doting mom to trophy wife. She says she knew that would happen, but because she has granted few interviews, it can be hard to tell who she really is. The Sun had an exclusive opportunity to get to know the 41-year-old Naperville native a little better one afternoon last week. She sat down to talk before attending a major Chicago fundraiser for her husband, Fred Thompson, 65. The recently...

Here's how Jeri Kehn Thompson felt when she learned her husband, the former senator named Fred, had decided to run for president: “I felt so sick. I was depressed. I didn’t want to throw my husband to the snakes.” We learn this and more in a kind of coming-out interview in People magazine, coming out today. It's titled "No Trophy Wife" because, absent any information to the contrary, many in American society make assumptions about a 65-year-old man being married to a beautiful woman 24 years younger. The story opens with the former Jeri Kehn in sweatpants and ragged nails...

Recent months have seen Jeri Thompson painted a variety of ways in the press, from doting mom to trophy wife. The wife of GOP presidential candidate Fred Thompson says she knew that would happen, but because she has given few interviews, it can be hard to tell who she really is. The Naperville Sun had an opportunity to get to know the 41-year-old Naperville native. She sat down for an interview before attending a major Chicago fund-raiser. The former Jeri Kehn lived in one of Naperville's downtown neighborhoods with her mom and stepdad, Vicki and Ron Keller. She graduated from...

Here's what I like about Ann Romney. She's not a victim. She doesn't act like a victim. Never asks for anyone's pity. Rarely mentions that she has a serious neurological disease at all. She's not a cause. Or a platform. A crusade. Or a cheerleader. She's just Ann. A woman married to the same guy for nearly 40 years, convinced he'd make a good president. You can agree or disagree on that. No disagreeing with her passion. Or commitment. Or selfless campaign style. She's a role model without ever intending to be. Because as she told me on this very...

WASHINGTON, (AP) -- A political consultant, two lawyers and a pair of battle-tested veterans of presidential campaigns are in the thick of the fight for the White House, urging their spouses on, promoting causes close to their heart and sharing a recipe or two in a nod to tradition. Two of the prospective first ladies are managing life-threatening diseases. One would be the first woman of color with the title. A third recently completed her latest humanitarian trip, to Vietnam. All but one are mothers, including of young children. One's a grandmother of 10, too. The nation has a variety...

"I could hardly breathe. I was gulping for air. I wanted to wring his neck." So writes Hillary Rodham Clinton, U.S. Senator and former First Lady, in her autobiography "Living History." This particular passage recounts the bitter moment when her husband, then president Bill Clinton, confessed to her his relationship with Monica Lewinsky, a White House intern. Hillary's public retelling of her reaction came a full five years after the 1998 incident. During that time Hillary stood by her husband, famously reaffirming her love for him as he endured impeachment proceedings in the wake of the Lewinsky scandal. Motivated in...

She’s at it again. Where is that long cane when you need it, that one used from behind the curtain to snag and yank really bad acts off the stage? In her obsessively, narcissistic and never-ending attempt to redirect the spotlight from her husband onto herself, Michelle Obama’s endless diatribe of seething stupid remarks, while dubiously trying to support her target of those remarks, her husband, is creating a black stain on the race to the White House. First of all, I have a real big problem with all the pomp and power granted to First Ladies, and if it...

During her recent vacation at the family ranch near Crawford, Tex., first lady Laura Bush was reading news articles about the ongoing strife in Burma, where the military government has been arresting dissidents and protesters in large numbers in recent weeks. When she returned to Washington last week, she did something unusual: She called the U.N. secretary-general to register her dismay and urged him to condemn "the brutal crackdown." Yesterday, the first lady invited a small group of reporters to her office in the East Wing to explain her passion for the cause of Burmese freedom and called for a...

Vicki Keller was on her way out the door Wednesday when she was asked about her son-in-law's imminent run for the White House. "I don't know what there is to say, really," said the Naperville resident as she headed to Des Moines, Iowa, with her husband, Ron. The couple planned to be with Jeri Kehn, Vicki's daughter, at midnight, when Kehn's husband, Fred Thompson, officially planned to become the newest addition to the GOP presidential race. Although published reports said Kehn, 40, has been urging Thompson, 65, to toss his hat in the ring and is active behind the scenes,...

