First Lady May Take a 2nd to Wellesley

Barbara Bush may bring a friend when she gives a controversial commencement address June 1 at Wellesley College.

The First Lady hinted Monday that she has asked Raisa Gorbachev to consider taking a side trip with her to the elite Massachusetts school while their husbands are locked in a summit in Washington.

Barbara Bush, representing the United States at the inauguration of Costa Rican President Rafael Calderon Fournier, told reporters she received “a really nice letter from Mrs. Gorbachev” on Monday suggesting they wait until their husbands’ schedules “firm up” before making their own summit plans.

The First Lady scoffed at the idea that, because of possible student protests, she might be embarrassed about bringing the Soviet dignitary to the commencement.

“Oh, they’re not going to protest against me--they wouldn’t do that,” she said of Wellesley students, 150 of whom have signed petitions criticizing her selection as a commencement speaker. Student protesters argue that Barbara Bush should not be honored because she has gained public recognition through her husband, not through her own efforts.