7. Woodrow Wilson And The Secret President
In October 1919, during his second term in office, President Woodrow Wilson suffered a stroke that had serious effects on his abilities to continue as president. The US government did not want to scare the public so far into his presidential term, so they decided that since there wasn’t that much time left in his presidency, Wilson could continue his role, and the public would not know about his medical issues. This meant that his wife, Edith Wilson, made most presidential decisions for the remainder of the term.
After his time in office was over, they released a statement confirming Wilson’s stroke and his wife’s role in presidential matters. To avoid public scrutiny, Edith Wilson described her position as overseeing which issues of importance were seen by her husband.[4]