JUDITH GIULIANI likes to have an empty seat next to her on the campaign plane for “Baby Louis”—her Louis Vuitton handbag. Jeri Thompson is a “trophy wife” with a taste for low-cut dresses and gold-lamé wedge sandals. Ann Romney has five children and ten grandchildren. Elizabeth Kucinich sports a tongue-stud. These are just a small sample of titbits about would-be first ladies culled from the press. There is nothing new in Americans taking an interest in the spouses of potential presidents, or in the media being cruel to them. How better to find out about a person's true nature...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: After touring the site of the Minnesota bridge collapse yesterday, President Bush returned to Camp David, where he and the First Lady greeted Afghan President Hamid Karzai this morning. Afghan President Karzai arrives in US for talks with Bush AFP, 2 hours, 52 minutes ago CAMP DAVID, United States (AFP) - Afghan President Hamid Karzai arrived here Sunday for talks with President George W. Bush on the deteriorating security situation in his country. A range of issues from the US war on terror, the fight against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda, and the resurgence of opium...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush spent the weekend at the White House, where they attended a T-ball game today. The President will meet with Polish President Lech Kaczynski tomorrow to discuss plans for a U.S. missile shield in Eastern Europe. Bush and Polish president to focus on missile shield Reuters WARSAW: President George W. Bush meets President Lech Kaczynski of Poland on Monday to iron out details of plans for a U.S. missile shield in Eastern Europe that is straining relations with Moscow. Underlining the growing tension between Russia and the West, President Vladimir Putin on...

AUSTIN, Texas — Lady Bird Johnson made a final trip Friday to her beloved wildflower center, where friends and family followed the former first lady's casket into a gallery for a private memorial service. About 180 people gathered at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, where her coffin, draped in white cloth with blue embroidery, rested in front of a large portrait of Johnson in a field of flowers. Nearby, two vases held lavender-hued bluebells, her favorite flower. "We are here to let Lady Bird go and to celebrate her glad release," said the Rev. Stephen Kinney, former rector at...

Just reported.

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: Mixing work with some vacation time, President Bush meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin today at the Bush family home at Kennebunkport, Maine. The President’s great-grandfather built the Bush estate at Walker’s Point, a rocky strip of land that juts into the Atlantic Ocean. Also vacationing with GWB are his daughter, Barbara, and his mother and father. The trio also got in some fishing, Barbara and her dad (who will turn 61 this month) each caught a fish. Bush goes biking, fishing ahead of meeting with Russian president By Deb Riechmann, Associated Press Writer, June...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: The President, First Lady Laura Bush, and their daughter Jenna spent this weekend at the family's ranch, where a heavy rainstorm closed the main road into Crawford, Texas, today. The downpour so heavy that high water covered the road leading into Crawford. The local fire department blocked the road with fire trucks and turned back motorists. Harris County had been under a flash flood watch earlier today, but the National Weather Service cancelled the watch this afternoon. President Bush Unwraps Father's Day Gifts Jun.17, AP - It was Father's Day on the ranch for President...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President Bush spent some quiet time at Camp David before returning to the White House earlier today. Tomorrow he will participate in the annual Memorial Day commemoration at Arlinton National Cemetary. The First Lady was in Phoenix on Friday and Dallas on Saturday, where she attended a viewing of a new exhibit featuring more than 100 creations by Spanish designer Cristobal Balenciaga (1895-1972), and of designers he influenced, such as Oscar de la Renta. Mrs. Bush will return to Washington by Sunday evening, so she can join her husband in the Memorial Day commemoration. Today...

. Today, President Bush Delivered the Commencement Address at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut. Transcript Here Various ”Fact Sheets”, “In Focus”, Announcements and Statements may be found HERE The First Lady attended a meeting of the Senate Women's Caucus on Burma on Capitol Hill. Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife, Lynne Cheney, pose with their sixth grandchild, Samuel David Cheney - Congratulations Vice President Cheney and Lynne! Enjoy your visit to Sanity Island

