MEMORANDUM From: Harrison Wellford To: John Podesta Re: Office of the First Lady [First Draft] Date: July 22, 2008 INTRODUCTION The position of First Lady is, in many ways, a great national paradox. The job has no statutory responsibilities, but can be central to the administration’s success. It holds no official power, but carries with it an intricate web of public expectations. The First Lady is unelected, but represents the entire country. She did not apply for the job; nor can she quit or be fired from it. She must be simultaneously private and public, traditional and modern, apolitical and political. She takes on the varied roles of idealized wife and mother, policy activist, First Hostess to hundreds of thousands, steward of the White House, diplomat, style icon, and presidential spokeswoman, and acts as the nation’s caretaker and moral compass. And she does all of this in an evolving position with no set job description or guidebook (or salary). Now, for the good side: The First Lady’s role in any administration will reflect her unique tastes, interests, and abilities. She is free to design her role and her office in a way that suits her. The First Lady has options in how she will choose to spend her time and energies. She has a support structure, much of it in place at the Inauguration, ready and waiting to carry her hopes into action. And she is uniquely positioned – with one of the most influential podiums in the world at her disposal – to effect tremendous change. The job is a unique and formidable challenge but one that offers immense opportunities to inspire and to serve. This memorandum is intended to serve as a brief introduction to the First Lady’s world and the obligations and opportunities it entails. The memorandum addresses, in turn: the First Lady’s support structure; expected roles; and points to consider with respect to the transition.1 SUPPORT STRUCTURE A support structure exists to help the First Lady fulfill her role; part of it is permanent and part of it will be chosen and installed by the First Lady herself. The best way for a First Lady to ensure early success is to appoint an experienced and loyal staff. Many mistakes can be avoided if the First Lady’s advisers have had relevant experiences in Washington – if not in the White House. The First Lady has a paid staff of about 24, which includes: a Chief of Staff; a Press Secretary; the White House Social Secretary; Directors of Correspondence, Projects, Scheduling, and Advance; and groups supporting each. Laura Bush’s staff (a typical modern 1 A few words of credit: Martha Joynt Kumar has been immensely helpful in reviewing and commenting on this draft. Bradley Patterson has kindly made available advance chapters from his forthcoming book on the White House; most of the information on Laura Bush’s tenure is derived from Patterson’s work. Patterson’s 2000 book The White House Staff contains a parallel chapter on Hillary Clinton’s White House which is also very instructive. See pp. 281-99. Other helpful sources include: Robert P. Watson, Reassessing the Office of First Lady (2000) (esp. at pp. 30-33 and 71-92); Anthony J. Eksterowicz and Kristen Painter, The Evolution of the Role and Office of the First Lady, 37 Social Science Journal 547 (2000); and Myra G. Gutin, The President’s Partner (1989). STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL example) is augmented by 8 interns, 30 volunteers, and four or so assistants detailed from jobs in the departments. The First Lady’s Chief of Staff and the White House Social Secretary also hold the titles of Assistant and Special Assistant to the President, respectively. The Chief of Staff attends morning senior staff meetings, which helps to integrate the First Lady’s office, physically located in the East Wing, into West Wing operations. Other individuals, offices, groups, and agencies also assist the First Lady in her many functions. They include: The White House Chief Usher and Residence Staff; the White House Historical Association; the White House Curator; the Correspondence Office; the General Services Administration and National Park Service maintenance offices; the White House Medical Unit; the Military Office Ceremonies Coordinator; the Navy unit manning Camp David; and others. Some of these will be addressed in greater detail below. ROLES OF THE FIRST LADY First Ladies have always been important companions and advisors to their husbands, though some have been more visible in this role than others. The First Lady’s proximity to the President puts her in a unique position; she often acts as a sounding board for her husband’s ideas as well as an advocate for her own. She is in a position to advise the President on policy, personnel, and politics from a wide perspective, and without an agenda that competes with his own.2 Her voice is particularly important because the President knows he can trust her and knows that she will tell him the truth. Although the role of presidential confidante may be the most important role the First Lady will play, it is not the most visible. Over time, First Ladies have established traditions that have become part of American culture. Americans expect the traditions of the position to continue, and the public outcry can be swift and fierce when they are ignored. Even the title “First Lady” – a Victorian artifact from the 1860s – has become so deeply ingrained that efforts to reconsider it have proved dangerous.3 1. Wife and Mother First Ladies, like mothers and wives everywhere, face the daily challenges of raising a family and keeping a happy and healthy marriage. These challenges are made immensely more difficult for First Ladies because they occur in a context of high public scrutiny, under the intense pressures of the presidency. Amid all this, most First Ladies are careful to project a traditional image – not overshadowing the president or (with rare and good-humored exceptions) disagreeing with him in public. The First Lady has a recognized role, too, as protector of her husband. First Ladies are often the first to notice when the strain on their husbands is too great, and are usually in the best position to ensure that their pace, habits, and lifestyle keep in some semblance of balance. The public has reacted 2 See Richard Neustadt, Preparing to be President, p. 133. Yet, the First Lady’s influence is often viewed with suspicion and envy, perhaps because with the exception of the Vice President, she is the only person in the White House who cannot be fired. 3 For more detail on the roles listed here, see Watson, pp. 71-108. 2 STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL poorly, however, to a perceived overplaying of this role, as when Nancy Reagan appeared overprotective of her husband and domineering towards his staff. Numerous First Families (from the Monroes through the Teddy Roosevelts to the Clintons) have had school-age children while serving in the White House. Their experience has shown that the public and press – while fascinated by the First children – are generally sympathetic to the need for their privacy. Here, too, the traditional role of mother as protector is what the country expects to see.4 Uprooting elementary school children is difficult for any family and can be traumatizing for White House children unless sensitively managed. Frequent visits from hometown friends for weekend slumber parties and special treats like scavenger hunts on the White House lawn eased the pain for Chelsea. A grandmother as frequent visitor – or in residence – during a transition period can also help. One compensating factor is that the First Family lives over the store, so to speak. White House children may therefore see more of their mothers and fathers than they have during the months and years leading up the election. 2. First Hostess The First Lady is responsible for all of the entertaining that goes on in the White House. As the nation’s First Hostess, she is the one who must make visitors feel welcome whether they are coming for a State Dinner, the Christmas press tours, or the Children’s Easter Egg Roll. This job is vastly more important that it may at first blush appear. Although the First Lady may not find her role as hostess as personally fulfilling as her other, more substantive roles, it is an essential part of the Administration’s work. Social events at the White House are where the important work of relationship-building goes on, and by hosting formal and informal gatherings, the First Lady directly enables and complements the president’s work as head of state and head of government. Moreover, Americans visualize the White House as an elegant and upscale place, a version of Jacqueline Kennedy’s Camelot. The First Lady can garner much goodwill for the Administration if she presents the White House people expect – and imagine – and does so in a way that makes all visitors (both real and virtual) feel comfortable. The First Lady has skilled support in this role, including: The White House Social Office. On average, the White House hosts 500 formal occasions a year, and between 100,000 and 125,000 people visit the White House for official and social events.5 4 Issues concerning the safety, privacy, schooling, and social life of the First Family children are complex, and will be addressed in a subsequent memorandum (if so desired). Note that the question of where Malia and Sasha will go to school in Washington has the potential to be a hot-button political issue; public statements on the subject are best avoided, and any information about possible options should only be collected with the utmost discretion.