NEW YORK – If the pollsters are right, first lady Laura Bush really is the president’s better half.
Polls show Laura Bush is more popular than her husband – two-thirds of voters have a favorable view of her – which may be one reason the president gives her star treatment at his own campaign events.
Laura Bush’s prominence and popularity in Bush’s re-election effort will be on display tonight, when the first lady addresses the Republican convention in prime time.
She is an effective campaigner, perhaps more so than other popular first ladies, because she appeals to committed Republicans and coveted independent voters alike, scholars of the presidency said.
Her campaign appearances are still less overtly political than her husband’s. She often speaks to women’s organizations, and stresses the importance of education and literacy.
Laura Bush’s convention speech will reflect what people seem to like about her, predicted Paul Boller Jr., professor emeritus of political science at Texas Christian University, who has studied the role of first ladies in presidential campaigns.
“She helps present a moderate view of Bush, and that is an aim of the convention,” Boller said.
Laura Bush’s topic tonight, “the compassion of the American people,” reflects the understated tone. She will follow California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, an abortion rights supporter, to the podium.
Laura Bush has said she does not think Roe vs. Wade, the Supreme Court ruling allowing nationwide legalized abortion, should be overturned. But more recently, she also has defended her husband’s limitation of embryonic stem cell research.
In an interview this week in Time magazine, she said she has an open mind about whether the country needs a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, something her husband supports and which is part of the GOP platform.
Asked if she has ever hosted a gay couple at the White House or in Texas, Laura Bush replied, “I’m sure we have.”
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