Opinion: The History Lesson Jill Biden Must Read: How Lady Bird Johnson Got LBJ to Step Aside
Joe Biden's presidency has been compared to Lyndon Baines Johnson’s for its highly significant reshaping of domestic policy. But here’s another comparison which has not been embraced—and should be: the crucial role of Lady Bird Johnson in creating and executing the strategy that resulted in LBJ bowing out after a single elected term.
It’s a comparison that our current first lady should study closely, because these next few days may be the most consequential of her life.
The parallels between Jill Biden and Lady Bird Johnson are clear: both were senator’s wives and second ladies before entering the East Wing; both faced roiling crises—civil rights, COVID, Jan. 6, Israel—tearing at America’s social fabric. Now, like Lady Bird, Jill must help her husband make the ultimate choice: to run or not to run for a second term.