Mamie Eisenhower's Approach to 1950S P
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School THE FIRST LADY’S HIDDEN-HAND: MAMIE EISENHOWER’S APPROACH TO 1950S POLITICS A Dissertation in American Studies by Stefanie Strosnider Basalik © 2019 Stefanie Strosnider Basalik Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy December 2019 ii The dissertation of Stefanie Strosnider Basalik was received and approved* by the following: Charles J.D. Kupfer Associate Professor of American Studies, School of Humanities Dissertation Advisor Chair of Committee John R. Haddad Professor of American Studies, School of Humanities Anne A. Verplanck Associate Professor of American Studies, School of Humanities Professor-in-Charge, Doctor of Philosophy in American Studies Carol R. Nechemias Associate Professor Emerita of Political Science and Public Policy, School of Public Affairs *Signatures are on file in the Graduate School iii ABSTRACT Mamie Doud Eisenhower was First Lady from 1953-1961. Like many first ladies, Mamie took her job as the nation’s hostess seriously. What sets her apart is her subtle use of political strategy as a way to support her husband. Mamie worked behind the scenes to create a comfortable home for Dwight Eisenhower from the beginning of their marriage in 1916 to his death in 1969. Fred I. Greenstein argues in The Hidden –Hand Presidency: Eisenhower as Leader that Dwight Eisenhower, as a military leader was decisive and purposely secretive. Eisenhower carried those same tactics into the White House. Mamie learned to be publically charismatic and invited select individuals and groups into her home as a way to inwardly advocate for Ike. Critics of Mamie Eisenhower accused her of being apolitical and spending too much time shopping and having parties. This dissertation proves Mamie’s shrewd political awareness through her devotion to her husband. Mamie Eisenhower believed serving the American people meant serving Ike. Through primary sources found at The Eisenhower Presidential Library in Abilene, Kansas, and the Eisenhower National Historic Site in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Mamie’s marriage, her relationship with her grandchildren, her interactions with staff, and her influence on consumerism demonstrate her knack for the same hidden-hand approach to governing. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures ..................................................................................................................... v Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ vi Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter One: Mrs. Ike, the General’s Wife ...................................................................... 18 Chapter Two: Ike’s Secret Weapon .................................................................................. 43 Chapter Three: “Your Husband is the Boss” .................................................................... 67 Chapter Four: “Please Don’t Step on the Carpet!” ........................................................... 88 Chapter Five: “A Number One Housewife and Hostess” ............................................... 107 Chapter Six: Mrs. Eisenhower Goes Shopping............................................................... 128 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 149 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 160 v LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Eisenhower Toile, samples of toile are located at Eisenhower National Historic Site, Gettysburg, PA. ………………………………………………………………145 vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First, I would like to thank the archives and collections staff at the Eisenhower Presidential Library in Abilene, Kansas, for making hundreds of documents and collection pieces available to me during my whirlwind research trip. I am also grateful to Greg Goodell and Mike Florer of Gettysburg National Military Park/Eisenhower National Historic Site for providing access to Mamie Eisenhower’s clothing and Eisenhower Toile. A special thanks to Carol Hegeman of the Eisenhower Society for answering questions and for allowing a couple of giddy interns to run amuck around the Farm. Thank you to my mom, Lora Strosnider, and my best friend, Erin Pearce, for traveling to various archives and sitting with me for hours when I needed more resources. I appreciate you allowing me to boss you around and for the encouragement to keep going. To my committee, Drs. Haddad, Verplanck, Nechemias, and Kupfer, thank you for many years of support and positive feedback. Your encouragement, advice, and quick edits, allowed me to see this project through after seven long years. An overwhelming thanks to my parents for supporting me through divorce, blindness, homelessness, and finally finding happiness. As I was working to accomplish this degree, you were working to keep me sane and together. Finally, to my husband, Shaun, thank you for being the Mr. to my Dr. Your confidence in my ability and love for our family overwhelms me. I pray we make it to 53 years of marriage just like Ike and Mamie. vii This dissertation is dedicated to my long-time doctor and friend, Dr. Jason Atwood Tate. Thank you for the excellent care and intellectual banter over the years. Introduction Sitting behind an ornately carved desk, Mamie Doud Eisenhower struck a cheerful pose for a crowd of photographers in the White House. Six months had passed since Dwight D. Eisenhower was elected President, and the nation’s First Lady lightheartedly joked with New York Times reporters about her hectic schedule. New York Times reporter Nona Brown writes of first ladies that year, “It takes a self-confident and cosmopolitan woman to preside over the White House. Everything about her existence, from her hats to her handshake, is subject to public scrutiny and discussion.” Mamie Eisenhower understood the importance of conducting herself with grace, poise, and humility, while shaking thousands of hands and planning state dinners for hundreds of people. Historians and reporters have posed the question of what makes a good first lady? Is it the number of charities events she attends, press conferences she holds, how many schoolchildren she visits, or affairs she caters? How does the role evolve as the roles of wives and women evolve? Taking these and other queries into account, Brown categorized first ladies into three categories, those who have “done what custom required, but not more,” the women who have “raised the tempo of life at the White House, either by public activities on behalf of charity or in social assemblages,” and “a third group of First Ladies who have gone still farther beyond the routine requirements of the role and participated actively in politics.” Brown describes Mamie squarely in the second category as she notes the first lady as “unpolitical” and “one can no more picture her taking a political issue than, as an Army wife, participating in a debate over infantry tactics.”1 Although Brown’s analysis 1 Nona Brown, “Being First Lady Is a Man-Sized Job: But Mrs. Eisenhower handles it with the ease of experience,” New York Times, May 10, 1953. 2 of Mamie’s placement in the second category is correct, the reporter neglects to describe a class of first ladies that encompasses the second and third assessment. Citing Eleanor Roosevelt as the first lady who pushed passed the “routine requirements and participated actively in politics,” Brown overlooks the fact that Roosevelt was capable of preoccupation with politics due to World War II’s suspension of most White House entertainment functions.2 Brown also suggests Mamie Eisenhower was apolitical. Compared to Eleanor Roosevelt, this is a reasonable assumption. After twelve years of a politically robust, outspoken dynamo that was Eleanor Roosevelt, Mamie appeared charming, yet politically unmotivated. It is also a bit premature for Brown to classify Mamie as a political non-starter as this article was published a short time into Eisenhower’s presidency. With careful scrutiny, it becomes clear, Mamie purposefully elected to appear apolitical. For Mamie Eisenhower, life as first lady was not deemed successful until she made the White House a home for Ike. She also used a subtler form of political persuasion than delivering a stump speech or feigning interest in a particular cause on the charity circuit. Mamie was first to state she was not elected by the American people to represent their interests. However, she did have the President’s ear and illustrated her political prowess by cultivating relationships inside and outside the White House and maintained an astute public relations initiative. Echoing the public’s sentiments of the charming first lady, Brown suggests, “Being First Lady is a man-sized job but Mrs. Eisenhower handles it with the ease of experience.” If any Army wife participated “in a debate over infantry 2 White House Social Calendar of State Dinners, Seasons 1923-1957, Mary Jane McCaffree Papers, Box 1, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library. 3 tactics,” or casually demonstrated her ability to show strength during periods of uncertainty, it was Mamie Eisenhower. She understood the key to interacting with a friend or stranger is gregarious friendliness and the overwhelming power of publicity. “She says that the First Lady’s role represents