I get the sense that while Ann Romney is likable and smart, based on various comments she's made she doesn't have the skill and informed discipline to be a truly successful First Lady nominee. She won't do any harm, but just as running for President requires tremendous discipline and verbal skill, so does being a proactive First Lady. She's not Romney's secret weapon. She's not his Achilles heel. She's, at best, a weak positive who is a competent part of the ticket. (Compared to Teresa Heinz Kerry, that's no small thing)
Good analogies are Michelle Obama and Cindy McCain. They were both positive people who recognized they didn't have the tremendous drive and discipline to be out there and always say the right thing, so they held back. You can tell that Michelle Obama did not want a political career and her participation is a sacrifice. Similarly, Laura Bush was effective but also recognized that she needed to keep a private life and be sparing in her partisan appearances.
It's interesting because you have to go back to Barbara Bush, Nancy Reagan, and Rosalynn Carter for examples of First Ladies who had well-crafted public images and were in charge of what they did and how they advanced their husbands' campaigns. Hillary Clinton tried to do this, but she didn't do well. Since then, First Ladies have mostly been successful when they let their followers project their admiration onto them but didn't rock the boat.
What do you think?
I met her about four years ago and I was struck by how tall she was. We had a brief conversation but it wasn't memorable. I certainly wasn't put off by her.
I think we focus too much on those things. There are some exceptions. For example, Clinton played up the "two for the price of one" angle so his battle-axe was fair game, but the wives of Bush, Kerry, Obama, and Romney should be treated as private citizens. We're still at war and in an economic depression, and there are more important things to debate than the social skills of people who only enter the white house because by some accident of history they happen to share a bed with the president.
