What had once been a daring exception, much commented on in the press, became commonplace. Elizabeth (“Betty”) Bloomer Warren Ford, in the job less than a full term (August 1974 to January 1977), spoke with such candor about subjects that had formerly been taboo that she introduced an entirely new style; and her support of women’s rights made headlines. Rosalynn Smith Carter (1977–1981) continued Betty Ford’s example of using First Ladyhood as a platform for women’s issues; but she added a new component by going off on international missions, which the White House billed as “substantive,” and then testifying in front of a congressional committee on a mental health program. Nancy Davis Reagan began her Washington tenure in 1981 by insisting that she had little say in presidential decisions. But by July 1985, when Ronald Reagan underwent surgery for cancer, she displaced the vice president from the front pages of the country’s newspapers and announced herself at a White House reception as “the President’s standin.”1 Barbara Pierce Bush (1989–1993) chose to stay in the background on matters of public policy, but she was widely believed to hold strong views of her own on abortion and gun control.
