A President I Admire

As we approach Election Day tomorrow, you might think I am about to rattle off pros and cons. Rather, I want to communicate some firsts of one of our coolest Presidents – and one I admire a lot – Teddy Roosevelt (whose birthday, October 27th, just passed):

• The first president to invite an African American to dinner. On October 16, 1901, he and educator, author and political leader Booker T. Washington discussed politics and racism over a meal at the White House.

• The first president to appoint a Jewish person, Oscar S. Strauss, to his cabinet (as U.S. Secretary of Commerce and Labor).

• The first president to be seen in an automobile in public. In 1902, he rode in a Columbia Electric Victoria Phaeton, surrounded by a squad of bicycle cops.

• A major proponent of the Scouting movement, he was named the first (and only) Chief Scout Citizen by the Boy Scouts of America.

With thanks to Neatorama.

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