All The Presidents Ladies

Based on groundbreaking original reporting, an extensive new look at Donald Trump's relationships with women, revealing new accusations of sexual misconduct, exploring the roots of his alleged predatory behavior, and illustrating how Trump's presidency has helped catalyze the #MeToo movement and revitalize women's activism.

Index & bibliography included.

Publisher Description

C-SPAN's year-long history series, "First Ladies: Influence and Image," aired in 2013 and 2014 and was devoted to revealing the private lives and public actions of 43 iconic American women. First Ladies captures the spirit of this special series by assembling its impressive collection of contemporary first ladies historians into book form. Their original interviews, condensed into an essay about each first lady, create intimate portraits of these women, their lives, ambitions, and their unique partnerships with their presidential spouses. Susan Swain and the C-SPAN team elicit the details that made these women who they were. You'll read how Martha Washington intentionally set the standards followed by first ladies for the next century; how Lucretia Garfield calmed the nation in the wake of her husband's shooting just four months into his presidency; and how Mamie Eisenhower harnessed the advent of television to reinforce her and her husband's positive public images. First Ladies informs its readers in interesting ways about America's most well-known first ladies, such as Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, Mary Todd Lincoln, Eleanor Roosevelt, Jacqueline Kennedy, Nancy Reagan, and Michelle Obama. Yet, some of its very best gems are contained in the lives of first ladies whose stories had been lost to the pages of history or overshadowed by their powerful presidential partners—Louisa Catherine Adams, Jane Pierce, Sarah Polk, Frances Cleveland, and Edith Wilson. What is ultimately unraveled in the book is the untold half of the story: how American women lived, worked, and thrived over 200+ years of history. The role of first ladies in our political culture has long been a subject of lively debate. This book provides an intimate historical look at the interesting women who persevered in the glare that is the White House, supporting their families and famous husbands and sometimes changing history. You'll find it illuminating, entertaining, and ultimately inspiring. Illustrated, and including both the basic biographical information and a rich look at the public and inner lives of the first ladies, this book is a resource, a fascinating read, and a beautiful gift.

Having just completed a careful study of nearly a dozen different sexual styles, (Sexual Styles: A Guide to Understanding Your Lover's Personality, Humanics, 1998), John Berecz now applies this same analysis to the sexual lives of the last ten American Presidents; not from the viewpoint of an historian or tabloid journalist but as a clinical psychologist. From the silhouette of our personality style emerges our sexual style; through careful analysis of the personality styles and especially in their relationships with women, All The Presidents' Women probes the past and present inhabitants of the world's most powerful office - with surprising results. From President Truman through Bill Clinton, Berecz provides a fascinating investigation into the lives, loves and motivations of these influential men. With depth and clarity, All The Presidents' Women presents answers to questions such as: Did Bess Truman henpeck her husband Harry? Was Jack Kennedy a wildly promiscuous playboy, or did he just have a great capacity to love lots of women? Was Lyndon Johnson indeed crude, or was he putting on a "wild-west" sideshow? Did Nixon's paranoia extend beyond the press corps and other politicians and was he suspicious of everyone? All the Presidents' Women will engender new understanding of our presidents' personalities, their sexual styles and the women they have loved.

Introduction: first ladies of the republic: Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, Dolley Madison, and the forging of an American role -- Martha Washington: the road to the first ladyship -- Abigail and John Adams: the long apprenticeship to the White House -- Abigail Adams: the second first lady -- Dolley Madison: the first lady as "queen of America"--Conclusion: the first ladyship launched

Covering each administration from Washington to Clinton, portraits and historical illustrations are combined with essays on the political and personal lives of every First Couple. These narratives are augmented by fact charts listing the highlights and achievements of the presidents and first ladies.