First Ladies: Influence and Image

[Mike B.]

It seems they could have just got Donna McCreary herself to do the show and got someone who actually knows about Mary Lincoln.

All Ms. Terborg-Penn did was say some pollyanaish stuff about Mary Lincoln, a person she had only the most rudimentary knowledge of.

Some of it was downright absurd.

When she said that she "heard" Herndon hated Lincoln and took out his hate of Lincoln by attacking Mary in his book, I almost hit the floor.

Those who could be put in Mary Lincoln defender camp usually say that Herndon wrote down Mary to make Lincoln look good instead. This is the exact opposite.

And having an "expert" on Mary who is unfamiliar with Herndon is like having an expert on the battle of Gettysburg and had "heard" that Pickett's Charge was bad but has never read about it.