Biography
American civil servant and politician whose success as a Washington
insider has been matched by few men or women. Elizabeth Dole is the only
woman who has served as a Cabinet Secretary for two federal departments
(Transportation 1983-87, and Labor 1989-90) under two presidents (Reagan
and Bush) and she worked in the White House as a consumer affairs adviser
by the age of 33 -- a record Bob Dole jokes he can't match. An effective
public speaker, she cloaks her ambition with warmth and charm. Spontaneity
and frivolity are not part of her agenda; everything is scripted in single
minded preparation for her goals. In the process, Dole, a Republican since
1978, has become one of the best-known women in government, an articulate,
popular and respected figure with politicians of both parties.
Her law degree from Harvard took her to Washington in 1965 for her
first job in the White House in an increasingly visible public career. She
served as associate director of legislative affairs for President
Johnson's consumer office, as executive director of President Nixon's
Commission on Consumer interests, as a member of the Federal Trade
Commission under Presidents Nixon, Ford and Carter and as a special White
House assistant and then Transportation Secretary for President Reagan in
January 1983.
Elizabeth Dole is the daughter of John Van Hanford, a prosperous
business owner of floral products, and the former Mary Ella Cathey. At the
age of two, she gave herself the name of "Liddy" but does not
care to be called by her nickname as an adult professional woman. She had
a comfortable childhood, complete with a summer house and ballet lessons.
Her goal-oriented parents emphasized self-improvement as a "measure
of personal growth" and competition was encouraged as a healthy
outlet. Her talents as a leader and organizer were apparent from childhood
with her peers. She called her mother her best friend and adored her one
brother, John, 13 years older than she and the same age as Robert Dole.
She followed John’s footsteps by enrolling in Duke University in the
fall of 1954, majoring in political science. She was elected to Phi Beta
Kappa, chosen as an attractive May Queen, and elected student body
president. After post-graduate work at Oxford, 1959, she attended Harvard
where she earned a master's degree in education and then a law degree, one
of 25 women in the entering class of more than 500.
Her first White House job was as a staff assistant in the Dept. of
Health, Education and Welfare. For a brief stint, Elizabeth left the White
House to practice law, representing indigent clients, and she returned to
the Government in 1968 as legislative assistant to President Johnson's
consumer affairs adviser, Betty Furness. In 1973, President Nixon named
her to a seven-year-term on the Federal Trade Commission.
After Bob Dole lost his presidential candidacy bid in November 1980,
Elizabeth played a prominent role in the transition to the Reagan White
House. In the new administration, she was named special assistant for
public liaison in charge of carrying the Administration's message to
special interest groups including both business and labor. By June 1981
she had chalked up more than 300 speaking tours and meetings with her
usual energy and initiative. In January 1983, Reagan named her Secretary
of Transportation and a month later, the appointment was approved.
Remaining in this post for four years, Elizabeth Dole can take credit for
air bags, airline safety measures and the brake light on the rear
windshield of cars. She helped push for the first minimum-wage increase in
eight years. With discipline and clarity, she took to the political arena
with relish from the start, and served for eight years as president of the
American Red Cross.
Elizabeth Hanford first met Bob Dole, recently divorced, in March 1972
when she lobbied him to add a consumer plank to the 1972 Republican
platform. Their second meeting was in the summer of 1972 when Nixon opened
up his campaign headquarters near the White House. They met a third time
at the Republican Convention at a party. After the convention, Bob Dole
called Elizabeth three times before finally asking her to dinner at the
Watergate restaurant. Cautious by nature, Bob was also aware of their age
difference. The romance progressed nonetheless and they married on
12/06/1975, creating one of Washington's most famous "power
couples." Their clout is in reference to their jobs and
accomplishment, not their social agenda. Most nights after their 12-hour
working days, they ended up heating frozen dinners at their two-bedroom
apartment in the Watergate complex. They had no children though Bob has an
adult daughter from his former marriage.
A lifelong Methodist, Dole had an awakening of sorts in 1982, not an
epiphany but a questioning about the central focus that her career played
in her life and a spiritual drawing toward balance. She began attending
meetings once a week at Washington church where she could discuss her
spiritual goals. She began to take religion much more seriously and the
recognition of this inner need provided her with greater peace. During
campaigns, she carried her own Bible to read every night.
When Bob Dole made a big for the Presidential nomination in 1987,
Elizabeth Dole was barraged with advice to leave own her position to
campaign for him. She said it was the “most difficult decision of her
life” that she faced in September 1987. On 10/01/1987, she resigned from
the Cabinet and left immediately on a 12-state campaign swing through the
South, making use of her native southern drawl. When Bob dropped out of
the race in March 1988, Elizabeth shifted her support to Bush. When
President Bush moved into office, he named her his Secretary of Labor on
12/24/1988. After just 22 months, in October 1990 she resigned to assume
the position of President of the Red Cross and started the job in February
1991.
On 4/10/1995, Russel, KS, Bob made another serious presidential bid and
on 10/30/1995 she took an unpaid leave of absence from the Red Cross to
once more work on her husband's campaign. Bob was defeated by President
Bill Clinton in the election of 11/01/1996. In January 1997, Elizabeth
returned to the Red Cross.
She said goodbye to the Red Cross for good in January 1999 to campaign
for the Republican presidential nomination. But this time, she wasn't
campaigning for her husband: it was for herself. The need to raise $20
million in $1,000 increments was a major issue to consider. That need
became the deciding factor when Elizabeth Dole dropped out of the race on
10/21/1999, deciding that she could not compete with the big bucks of
George W. Bush and Steve Forbes.
“Unlimited Partners: Our American Story,” is a joint autobiography
of Bob and Elizabeth Dole with Richard Norton Smith, published in 1988.
Top
For More Information on the Web:
|
|
AstroDatabank offers this
privately-funded forum for astrologers who want to share
astrological insights in a respectful and educational way.
AstroDatabank does not condone or support comments that are
profane, obscene or discriminatory against anyone’s race, color,
religious creed, national origin, ancestry, gender, disability,
sexual orientation, veteran status or any other similar
category. While we make an effort to remove as soon as we can
any comments that we deem inappropriate for these or other
discretionary reasons, we cannot guarantee that we are always
able to do so in a timely way given the nature of the Internet.
However, we reserve the right to remove comments or to block
participation at our sole discretion and at any time. Please
understand that users’ comments are their own and do not reflect
the views, techniques or interpretations of anyone at
AstroDatabank. We hope that you will use this forum to share
your astrological insights with your colleagues in a respectful
manner and that you will enjoy reading others’ comments on the
chart under discussion. For more information, please read our
legal disclaimer and terms of service.
Where do you want to go now?
|