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush welcomed NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and his wife to Prairie Chapel Ranch today. Talks between the two leaders were expected to focus on Afghanistan, where NATO troops are fighting a newly emboldened Taliban enemy. NATO chief in Texas for talks with Bush on Afghanistan by Laurent Lozano 1 hour, 18 minutes ago CRAWFORD, United States (AFP) - US President George W. Bush welcomed Sunday NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer at his Texas ranch for talks focused largely on fighting a resurgent Taliban in Afghanistan. Bush himself...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush spent the weekend in Washington where they attended the annual White House Correspondents' Association dinner last night. The Washington Post described the President's appearance this way: The evening took a turn toward the somber when the President took the stage. After a videotaped message from David Letterman ("Top 10 George W. Bush Moments"), he said, "In light of this week's tragedy at Virginia Tech I've decided not to be funny." And with that he handed the lectern over to Rich Little. "I'm not here to make any political points," the veteran...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush, and Mrs. Jenna Bush, the First Lady's mother, arrived back at the White House from Camp David earlier today. Congress returns from its Easter break tomorrow, and the Democrats are bent on doing everything possible to hamstring the President and throw as much manufactured mud at him as possible. In the meantime, President Bush recently read a new book about presidential politics in the 1920's, and liked the book so much he wrote the author. What does President George W. Bush read to relax?New York (PRWEB) April 15, 2007 -- Recently...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush returned from Camp David this morning while the usual suspects were out on the Sunday morning talk shows stabbing him in the back again. In his March 25 piece, columnist Robert Novak -- who never fails to examine a single flea while the dog's health suffers -- gives a typical arrogant media analysis of why President Bush will not attend this year's Gridiron Dinner. Bush steers clear of Gridiron dinner, fearing hostile reception from reportersThe reason given by the White House for President Bush's missing the 122nd annual Washington Gridiron dinner...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: As the President and First Lady spent a quiet Sunday in the White House, word broke that U.S. and Iraqi forces entered Sadr City today. U.S., Iraqi forces enter Shiite center By BRIAN MURPHY, Associated Press Writer 57 minutes ago BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. and Iraqi troops poured into Baghdad's main Shiite militia stronghold Sunday, encountering no resistance in the one-time Sadr City combat zones but testing the Shiites' commitment to the U.S.-promoted campaign to drive militants from the capital. Outside Baghdad, U.S. soldiers described a raid last week that uncovered a suspected Sunni "torture...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush spent the weekend in snowy Washington where they attended services at St. John's this morning. Thanks to our (in my view, terribly short-sighted) 22nd Amendment, which instantly weakens all newly elected 2nd term presidents, and our increasingly (stupid, in my view) early presidential wannabe cycle, Left-wing historians are already trying to spin GWB's legacy in a severely negative light. Fortunately, the President, himself, takes a much longer view than his present-day enemies. However, we are a nation that turned a genuinely mediocre, even dangerous president, John Kennedy, into some mythologically great...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: The big news is that, with Valentine's Day fast approaching, there may be a budding romance in the White House. No, it's not one of the twins, but you'll have to scroll down to find out who. ;-) President Bush spoke to the House Democratic Issues Conference in Williamsburg, Virginia, today. I'm sure elsewhere on FR the hysterics are bashing him for attending this conference, but the office he holds is President of the United States. As such, he is President of all the people and is obliged to work with their representatives, including the...

Laura Bush, who traveled in Paris to meet other First Ladies about the youth defense program, met French journalist of the newspaper "Paris Match". Here is an extract of what she said : Paris-match: "last week, during a handing-over of medals to wounded soldiers back from Iraq, we saw a tear on the cheek of president Bush. How do you support this war with the daily newspapers? Do you leave Iraq on the Oval office, or do you continue to talk about it? Laura Bush: Of course, we talk about it. To be a president of the United States is...

<p>President George W. Bush will give his 2007 State of the Union address to a Joint Session of Congress.</p>

