America's First Ladies From Shannon McKenna Schmidt Lady Bird Johnson

Lady Bird Johnson’s daring 1964 whistle-stop campaign and the publication of You Can't Catch Us: Lady Bird Johnson's Trailblazing 1964 Campaign Train and the Women Who Rode with Her (Sourcebooks, March 3, 2026). You Can’t Catch Us is more than political history—it’s a powerful testament to women-led leadership, resilience, and the pursuit of civility during turbulent times. As Schmidt deftly illustrates, this journey—"the four most dramatic days in my political life," as Lady Bird herself called it—helped redefine the role of presidential spouses and advanced the cause of women in politics.
In October 1964, as the South simmered under the tensions following the signing of the Civil Rights Act three months earlier, First Lady Lady Bird Johnson boarded a specially outfitted nineteen-car train—the “Lady Bird Special”— and traversed eight Southern states. With forty-seven stops over four electrifying days and 1,682 miles behind her, she shattered the expectations of a presidential spouse with speeches, diplomacy, and palpable compassion. Shannon McKenna Schmidt shines a spotlight not just on Lady Bird’s trailblazing role, but on the pioneering women who stood by her: Liz Carpenter, a trailblazing press secretary and the first East Wing staff director; Dr. Janet Travell, the first female White House physician; and legendary journalist Helen Thomas.

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