LAURA BUSH

'Laura Lane Welch Bush' (born November 4, 1946) is the wife of the forty-third and current President of the United States George W. Bush and is thereby the First Lady of the United States.

Contents

Early life

Marriage and family

First Lady of the United States

First term

Second term

Awards and honors

Further reading

References

External links

Early life

Laura Lane Welch was born in Midland, Texas, the only child of Harold Welch (1912–1995) and Jenna Louise Hawkins Welch (born 1919).
Welch earned a Bachelor of Science degree in education in 1968 from Southern Methodist University in Dallas where she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. After graduating, she became a school teacher at Longfellow Elementary School in Dallas Independent School District until 1969. She then taught for three years at John F. Kennedy Elementary School, a Houston Independent School District school in Houston, until 1972.
She then attained a Master of Science degree in Library Science in 1973 from the University of Texas at Austin, following which she was employed as a librarian at the Kashmere Gardens Branch at the Houston Public Library until 1974, when she moved back to Austin. She was a librarian at an Austin Independent School District school, Dawson Elementary School until 1977.

Marriage and family

Laura Welch met George W. Bush in 1977 at a backyard barbecue at the home of mutual friends. After a three-month courtship, she married him on November 5 of that year at the First United Methodist Church in Midland, the same church in which she had been baptized.^[1]
In 1981, she gave birth to twin daughters, Barbara and Jenna. The twins graduated from high school in 2000 and from Yale University and the University of Texas at Austin, respectively, in 2004.
During her years raising her children, Laura Bush served as a volunteer in a number of organizations, including Friends of the Midland Public Library, the executive board of the Junior League of Midland, the Friends of Dallas Public Library Board Executive Committee, the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) at Preston Hollow Elementary School, and the Community Partners Board of Child Protective Services.^[2]
Laura Bush is credited with influencing the maturation of her husband in the 1980s and with being one of the factors in his decision to stop drinking alcohol in 1986.^[3]
Her mother, Jenna Louise Hawkins, was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 78. She endured surgery and has no further signs of cancer. Laura has become a breast cancer activist on her mother's behalf.^[4]
Several times a year, Laura Bush and her husband travel to their sprawling family estate, the Bush Compound better known as Walker's Point. Located in Kennebunkport, Maine, the compound is where Bush family gatherings have been held for nearly 100 years.
Laura Bush became the First Lady of Texas when her husband was elected as the Governor of Texas and served as first lady of that state from 1995 to 2000. She worked for women's and children's causes, establishing the Adopt-a-Caseworker Program and the Rainbow Room program. She also focused on literacy and libraries, and established the First Lady's Family Literacy Initiative, which encouraged families to read together.^[5]
During her years in the Governor's Mansion, she did not hold a single formal event.^[6]
After the outcome of the 2000 Presidential Election was finally resolved in December 2000, her husband resigned as Texas Governor to prepare for his inauguration as President of the United States in January 2001, making Laura Bush the First Lady of the United States.

First Lady of the United States

First term

As First Lady of the United States, Laura Bush has focused on education and women's health issues and launched the first National Book Festival. Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, she took an interest in mitigating the emotional effects of the attacks on children, which were disturbing, particularly as the images were repeatedly replayed on television. Many schools closed early, especially those with children whose parents worked in Washington, D.C. or New York City. When asked for her thoughts on the attacks, she responded with a very strong warning to parents: don't let your children see the pictures over and over, especially young children, but even elementary school-aged children shouldn't be watching it all the time.^[7] She gave the warning, based on how children reacted when watching television coverage of the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. She also composed open letters which she distributed through state education officials. A "Dear Students" letter went to middle and high school students,^[8] while elementary school students got one saying, "Dear Children".^[9]
In November 2001, she became the first person other than a president to deliver the weekly presidential radio address. She used the opportunity to discuss the plight of women in Afghanistan during the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, saying, "The brutal oppression of women is a central goal of the terrorists."^[10] In May 2002, she made a speech to the people of Afghanistan through Radio Liberty, a radio station in Prague, Czech Republic.
Laura Bush was named the second most powerful woman in the United States (after Condoleezza Rice) and the fourth most powerful in the world by ''Forbes'' magazine in 2004.^[11]

Second term

During the January 2005 second inauguration ceremonies for her husband, Laura Bush was praised by ''People'' magazine and others for her elegance and better use of fashion.^[12]
While her First Lady approval ratings remained high (some polls said 85% approval) as her husband's approval ratings slid she began to take a stronger role in his second term. Among her recent high-profile projects is an initiative designed to encourage patriotism in American schools entitled National Anthem Project.
In April 2005, Bush joked about her husband at the White House Correspondents' Dinner in Washington, D.C. She called her husband "Mr. Excitement" and said she told him that if he wanted to "end tyranny in the world" he would have to stay up later. She even used the old joke that he "tried to milk a horse ... and what's worse it was a male horse." She also jokingly compared mother-in-law Barbara Bush to "Don Corleone."^[13]
In May 2005, as Bush traveled through the Middle East, she was heckled by some bystanders in Jerusalem, appeared on Egypt's version of ''Sesame Street'', endorsed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's upcoming election plans, and in Jordan said that women should have the right to "speak and vote and worship freely."^[14] In Jerusalem, Bush visited the Dome Of the Rock mosque. She removed her shoes and walked barefoot in the mosque, which is a sign of respect in Islamic culture. That same month Lynne Cheney said on ''Larry King Live'' that Mrs. Bush should run for President in 2008.^[15] Dick Cheney concurred, leading to some press musings of a matchup between Laura Bush and Hillary Clinton.

