Pat Nixon - Public Perception

Public Perception

Historian Carl Sferrazza Anthony noted that ordinary citizens responded to Nixon. When a group of rural people visited the White House to present a quilt to the First Lady, many were overcome with nervousness; upon hearing their weeping, Pat hugged each individual tightly, and the tension dissipated. When a young boy doubted that the Executive Mansion was her house because he could not see the washing machine, Pat led him through the halls and up an elevator, into the family quarters and the laundry room. She mixed well with different races, and made no racial distinctions. During the Nixons' trip to China in 1972, foreign minister Zhou En-lai became so smitten with her that he gave two rare giant pandas to the ambassador as a gift from China.

Pat Nixon was listed on the Gallup Organization's top-ten list of the most admired women fourteen times, from 1959–1962 and 1968–1979. She was third in 1969, and remained at number two until 1972, when she was ranked number one as the most admired woman. She remained on the top-ten list until 1979, five years after her husband left office. To many, she was seen as an example of the "American Dream," having risen from a poor background, with her greatest popularity among the "great silent majority" of voters. Mary Brooks, the director of the United States Mint, described the First Lady as "a good example to the women of this country–if they're not part of those Women's Liberation groups." Additionally, it was the view of veteran UPI correspondent Helen Thomas that Pat "was the warmest First Lady I covered and the one who loved people the most. I think newspeople who covered her saw a woman who was sharp, responsive, sensitive."

Press accounts framed Nixon as an embodiment of Cold War domesticity, in stark contrast to the second-wave feminism of the time. Journalists often portrayed her as dutiful and selfless and seeing herself as a wife first and individual second. Time magazine described her as "the perfect wife and mother–pressing pants, making dresses for daughters Tricia and Julie, doing her own housework even as the Vice President's wife." In the early years of her tenure as First Lady she was tagged 'Plastic Pat,' the derogatory nickname applied because, according to critics, she was always smiling while her face rarely expressed emotion and her body language made her seem reserved, and at times, artificial. Some observers described Pat Nixon as "a paper doll, a Barbie doll–plastic, antiseptic, unalive" and that she "has put every bit of the energy and drive of her youth into playing a role, and she may no longer recognize it as such".

As for the criticisms, she said, "I am who I am and I will continue to be." She portrayed some of her views on her life in a 1968 interview aboard a campaign plane with Gloria Steinem: "Now, I have friends in all the countries of the world. I haven’t just sat back and thought of myself or my ideas or what I wanted to do. Oh no, I’ve stayed interested in people. I’ve kept working. Right here in the plane I keep this case with me, and the minute I sit down, I write my thank you notes. Nobody gets by without a personal note. I don’t have time to worry about who I admire or who I identify with. I’ve never had it easy. I’m not like all you ... all those people who had it easy."

Despite her largely demure public persona as a traditional wife and homemaker, Nixon was not as self-effacing and timid as her critics often claimed. When a news photographer wanted her to strike yet another pose while wearing an apron, she firmly responded, "I think we've had enough of this kitchen thing, don't you?" Some journalists, such as columnist and White House Correspondent Robert Thompson felt that Pat was an ideal balance for the 1970s; Thompson wrote that she proved that "women can play a vital role in world affairs" while still retaining a "feminine manner." Other journalists felt that Pat represented the failings of the feminine mystique, and portrayed her as being out of step with her times. Those who opposed the Vietnam War identified her with the Nixon administration's policies, and, as a result, occasionally picketed her speaking events. After she had spoken to some of them, though, one student told the press that "she wanted to listen. I felt like this is a woman who really cares about what we are doing. I was surprised." Veteran CBS correspondent Mike Wallace expressed regret that the one major interview he was never able to conduct was that of Pat Nixon.