Should First Ladies Get Paid?

Yesterday, at a fundraiser in Denver, Colorado, President Obama lamented that first ladies don’t get paid even though they work hard. What do you think?

The First Lady (FLOTUS) does have a budget (although when the government doesn’t have a budget, I’m not sure how she knows what that is), as well as a staff. President Jimmy Carter allowed for the first budget for a first lady when he signed into law public law 95-570 in 1978. This law also allowed the first lady to have a staff.

First Lady Michelle Obama’s staff numbers somewhere around 24, although according to the White House records, only 14 are paid. Their 2011 salaries ranged from $42,000 to $172,200, totaling $1.17 million. The positions filled usually include chief of staff, press secretary, director of special projects and policy, director of scheduling and advance, and social secretary.

The first First Lady to have any help was Caroline Harrison, wife of Benjamin Harrison, president from 1889-1893. Her niece was her social secretary. Caroline was a fascinating First Lady, having had the residence completely renovated. The place was crawling with rodents and insects and she had them removed. She also remodeled the kitchen and had electricity installed. I read that she was afraid of the switches, however so a maintenance man had to turn off the lights.

She coordinated having the first Christmas tree displayed in the White House, as it was becoming a tradition for people to put up trees in their homes to celebrate Christmas. She also hosted the first gala involving dancing in the White House since Sarah Polk in 1845 (pre-Civil War).

She also served as the first President General of the newly-formed Daughters of the American Revolution. In this capacity, she became the first First Lady to give a public speech, at the first Congress of the DAR.

Unfortunately, her one staffer might have also been an unwitting cause of Mrs. Harrison’s demise. It is believed she became quite depressed upon her belief that her husband had fallen for her secretary and niece, Mary Lord Dimmick, who was a widow. Still, she was a force to be reckoned with as a First Lady – maybe she did deserve a little pay?

While First Ladies still have no official roles or duties in government, they certainly have value. They have also social obligations, pet causes and the glamour of being married to the most powerful man in the country.  To find out more about all the First Ladies, check out this wonderful resource with biographies, fashion and even lesson plans about all the first ladies from Martha Washington to Mrs. Obama at www.firstladies.org.

So what do you think? Is it an honor to be First Lady or is it a job that deserves pay?

photo credit: www.whitehouse.gov