In the course of packing and sorting, I just ran across our 1993 inaugural day button that has Bill playing sax, and Socks overlaid. The button says “Two Cool Cats - Bill Clinton and Socks - Inaugural Day 1993”. We got to see Wynton Marsalis and Sonny Rollins play a New Orleans funeral tribute to Dizzy Gillespie on the Mall. That was a good day in WDC, as I recall feeling like we were throwing off the yoke of 12 years of Reaganism. Little did we know what was coming eight years hence.
i was a bit surprised that they didn’t take socks with them. there was an article about it around the time they were leaving the white house.
socks did not get along with buddy at all. they tried many things and even had pet therapist to help. no go. socks was an indoor-outdoor on a leash cat, so there wasn’t a “buddy free” zone for him.
chelsea was away at college and wasn’t able to keep socks. it was decided that he would be happier being with betty. betty was very attached to socks and was very happy to have him with her where he would still do therapy visits and other socks stuff.
the clintons did visit socks and betty.
Prayers sent.
Wow, I can’t believe Socks lived that long! I was in the third grade when Clinton was elected, and I remember talking about Socks in my class. My parent’s next-door neighbors had a cat at the time who looked almost exactly like Socks, and I remember thinking that was just the coolest thing ever.
I love the picture in the CNN article. Here’s another funny picture of Socks, surrounded by photographers