While visiting the Newseum on a family trip to Washington, D.C., I happened to stumble upon their great little exhibit on First Pets. In honor of National Dogs In Politics Day (Also known as “Checkers Day,” commemorating the anniversary of Richard Nixon’s famous ‘Checkers Speech‘), I’ve listed some of my favorite factoids from the exhibit below:
Warren G. Harding’s pup Laddie Boy on his birthday.
- Warren G. Harding’s Airedale, Laddie Boy, had his own chair at Cabinet meetings
- Herbert Hoover won fans, and possibly his 1928 election, by posing with his police dog, King Tut, for campaign photos
- Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Scottish terrier, Fala, had his own press secretary
- George Washington owned a dog named “Drunkard”
- A book “written” by George H.W. Bush’s English springer spaniel, Millie, sold more copies than Bush’s own book
“First Dogs: American Presidents and Their Pets” will be on display at the Newseum through 2014.
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