Aspen Historical Society/Aspen Times Collection
Presidential candidates, notably William Jennings Bryan, campaigned in Aspen more than a century ago; several modern-day Aspen residents still visit for fundraisers; members of the Kennedy and Trump families vacationed in Aspen; President Trump visited as a tourist long before he ran for president, entertaining locals with a bizarre plan to bring his wife and mistress to the city at the same time, stay in the same hotel, and meet on the slopes; President Biden visited to participate in an Aspen Institute event, but not during his presidency.
The only other president to set foot in town while in office was George H. W. Bush in 1990. He came to celebrate his 40th anniversary.Number On the Aspen Institute's anniversary, he was joined by British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in a string of celebrities.
Some locals found out about the planned visit because the Secret Service thoroughly investigated the situation to ensure security in Aspen was not compromised: For example, they visited hospitals to find out the quickest route to get there and collected the names and job titles of all the people working there on the day of the visit.
The only other event with this kind of “visitor” security was the visit of Her Majesty the Empress of Iran on July 4th in 1977. Her Majesty was an honorary trustee and came to attend a board meeting.
Presidents Bush and Thatcher arrived just after Iraq had invaded Kuwait and the UN had passed a resolution calling for Saddam Hussein to withdraw his troops from Kuwait. In case you don't remember, this was about oil. Taking Kuwait would give Iraq roughly 20% of the world's oil reserves. And because Iraq shared a border with Saudi Arabia, if Hussein took Saudi Arabia as well, he would have another 50% of the world's oil reserves.
Thatcher and Bush had formed a coalition to remove Saddam Hussein. After speaking at the Institute's anniversary, the two held a press conference. Bush said it was a timely visit to exchange views on Kuwait, and described Hussein's invasion as a “blatant aggression.” In her speech at the anniversary, Thatcher spoke of the “global community” and the Aspen Institute's contributions to building that community.
President Bush was welcomed to Aspen with a protest at the first S-bend coming into town. My memory of being there was a fairly large crowd with signs for Aspen. I don't know who all the organizers were, but I'm sure Nick DeWolf was a key organizer. The event was meant to let the President know that diplomacy was better than war.
DeWolf moved to Aspen in the 1970s and became involved in many aspects of the community. He was a co-founder of Teradyne, the first technology company to invent and make affordable a system for testing computer chips. He personally set up computer labs at Aspen Country Day School, Aspen High School and Community Schools. Curious Aspen kids were exposed to computers long before others. He collected computers and enhanced their capabilities through his home parts supply and “technology lab.” The downtown fountain was one of his creative projects. He built a computer and programmed it to ensure that the fountain's spray cycle never repeats the same pattern.
Thatcher had planned to stay in Aspen for a few days, but instead traveled to Washington to continue her talks with Bush. The U.S. military, under the command of Colin Powell, urged Bush not to attempt military intervention unless he could mobilize around 500,000 troops. Opinion in the country and in Congress was roughly evenly split on the issue. A few months after Thatcher's visit to Aspen, the assembled forces crossed into Kuwait and drove Saddam Hussein's forces out within days.
In retrospect, it was a uniquely Aspen event: the president of the United States and the prime minister of the United Kingdom were visiting Aspen to bless its most prestigious institutions, while local anti-war protesters were taking to the streets.
Tim Willoughby's family story is similar to that of Aspen families. He began sharing folklore while teaching at Aspen Country Day School and Colorado Mountain College. He now visits his hometown as a tourist and sees it from a historical perspective. He can be reached at redmtn2@comcast.net.
