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Was Edith Wilson the First Woman President?
Washington Monthly ^ | 4/4/23 | Sara Bhatia

Posted on 06/29/2024 10:07:34 AM PDT by DallasBiff

Rebecca Boggs Roberts opens Untold Power, her delightful new biography of First Lady Edith Bolling Galt Wilson, with a gripping scene that seems scripted for Hollywood. To set the stage: In the fall of 1919, after a grueling seven months in Europe negotiating the end of World War I, a bruising battle with the Senate over the treaty’s ratification, and a cross-country train tour to promote the League of Nations, President Woodrow Wilson suffered a series of strokes that left him partially paralyzed, intellectually diminished, and often incoherent. Remarkably, Edith Wilson—the president’s second wife, of just four years—along with a tiny coterie of loyal aides successfully conspired to hide the president’s illness from the public, government officials, and even from the president himself. For months, Wilson remained bedridden while the White House insisted that he was merely suffering from nervous exhaustion.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonmonthly.com ...


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; History
KEYWORDS: edithhwilson; jillbiden
History repeats itself, and at that time Wilson could have run for a third term, and at least Edith knew that her husband was in dire health, unlike Jill Biden, who will not give up her title.

You made bed your bed democrats, lie in it.

1 posted on 06/29/2024 10:07:34 AM PDT by DallasBiff
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To: DallasBiff

Is Jill running the country, or is obama?

Either way is bad indeed!


2 posted on 06/29/2024 10:11:57 AM PDT by Honorary Serb
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To: DallasBiff

No, she wasn’t. And Wilson in his condition should have resigned.


3 posted on 06/29/2024 10:13:33 AM PDT by Southside_Chicago_Republican (God save the United States!)
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To: Honorary Serb

Acting Presidential Consortium: Hillary, Obama and Valerie Jarett. PS Yikes!


4 posted on 06/29/2024 10:18:00 AM PDT by Colt1851Navy (What was wrong with Nixon?)
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To: DallasBiff

Clearly this ain’t the Democrat’s first rodeo!


5 posted on 06/29/2024 10:18:22 AM PDT by BradyLS (DO NOT FEED THE BEARS!)
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To: Southside_Chicago_Republican

Wilson was a catastrophe. He was the beginning of the ruin we are looking at.


6 posted on 06/29/2024 10:19:15 AM PDT by gibsonguy
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To: Honorary Serb

I haven’t seen any evidence that Jill is capable of running anything. At best, she is responsible for coaching Bidon when he has to attend anything publicly.


7 posted on 06/29/2024 10:19:21 AM PDT by Jonty30 (He hunted a mammoth for me, just because I said I was hungry. He is such a good friend. )
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To: DallasBiff

Nice try Washington monthly

No one’s voting for any package deal. Jill Biden is as gone as Joe. She’ll be the last to know


8 posted on 06/29/2024 10:20:09 AM PDT by stanne
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To: Colt1851Navy

Holder is running the DOJ and the Lawfare.


9 posted on 06/29/2024 10:20:36 AM PDT by Zathras
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To: gibsonguy

No doubt about that.


10 posted on 06/29/2024 10:20:46 AM PDT by Southside_Chicago_Republican (God save the United States!)
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To: DallasBiff
Obviously, Edith never held the office -- so this is a little silly.

A story like this is either printed with an eye on Jill Biden, or else an eye on Kamala Harris.

On one hand, Jill could be running things while she enables her senile husband to sit in the chair. Just like Edith. But while Edith Wilson really was making decisions, I don't think anyone really worries that Jill is actually running the country. That's Obama's job.

On the other hand, there could be some excitement that, if Joe has to step down, the US might get it's first female president. Yeah! Go Kamala! How awesome!

But for anyone who doesn't want Kamala to take the office (that would be: everyone) you can run a story like this -- first president? Kamala? Oh, no, I think we've been here before. Edith Wilson -- there's the first female president. So, you know, Kamala isn't anything special. Might as well toss her aside because she's not even a "first" or anything.

11 posted on 06/29/2024 10:26:02 AM PDT by ClearCase_guy (It's not "Quiet Quitting" -- it's "Going Galt".)
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To: gibsonguy

Indeed.


12 posted on 06/29/2024 10:39:01 AM PDT by RushIsMyTeddyBear ("Equity" = "All animals are equal. Some animals are more equal than others.")
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To: Honorary Serb
Is Jill running the country, or is obama?

Neither. It's the oligarchs who control Jill and Obama.

13 posted on 06/29/2024 10:41:18 AM PDT by Angelino97
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To: DallasBiff
the president’s second wife, of just four years—along with a tiny coterie of loyal aides successfully conspired to hide the president’s illness from the public, government officials, and even from the president himself.

This was an era of no TV, prior to public use of radio, and silent movies. Fed.gov was well below 10% of the economy (outside of WWI expenditure). Politics was certainly local and news travelled by telex.

With agreement of the few people with access to the President, it would be easy to conceal Wilson's infirmity.

14 posted on 06/29/2024 10:43:27 AM PDT by PGR88
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To: DallasBiff

Like Jill Biden, Edith Wilson was the First Nurse. That’s actually a position of some power, but I’d look into which of Wilson’s advisors and staffers was still around and in contact with Edith. That’s probably who made the decisions.

In his career Wilson had a reputation for breaking with subordinates and repudiating them and firing them, so whoever was still around was lucky indeed.


15 posted on 06/29/2024 10:45:34 AM PDT by x
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To: DallasBiff

Wilson, FDR, Biden...
Sickly Marxist peas in a pod...


16 posted on 06/29/2024 10:56:17 AM PDT by SuperLuminal ( Where is Samuel Adams when we so desperately need him)
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To: DallasBiff

In the same sense that Peyton Randolph was the first POTUS, ... yes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peyton_Randolph


17 posted on 06/29/2024 11:42:42 AM PDT by Paal Gulli
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To: gibsonguy

Agreed. Wilson was a Communist before communism was an official political ideology.


18 posted on 06/29/2024 12:28:30 PM PDT by Spacetrucker (George Washington didn't use his freedom of speech to defeat the British - HE SHOT THEM .. WITH GUNS)
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To: DallasBiff

19 posted on 06/30/2024 7:34:38 AM PDT by Pollard (Will work for high tunnel money!)
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