On July 12, 2005 while in South Africa on an AIDS mission, Bush suggested her husband replace retiring Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O'Connor with another woman. Her husband seemed surprised when reporters asked him about her quote, but said he could not wait to hear her advice. On October 2, during a private dinner at the White House with Laura, President Bush asked Harriet Miers to replace O'Connor.^[16]Later that month, after Miers had faced intense criticism, Bush questioned whether the charges were sexist in nature.^[17]
In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, speaking at a press conference from a relief center in Lafayette on September 2, 2005, Laura Bush was asked about the fact that most of the people stuck in New Orleans were poor and black. The First Lady said that while the poor are always the main victims of natural disasters, there is nothing that can be done about it. "This is what happens when there's a natural disaster of this scope," Mrs. Bush said. "The poorer people are usually in the neighborhoods that are the lowest or the most exposed or the most vulnerable. Their housing is the most vulnerable to natural disaster. And that is just always what happens."^[18]

While appearing on ''Fox News Sunday'' on May 14, 2006, Mrs. Bush responded to a question concerning the Federal Marriage Amendment by calling for elected leaders not to politicize same-sex marriage, "I don't think it should be used as a campaign tool, obviously. It requires a lot of sensitivity to just talk about the issue... a lot of sensitivity."^[19]
Although opinion polls relating to her husband have dropped steadily for much of his presidency, Mrs. Bush has said, "I don't really believe those polls. I travel around the country. I see people, I see their responses to my husband. I see their response to me," she said.^[20]

Awards and honors

During her tenure as the First Lady, Laura Bush has received a number of awards and honors. In October 2002, the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity honored Mrs. Bush in recognition of her life-long commitment to education,^[21] the American Library Association honored her for her years of support to America's libraries and librarians in April of 2005,^[22] and she received an award in honor of her dedication to help improve the living conditions and education of children around the world, from the Kuwait-American Foundation in March of 2006.^[23] Three learning facilities have been named for her: the Laura Bush Elementary School in Houston, Texas,^[24] the Laura W. Bush Elementary School in the Leander ISD just outside Austin, Texas,^[25] and the Laura Bush Education Center at Camp Bondsteel, a US military base in Kosovo, is named after her.

Further reading

★ Felix, Antonia. ''Laura: America's First Lady, First Mother.'' The first biography on Laura Bush. ISBN 1-58062-659-9

★ Gerhart, Ann. ''The Perfect Wife: The Life and Choices of Laura Bush.'' A biography. ISBN 0-7432-4383-8

★ Gormley, Beatrice. ''Laura Bush: America's First Lady.'' A biography. ISBN 0-689-85366-1

★ Kelley, Kitty. ''The Family : The Real Story of the Bush Dynasty.'' ISBN 0-385-50324-5

★ Kessler, Ronald. ''Laura Bush: An Intimate Portrait of the First Lady.'' A biography. ISBN 0-385-51621-5

★ Montgomery, Leslie. ''Were It Not For Grace: Stories From Women After God's Own Heart; Featuring Condoleezza Rice, First Lady Laura Bush, Beth Moore & Others.'' Laura Bush shares her story about how God has had his hand on her life. ISBN 0-8054-3178-0

References

1. George and Laura Bush Sheri & Bob Stritof
2. The First Ladies of the United States of America: Laura Welch Bush
3. Turning Point: George W. Bush, A Legacy Reclaimed Mary Leonard
4. Remarks by Mrs. Bush at Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation “Embrace the Race” Event
5. First lady of Texas Laura Bush to speak at UNT Sept. 4 Nancy Kolsti
6. Literacy efforts on first lady's agenda
7. America Under Attack: Talk with First Lady Laura Bush John King, CNN Correspondent
8. Mrs. Bush's Letter to Middle and High School Students Following Terrorist Attacks Laura Bush
9. Mrs. Bush's Letter to Elementary School Students Following Terrorist Attacks Laura Bush
10. Radio Address by Mrs. Bush Laura Bush
11. The World's 100 Most Powerful Women Elizabeth MacDonald and Chana R. Schoenberger
12. Laura Bush: Belle Of The Balls
13. Laura Bush: First lady of comedy?
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15. Interview With Dick Cheney, Lynne Cheney Larry King
16. White House Counsel Miers Chosen for Court Michael Fletcher
17. Laura Bush Echoes Sexism Charge in Miers Debate Jim VandeHei
18. The first lady: That's just the way it is Tim Grieve
19. Mrs. Bush: Don't Campaign on Marriage Ban Nedra Pickler
20. Interview of Mrs. Laura Bush by Fox News
21. Laura Bush Honored at the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity Award Dinner
22. ALA honors Mrs. Laura Bush for service to libraries Bernadette Murphy
23. News & Policies > March 2006 Images Shealah Craighead
24. About Laura Welch Bush Elementary
25. Laura Welch Bush Elementary School

External links

★ Official White House profile

★ "The book on Laura Bush" by Dennis B. Roddy, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

★ "A Laura Bush we don't know" by Eugene Robinson, San Francisco Chronicle

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