The Lonely Lady of San Clemente by Lester David

Then, all of a sudden, she extends a gracious invitation to Mrs. He makes it sound as though the specter of Jackie, and her desire to be the Anti-Jackie, drove her approach to the job as First Lady. Nixon worked to eradicate Jackie from the White House, once the Nixons arrived in 1968. Naturally they were competitors in 1960, but Mr. There's her relationship with Jackie Kennedy. So imagine my surprise when, a few chapters later, Lester David tells us how hard politics are for this woman who 'deeply loved her husband.' Huh? What? When did that happen? And so she married him, and committed herself to making it work with the same dedication that she showed her students as a teacher. But she was over 25, he obviously loved her, he had a bright future ahead of him. Almost to the day they got engaged, she continued seeing other young men.

She is revealed as a woman who overcame a difficult childhood to serve her country both at home and abroad with tremendous dignity, no matter what you may think of her husband and his politics.įor example, in the early chapters, her budding relationship with Nixon is characterized by her very understandable need for security. Through this book I now know that President Richard Nixon received his law degree from Duke University. I reside in the heart of the collegiate Atlantic Coast Conference where friendly rivalries are constant. Upon completion the project was unveiled as a surprise to President Nixon as he and Pat returned one evening to the White House from a trip via the military helicopter. The task involved 56 ground floodlights to reflect off the White House along with roof top lights focused upon the American flag. One interesting fact was that as the First Lady, Pat decided the White House should be illuminated on the outside similar to the Lincoln Memorial. Author Lester David summed up their relationship saying: “Each sought security: Richard Nixon in money and power, Pat in a home and family.”Knowing President Nixon’s political downfall it’s easy to comprehend the loneliness inside Pat. Pat Nixon’s life was no different than many wives of her era in that she was devoted to her husband and lived in the shadows of his career. When the Nixon’s married in the summer of 1940 Pat had no idea that her husband would be drawn to politics. I’m not a big fan of President Nixon but I was drawn to the biography of his wife through the title: “The Lonely lady of San Clemente”.

The Lonely Lady of San Clemente by Lester David