Code of Silence Around Biden Has Hamstrung Harris

If elected, Kamala Harris won’t be the first woman president — at least not according to some historians. That honor goes to Edith Bolling Wilson, wife of Woodrow Wilson and de facto president for the final 17 months of his term.

Woodrow Wilson suffered a stroke in early October 1919 and was incapacitated through the rest of his presidency. During that time, Bolling and Wilson’s physician, Dr. Cary Grayson, conspired to withhold the true state of the president’s health from Congress and the public. Bolling blocked access to the president by both staff and elected officials, deciding which papers Wilson would see. Although Mrs. Wilson denied that she was making decisions, only Bolling and the incapacitated Wilson were in the room with her.