Laura Bush, Out of the Garden and Into the Fray

But as a campaigner, Mrs. Bush has always been subtle rather than direct, implicit rather than overt. And Tuesday, speaking to a mostly white crowd with a more multihued group carefully arrayed behind her on a stage decorated with a floor-to-ceiling American flag, the first lady made no mention by name or inference of Sen. John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic nominee. Nor did she mention her own accomplishments in 31/2 years in the East Wing, where she has adopted education, women's health and historic preservation as her mission.

"For the president, the attributes that remain most potent for him are steadiness and consistency," said Republican pollster Kellyanne Conway. "And to him as a family man, Laura Bush can add an extra ray through which to view him. And those attributes are shared by her. She is, to put it one way, very regular."

The notion floated by some Republican strategists that Laura Bush is a "secret weapon" is dismissed by Devenish, who instead describes the first lady as "an open weapon." While the campaign unveiled an ad starring Laura Bush on education to several female-oriented Web sites and cable channels, "there is a misperception that we use her in a targeted fashion," said Devenish. "Her appeal is universal," because "she has an extraordinary and unique perspective in the decision-making of the president at a truly incredible time in our country. She is able to speak with the utmost clarity about his leading the country in the days and weeks after 9/11."

But are those insights, exactly? Of the two of them, Mrs. Bush always has been more cautious about illuminating how or what she thinks. On the subject of abortion, she is on record once and only once in the entire term as saying she does not think Roe v. Wade should be overturned. Asked about gay marriage, she said two months ago that she knows "some people find it very, very shocking," carefully refusing to say whether she includes herself in the very shocked category or not. Asked about a constitutional amendment, she said she thought the push for an amendment would generate a debate that the American people need to have.

Asked for her personal view, she quickly said, "I think I won't tell you my personal view."

On the charged subject of reproductive rights, she has said she supports programs that promote sexual abstinence along with contraception.

Such cautious statements can make Mrs. Bush appear more moderate in her social views, and campaign officials hope she can reach across the Republicans' traditional gender gap to wavering female voters, who are concerned that their children grow up in a safe world. Women also represent a growing group of small-business owners, and Mrs. Bush appealed to them in her speech Tuesday.

"I love her," said one of those at Tuesday's rally, Edna Orr, 70, a longtime Republican activist. "She's a lady. She has poise, grace and intelligence." Second-grade teacher Julie Davenport, 34, called the first lady "very sweet." But Mrs. Bush has a sharp edge she can unsheath when she perceives her husband to be under attack.

When controversy erupted a few months ago over his service in the National Guard, Mrs. Bush said she knew her husband had completed his duty, which occurred in the years before she met him, "well, because he told me he was" serving. She then accused Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe of lying about Bush's service.

"I don't think it's fair to really lie about allegations about someone like the Democratic national chairman did," she told ABC News's Terry Moran, before amending, "Well, he made it up, I guess I should say." To the Associated Press, she said the guard duty flap was a "political, you know, witch hunt, actually, on the part of the Democrats."

There was none that Tuesday, as she talked of "mah husband" and America being "stronger, safer and better" in the soft, honeyed voice of her native West Texas. After the rally, she headed off to the home of casino megamillionaire Steve Wynn and his wife, Elaine, for a small dinner of 20, among the original Picassos in the Wynn mansion, which was expected to raise $600,000 for the get-out-the-vote effort of the Republican National Committee.

Wednesday she appears on the "Tonight" show, after more rallies for her husband, this woman who once said she would be content to stay home and read and putter in the garden.