From Roosevelt to Reagan, notable women address conventions

Hillary Clinton’s speech Thursday marks the first time a woman has addressed a major party as its nominee for president. ___ LAURA BUSH, 2004 Republican National Convention At Madison Square Garden, the first lady talked in personal terms about President George W. Bush’s actions in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, particularly his controversial decision to invade Iraq. On the heels of Richard Nixon resigning the presidency, Jordan described a “cynical, angry, frustrated” America, “a people in a quandary about the present.” Yet she cited her very presence on the dais as “evidence that the American dream need not forever be deferred.” ___ ZAINAB AL-SUWAI, 2004 Republican National Convention Al-Suwai fled Iraq after participating in the 1991 uprising against dictator Saddam Hussein. Wearing a hijab, the traditional head covering for Muslim women, she opened her address: “From my heart, I would like to offer you the traditional Muslim greeting: Assalaamu alaykum - ‘Peace be upon you.’” ___ GERALDINE FERRARO, 1984 Democratic National Convention In San Francisco, a little-known New York congresswoman stepped to the podium and declared: “My heart is filled with pride. ___ NANCY REAGAN, 1996 Republican National Convention Two years after former President Ronald Reagan used a hand-written letter to tell the world of his Alzheimer’s diagnosis, his wife brought many in San Diego to tears as she spoke of her husband, who would never again address Americans.