Should Mitt Romney find himself sitting in the president’s chair next January, he would have done more than just unseat an incumbent. He would have ended three straight White House presidencies exclusively populated by distaff offspring. Indeed, six of the last 12 presidents sired daughters-only. Romney has five sons.
Fathering daughters-only is a bi-partisan effort, though Democrats have done it more often than Republicans, four times to two.
Dividing up male progeny by political party is harder as Ronald Reagan had five children, including two sons, while still a member of the Democratic Party. He didn’t shift to the GOP until 1962, four years after his youngest child, Ron, was born. Not counting Reagan’s output, Republicans spawned eight sons to just five for Democratic presidents.
Here’s the listing of the last 12 presidents and their offspring:
Harry S. Truman—Mary Margaret
Dwight D. Eisenhower—Doud Dwight, John Sheldon Doud
John F. Kennedy—Caroline, John Jr., Patrick
Lyndon B. Johnson—Lynda Bird, Luci Baines
Richard M. Nixon—Patricia, Julie
Gerald R. Ford—Michael Gerald, Steven Meigs, Susan Elizabeth
Jimmy E. Carter—John William, James Earl III, Donnell Jeffrey, Amy Lynn
Ronald W. Reagan—Maureen, Michael, Christine, Patti Davis, Ron
George H.W. Bush—George W., John E., Neil, Marvin P., Dorothy
William J. Clinton—Chelsea
George W. Bush—Barbara Pierce, Jenna Hager
Barack H. Obama—Malia Ann, Sasha
If you’ve been fascinated this far into the blog, here’s another offbeat trend I’ve noticed—the daughters of prominent Democrats seem to have a passion for Jewish men.
Last week Ashley Biden, daughter of Vice President Joseph Biden, married Dr. Howard Krein. A year ago Chelsea Clinton married investment banker Marc Mezvinsky. Caroline Kennedy married Edwin Schlossberg, an exhibit designer, in 1986.
Perhaps they are all taking a cue from Caroline’s mother, Jackie Kennedy Onassis, who had a 15-year liaison with Maurice Templesman, a businessman and diamond merchant, until she died in 1994.
