Scholars say Eleanor Roosevelt Was the Best First Lady, Michelle Obama Comes In 5th

Montreal Gazette ^ | February 15, 2014 | AP

[Eleutheria5]

What did they do? Ask the former Presidents how good their wives did their job in the sack? In that case, Eleanor is out of the running.

[firebrand]

I despise all this interest in so-called “first ladies.” It leads to their husbands’ setting them up where they don’t belong. Everything they do should be charitable work or at least outside the taxpayers’ budget. Even that would not be enough for me, really, but I’m trying to be reasonable.The adulation just perpetuates the idea of the Alpha Woman being the one who is married to the Alpha Man, not any kind of alpha in her own right. Sorry if I sound repetitious but it bugs me no end.

[firebrand]

Yeah, they forgot Dolley Madison, who served ice cream before the age of electric refrigerators. The ice had to be brought in from frozen bodies of water. Now there’s a first lady.

[firebrand]

Evangelicals don’t like Nancy the horoscope hag.

[firebrand]

Jackie was a preservationist, consistent with all her other manifestations of excellent taste. She helped save some of our priceless architectural treasures in NYC.

[firebrand]

Whoops. Read the article, fb.

[Political Junkie Too]

Dolley Madison, who served ice cream before the age of electric refrigerators. The ice had to be brought in from frozen bodies of water. Now there’s a first lady.

If Michelle Obama wants to follow Dolly Madison's lead, she should spearhead an effort to take all the polar vortex snow and transport it to California reservoirs.

She should create the "Snowmelt Pipeline," to be used to transfer all the snow caused by Global Warming to states that are dry from Global Warming.

-PJ

[Rodamala]

I agree. Laura and Barbara Bush are both respectable ladies.

[Rodamala]

I don't have a TV but happened to catch the C-SPAN First Ladies: Influence and Image segment on Grace Coolidge. I was very impressed. Part of that may have been the one museum curator, a rather smart young woman, struck me as very interested and knowledgeable, given her age.

[lbryce]

I don’t think it was only the evangelicals. I think that Americans of all political stripes were horrified by the notion that the country was being led by some clueless soothsayer and even worse than Reagan allowed it. What it said about Reagan was pretty damming.

[GodBlessRonaldReagan]

After reading Robert Caro’s biographies of Lyndon Johnson, I have an immense amount of respect for Lady Bird. I would have smothered LBJ in his sleep if I was her.

[trebb]

Actually, I think Mamie Eisenhower may have been one of the best. As I remember, she behaved with dignity, but never tried to interfere in politics. Which is as it should be.

Laura Bush did much the same and Barbara Bush had her qualities....

[Sacajaweau]

One is sufficient. I'd say Abigail Adams....only because her letters prove her interest in the people and her husbands work. In other words, she was never self serving.

As far as being a Dem....the world of politics was evolving in the early years...Either you were a Federalist or not.

Hillary, Michelle...merely self serving...from the beginning to the present

[billhilly]

The most gracious of all was Laura Bush.

[KoRn]

"The most gracious of all was Laura Bush."

While true, she indeed seems to be a very good person, I'd prefer she hadn't spent my taxes on bothering with whether or not my children(or anyone elses) can read, no more than a First Lady trying to decide/lecturing on what they eat.

IMO, a First Lady should do what wives typically do. Take care of and look after their children, and above all support their husbands who in this case is the President. The President needs a great wife to run their family and household probably more than anyone, because God knows they are(or should be) very busy with their jobs. That obviously isn't happening when the First Lady is flying all over the country(at our expense), doing speeches with TV appearances, trying to drive and manipulate the political agenda, and staying in Hawaii/other places for weeks at a time

Is there any wonder why the children of modern time 'First Families' tend to be dysfunctional people when they get older? Both of their parents tend to be absent during those 4-8 years, which are usually the formative teen years that lead into adulthood. This has to be at least partly due to their father being the President, and their mothers totally failing at being a mother. I'm willing to give the father a pass on this, because being President isn't a typical 9-5 job that can be 'left at the office' at the end of the day. The blame is squarely with their mothers.

[hosepipe]

Evangelicals don’t like Nancy the horoscope hag.

---

Many christians are liberals..and most Jews...
God blessed them with Obama..

Apt punishment I figure..

[elkfersupper]

I'm still going with James Buchanan's spouse - which was NOBODY.

The perfect spouse and first lady.

[MrChips]

LOL! And I am related to Buchanan folks!

[Impy]

Disgusting.

Eleanor, bisexual radical.

Jackie Kennedy, meaningless fashion icon and possible whore

Michelle, shrill afro-centric beard

Hillary, bisexual radical (I don’t believe in reincarnation but it makes you wonder)

To compare those harpies to Abigail Adams and Dolly Madison, the nerve.

[NFHale]

RE Eleanor:

Never heard that before... where did that come from?

RE Jackie O: Fashionista yes _ not sure about the other appellation though

Now JFK and Teddy yes