I Wish I Knew That: U.S. Presidents: Cool Stuff You Need to Know (17 page)

An American Role Model

Beautiful and elegant, Jackie Kennedy turned the White House into a living museum, publicly supported American artists and musicians, and showed great strength and grace when her husband was assassinated.

A Young First Lady

Jacqueline Bouvier was born into a wealthy family in Southampton, New York. After a privileged childhood in New York and Washington, D.C., she became a photographer for a newspaper in the nation’s capital. She met John F. Kennedy, a handsome U.S. congressman from Massachusetts, at a dinner party and married him in 1953 at the age of 24. At 31, she moved into the White House with her two young children and her husband, the newly elected president.

Favorite Projects

The First Lady began restoring the White House, making sure that the furniture, paintings, and decorative arts (like candlesticks and pottery) reflected America’s past. She hosted plays, ballet, jazz, and other cultural events at the White House, inviting America’s most talented performers into her home. She even gave a tour of the White House that was shown on television. Her efforts to celebrate American history and artistic talent brought new attention to American culture.

FIRST LADY FIRST

Jacqueline Kennedy oversaw the publication of the first official White House guidebook. All the profits from the sale of the book went toward her White House restoration project.

Tragedy Strikes

Jackie Kennedy was sitting next to her husband in the presidential limousine when he was shot. Stunned by what had happened, she stood bravely in her blood-spattered pink suit next to Lyndon Johnson as he took the oath of office after the president died. She gracefully and courageously led the country in mourning the loss of her husband.

Life After the White House

She moved back to New York City and five years later married Aristotle Onassis, a wealthy Greek businessman. She began a career as a book editor after his death in 1975, and worked hard to preserve Grand Central Terminal. Fashionable and elegant until the end, she died of cancer at her New York City home at the age of 64.

FUN FACT

So many women wanted to copy Jackie Kennedy’s stylish outfits that department stores dressed mannequins to look like her in the style of clothes that she wore.

36th President ~ 1963–1969

LYNDON B. JOHNSON

LBJ

“You aren’t learning anything when you’re talking.”

Born

August 27, 1908 Stonewall, Texas

Political Party

Democrat

Vice President

Hubert H. Humphrey

First Lady

Claudia “Lady Bird”

Children

Lynda Bird and Luci Baines

Pets

Beagles, a collie; Yuki, a stray mutt found in a gas station and adopted

The Great Society

The first president ever sworn into office aboard an airplane, Lyndon Johnson asked the country to honor President Kennedy’s memory by continuing the good work he started. Americans would create “The Great Society,” he said. The United States would end racial hatred, clean up the air and water, and most important of all, declare an all-out “war on poverty.”

LBJ Everywhere

Johnson, or “LBJ,” was a big, no-nonsense Texan who spoke with a drawl and often wore a Stetson cowboy hat. He had a family tradition that gave everyone the same initials: his wife, Claudia, was nicknamed “Lady Bird,” and their two daughters were named Lynda Bird and Luci Baines.

Early Successes

LBJ was very good at politics and got many of his Great Society ideas put into law. He succeeded in getting antipoverty, civil rights, and voting rights laws passed, making him popular and winning him the next election easily.

Two Crises

Johnson faced two crises that overshadowed his presidency. The biggest crisis was the war in Vietnam, which was growing out of control abroad and pitting Americans against each other at home. Anti-war protesters held demonstrations, sometimes violent, across the country. In addition, race riots erupted in several cities. It was one of the most turbulent times in our history.

PRESIDENTIAL FIRSTS

Lyndon Johnson was the first (and only) president sworn in by a woman. Federal judge Sarah T. Hughes administered the oath on Air Force One, the president’s plane, about two hours after Kennedy was assassinated.

Johnson was the first president to nominate an African-American, Thurgood Marshall, to the Supreme Court.

By the time Johnson was up for re-election, there were a half-million U.S. soldiers in Vietnam, and many were dying. The U.S. had dropped more bombs in Vietnam than in all of Europe in World War II. And no victory was in sight.

Refusing Re-election

Discouraged and with a heavy heart, Johnson refused to run again and retired to his ranch in Texas. Lady Bird Johnson continued to work tirelessly for the poor and to beautify America.

37th President ~ 1969–1974

RICHARD M. NIXON

Tricky Dick

“I am not a crook.”

Born

January 9, 1913 Yorba Linda, California

Political Party

Republican

Vice Presidents

Spiro T. Agnew Gerald R. Ford

First Lady

Thelma “Pat”

Children

Patricia “Tricia” and

Julie

Pets

Checkers, a spaniel; Vicky, a poodle; Pasha, a terrier; King Timahoe, an Irish setter

A Strong Start

After his graduation from Duke Law School, Nixon’s rise in politics was like a meteor: congressman in 1946, senator in 1950, vice president in 1952. If it had not been for a few votes in 1960, he would have beaten Kennedy and been the 35th president.

Instead, he ran for governor of California, but lost. Announcing that he was getting out of politics, he said to the press, “You won’t have Nixon to kick around anymore, because, gentlemen, this is my last press conference.”

Back to Politics

It wasn’t his last press conference, of course. Nixon came back and won the presidency in 1968 and was in the White House on July 20, 1969, when astronaut Neil Armstrong put the first human footprints on the moon.

Nixon was very clever when it came to getting votes. Some said too clever and gave him the nickname “Tricky Dick.” He got elected president by promising to end the war in Vietnam, but the war dragged on and on.

Foreign Problems and Solutions

Nixon brought troops home little by little, but increased the bombing of Vietnam. “Peace is at hand,” the White House kept telling the public. Anti-war protests got louder and louder and 20,000 more Americans died before Nixon finally got U.S. soldiers out of Vietnam completely.

PRESIDENTIAL FIRST

In 1972, Richard Nixon was the first president to visit a country (China) that had not been officially recognized by the United States government.

FUN FACT

Nixon was the first president to speak with a man on the moon.

Nixon welcomed Elvis Presley to the White House in 1970. Elvis had written Nixon a letter suggesting he become a “federal agent-at-large” in the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs. He was given a BNDD badge (but not the job).

Nixon started talking with the leaders of Communist giants China and the Soviet Union, even visiting both countries in order to improve relations with them.

Watergate

Nixon was expected to win re-election easily in 1972. But in order to be sure of success, his assistants broke into the offices of the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate office building in Washington, D.C, to spy on his competition. When his spies were caught, most of them lied about what they had been doing. So did Nixon. He resigned in disgrace in August 1974 rather than be impeached—get put on trial—by the Senate.

“Always remember,” he said, “others may hate you, but those who hate you don’t win unless you hate them. And then you destroy yourself.”

38th President ~ 1974–1977

GERALD R. FORD

Jerry