- The Observer, Sunday January 1 2006
As bizarre as it seems, Smith's legal travails over the fortune of oil magnate J Howard Marshall are set to go before the US Supreme Court in February and the White House has weighed in. Bush's top Supreme Court lawyer has already filed arguments on Smith's behalf and a White House lawyer will argue in her favour in front of the august legal body.
Certainly Smith's lawyers are pleased to have the White House on their side as they bid to wrest a share of Marshall's fortune for their client. 'It can't help but give credibility to our position,' said Smith's attorney Kent Richland.
Whether the White House are equally happy at allying with Smith is less likely. The sometime actress is best known as a doyenne of reality television. She first rose to notoriety after her marriage to 89-year-old Marshall. She was 26 and the age difference between the two raised eyebrows as did their differing professions (at that point she was a topless dancer, he was an oil billionaire). Physically there were also disparities - he was wheelchair-bound and died a few years later.
Since Marshall's death Smith has fought with his family over his will. One federal judge awarded her hundreds of millions of dollars, while a Texas state court awarded her nothing. That is where the White House comes in. The disparity in the two cases touches the hot-button issue of the limits to federal power, and Bush's lawyers believe the rights of the federal court system should be protected. Thus Bush's legal team has rallied behind Smith's cause.
But despite appearances Bush and Smith do have something in common. She was born in Texas and Bush grew up in the Lone Star State. And, if Smith wins, both will in their different ways have made their personal fortunes from striking it rich in the oil business.
