Name/Title
NewspaperEntry/Object ID
2016.2.96Description
*this article has nothing pretaining to President William McKinley
Bush/Ex-first lady speaks at Packard
... Bush never commented directly on President Clinton and the Monica Lewinsky scandal, the crowd of more than 2,000 responded in laughter and loud applause when she made two veiled references to the situation.
Answering a written question about privacy in the White House, she said the president and first lady have "a great deal" of privacy, with 11 bedrooms and a very discreet Secret Service. "If you run for office, you're going to have your life looked into, so if you run, you'd better behave yourself."
The audience burst into applause again a few mintues later when she read a question asking what it's like to be first lady. "It's great to be first lady," she said. "IF you're married to George Bush."
Humor: She peppered her speech heavily with humor, joking about her weight ("The eyes are two of my favorite body parts. They don't need constant diet of exercise") and her age. (Discussing an upcoming address to a plastic surgeons' convention, "With this face, I won't have to say a word, They'll rush a stage.")
No jokes, though, about George Bush, her husband of 53 years. "I wouldn't change a thing," she said of the former president. "He really makes my life sing."
Mrs. Bush said they entertain a lot (125 overnight guests this summer), golf (I'm dying to break 100," she said), go boating and spnd time with grandchildren. Both travel frequently -- she was headed to Scottdale, Ariz., today to cut the ribbon on the new Mayo Clinic Hospital there.
Advice: She repeatedly reminded the audience that she's no longer involved in politics but acknowledged that the fame that still follows her is sometimes a hindrance.
"If you go to a restaurant and see a former president and his wife or a movie star or an athlete, don't speak to them," she said. "Wave if you want, but don't speak."
Mrs. Bush, whose Foundation for Family Literacy has provided $4.9 million for literacy progarms nationwide, also entertained about 50 children and their parents at a story hour at the Warren-Trumbull County Library before her lecture.
Proceeds from her visit will benefit the Upton Association's educational programs and the maintenance and refurbishing of the Upton House, the association's headquarters and former home of Harriet Taylor Upton, a leader in the women's suffrage movement.Collection
BlaneyAcquisition
Accession
2016.2.0Source or Donor
Eileen B. BlaneyAcquisition Method
Gift