| Summary/Abstract |
Imelda Romualdez Marcos is commonly remembered as a profligate spender and power-hungry consort to Ferdinand E. Marcos. But Imelda Marcos performed a variety of first-lady roles, and her political ambition at home was matched, even reinforced, by her diplomatic work abroad. Imelda’s overseas journeys, and dealings with Nixon, exemplified a blend of opportunism, possibility, and limitation reflective of the elastic duties of a first lady, and they marked an important part of her transformation into a political force within the Philippine government. Although Nixon and his staff tried to hold Imelda at arms’ length, she forced the White House to receive her during visits to Washington in 1970 and 1971. These Nixon-era diplomatic forays lifted Imelda’s standing in the Philippines and paved the way for her to make official visits to other nations, gain government positions during the Marcos dictatorship, and grow arrogant as she pursued a “Jet Set” lifestyle.
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