Socks Appeal

Black and white picture of Bill Clinton smiling with his black and white cat on his shoulders. His hand is reaching up to rub the cat. Clinton is wearing a Clinton and Gore cap. The words "SOCKS APPEAL" are in pink capital letters at the bottom of the button.

With his adorable looks and fun personality, Socks the cat quickly became the most famous cat in the world when President Bill Clinton took office in January, 1993. Though presidential pets are common, cats as the First Pet are not. There were only 5 presidential cats in the preceding 14 administrations, dating back to Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921). A stray, Socks was adopted by the Clinton family in 1991, becoming the family pet. When the Clintons relocated to Washington D.C they brought Socks with them, and the black and white cat had free reign over the White House, often photographed in the Oval Office and even the Briefing Room.

Top dog, as it were, Socks' rule as the sole First Pet ended when the Clinton family adopted a Labrador Retriever named Buddy. It was hate at first sight, with President Clinton even saying "You know, I did better with the Arabs, the Palestinians and the Israelis than I've done with Socks and Buddy" when asked how the two pets got along. When President Clinton left the White House in 2001, Socks was given to his secretary Betty Currie because the cat and dog could not get along. Socks lived out the rest of his days with Ms. Currie until his death in 2009 at the age of 20 from cancer.

This button is taken form this photograph taken on 12/20/1993 by an unnamed White House Photographer.