For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary January 23, 2007 Guest List for the First Lady's Box at the 2007 State of the Union Speech       State of the Union 2007 Julie Aigner-Clark, Founder, The Baby Einstein Company; Founder, The Safe Side (Centennial, Colorado) Julie Aigner-Clark, a homemaker and classroom teacher, founded The Baby Einstein Company in 1997, to give her own child exposure to the arts. Julie used personal savings to launch Baby Einstein, and she operated the company for its first three years from her home. In November 2001, Julie sold The Baby Einstein Company to...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush returned to the White House today from their overnight stay at Camp David, where they hosted an informal gathering of Republican leaders Friday night and this morning. In his radio address today, President Bush challenged lawmakers skeptical of his new Iraq plan to propose their own strategy for stopping the violence in Baghdad. "To oppose everything while proposing nothing is irresponsible," he said. The first couple will attend a private dinner tonight before the First Lady leaves for Paris, where she is scheduled to attend a January 14-17 conference on missing...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: As has been their custom throughout his two terms in office, President and Mrs. Bush are spending Christmas at Camp David before heading to their Crawford ranch, where they will stay through the New Year's holiday. The first couple stay at Camp David at this time of year, because it is a secure Naval facility. Navy stewards and staff attend to the first couple's needs at Camp David. This enables most of the White House staff and Secret Service details to spend Christmas with their own families. NEXT WEEK: Although the President will be at...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush are spending a quiet weekend. On Thursday, the President announced this year's Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients. Among them are B.B. King, David McCullough, former Secretary of Transportation Norm Mineta, William Safire and Natan Sharansky. Click here to see the full list. PRESIDENTIAL SCHEDULE: The President will be holding a series of high-level meetings on Iraq next week. He will go to the State Department Monday to meet with senior officials. Later that day, he'll host outside experts on Iraq at a session in the Oval Office. On Tuesday, the President...

CBS) WASHINGTON It's always one of the biggest nights in Washington for stars and for glamorous fashion, with guests in the spotlight at an exclusive White House holiday reception. The designer gowns are always scrutinized, and on this year's bash, there was plenty to talk about. Three women donned the exact same $8,500 red Oscar de la Renta dress, a fashion faux pas in itself. But that's just the beginning of this debacle of ladies in red. It just so happened that First Lady Laura Bush was wearing the very same dress too. Letitia Baldridge, Jacqueline Kennedy's Chief of Staff...

First Lady, Three Others Wear Same Dress For Kennedy Center Honors Every woman who's ever attended a formal party has had the same concern: What if someone else shows up in the same dress? As CBS News correspondent Thalia Assuras reports, that's exactly what happened to first lady Laura Bush at Sunday's Kennedy Center Honors, always one of Washington's biggest nights for stars, and glamorous fashion. With guests in the spotlight at the exclusive White House receptions that go with the ceremony, the designer gowns are always scrutinized. And on Sunday, four women at the reception wore the exact same...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush arrived back at the White House today from their holiday stay at Camp David. Next week will be another heavy travel week for the President, who will visit Estonia on Monday before traveling to Riga, Latvia, on Tuesday for the NATO summit. He will then travel to Amman, Jordan, for two days of talks (Wednesday and Thursday) with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Although Afghanistan will be the primary topic of discussion at the NATO summit, President Bush also plans to propose offering Japan, Australia, South Korea, Sweden and Finland an...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: Our President and First Lady were attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation smmit in Hanoi, Vietnam, this weekend. I'm going to let the photos do the talking today.

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President Bush and First Lady Laura Bush participated in Veterans Day observances in Washington today. They hosted a reception at the White House and attended the ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetary. On Tuesday, the President and First Lady will leave for a trip to Asia, with a brief stop-over in Russia for refueling and a quick social visit with President and Mrs. Putin. THE WEEK AHEAD: Monday, President Bush will meet with the Iraq Study Group. Vice President Cheney and National Security Advisor Steve Hadley will join him for the meeting. This is not a...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: On their 29th wedding anniversary, President and Mrs. Bush spent only a few hours together before GWB flew to Nebraska for a campaign rally. At Waco airport, he make brief remarks about the conviction and sentencing of Saddam Hussein today. For history buffs, this is not the first time Hussein has been convicted and sentenced to death. Years ago he was convicted of a murder, but escaped prison before his sentence could be carried out. This time escape is not likely with American troops guarding him. This time, he will finally make it to his...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: Today is First Lady Laura Bush's 60th birthday and tomorrow is the first couple's 29th wedding anniversary. President Bush spent part of today campaigning in Colorado before joining his wife, family and close friends at his Crawford, Texas, ranch. Here's the AP story about Mrs. Bush's birthday celebration: First lady celebrates 60th birthday By DEB RIECHMANN, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 36 minutes ago CRAWFORD, Texas - It's bling again for Laura Bush's birthday. For the second year in a row, President Bush gave his wife jewelry for her birthday. This year, it's a triple-strand...