Part 2 of 5. The Empress Has No Clothes

This book is the first that I am aware of to dispassionately examine the activities of Jackie as First Lady. Ms. Smith notes that after the election Jackienever campaigned again with her husband until the fateful trip to Dallas in November 1963. This was a trip that Jackie reluctantly consented to go on only
because Texas was crucial state in the next election and her popularity there was a great asset to her husband. Further her absence on the trip might be seen as affront by Texans and the Texas media.

The author also makes the point that Jackie was a reluctant First Lady concerning the day to day chores of attending meetings, charity events or public appearances when one group or another came to town. In this regard LadyBird Johnson did yeoman service filling in for the First Lady and was often assisted by Janet Lee Auchincloss, Rose Kennedy and Jackie's sisters in law. The evidence indicates that Jackie echewed the more mundane aspects of the job of First Lady. However for the more spectacular social events she was without equal in planning and execution, inviting the best minds and artists to the White house for these occasions that gave rise to the aura of the White House as "Camelot."
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Labels: Book Review: Jack and Jackie