Myrna Blyth appears to agree with me that discussion of First Ladies is legitimate -- and that Teresa Heinz Kerry is a decided detriment to the Kerry campaign.

Her experience is consistent with mine -- even liberal women have a hard time finding something positive to say about Teresa Kerry, the self-described "Mama T." There was, after all, a lot for liberals to admire about Hillary Clinton. She brought impeccable liberal credentials to the table, and although she won her Senate seat on the coattails of her husband's betrayal, she had accrued an impressive left-wing record even before marriage (graduation speaker at Wellesley, Yale law, working for the Watergate Committee, involved with Children's Defense Fund, etc.). It's fair to say that she has earned her place in the liberal pantheon (whether that's a good thing is another topic entirely).

In contrast, Teresa has basically bought her way into liberal respectability by dint of huge donations from the money bequeathed her. And she doesn't sound particularly articulate when she speaks. And she has an air of entitlement that must confound liberals -- Teresa sounds the way they would expect a rich Republican to be.