American Vice Presidents, when unexpectedly called to serve as President, sometimes measure up. Harry Truman was one. Gerald R. “Jerry” Ford was another. A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Ford was a lawyer, politician, conservative Republican and minority leader in the U.S. House. He was first and always a rock-solid product of Middle America.
His mother and father were divorced when he was an infant. His mother soon remarried, and stepfather, “Dad Ford,” gave him his own name, Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr.
As a youth, he earned the rank of Eagle Scout, the first — and believed the only — President to do so. An outstanding athlete, he played center and linebacker on the national championship football teams of 1932 and 1933 at the University of Michigan. His number “48” was later retired.
Following law school at Yale, service in the U.S. Naval Reserve, and a brief stint in private practice, Ford was elected to Congress from Michigan’s 5th Congressional District, a position he held for 25 years. During the 1948 congressional campaign, Ford married Elizabeth Anne “Betty” Ford. The couple had four children.
Ford rose in congressional leadership to become House Minority Leader (1965-73) and Chair of the House Republican Conference. A determinedly honest man and a deeply religious Episcopalian with a firstclass temperament, he enjoyed numerous deep friendships among Republicans and Democrats alike.
While the Watergate Scandal (1973-74) threatened President Richard Nixon’s second term in office, Vice President Spiro Agnew was charged with receiving bribe money and forced to resign. Minority Leader Ford was named to succeed him.
He underwent intense investigation by the House Judiciary Committee. No evidence of even the smallest impropriety was found. Unfortunately, he gave testimony that would return to haunt him. Asked about a pardon for Nixon, Ford replied: “I don’t think the public would stand for it.” With unanimous approval, he was sworn in on December 6, 1973 as the 40th Vice President.
Events moved quickly. Watergate forced President Nixon’s resignation on August 9, 1974. At age 61, Ford became the 38th President. He is the only person to serve as President without winning an election for either president or vice president. In a moving nationwide address, Ford declared: “My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over.”
Ford’s three years as President was an uneasy time in America. Inflation became a problem, as did budgetary deficits. The economy sank into recession that many claimed was the worst since the 1930s. Unemployment reached nine percent. The Vietnam War ended with the collapse of South Vietnam and the communist invasion of Saigon.
These and other problems, along with some successes, were in place when the 1976 presidential election campaign began. Ford campaigned vigorously but lost to Governor Jimmy Carter who received 50.1% of the popular vote and 297 electoral votes, compared with 48.0% and 240 electoral votes for Ford.
A strong body of opinion holds the President lost the election almost two years earlier. On Sunday, September 8, 1974, Ford announced his unconditional pardon of former President Nixon, while a collection of his associates were receiving prison sentences. A fire storm of criticism engulfed the bewildered Ford. His repeated response was: “The pardon was my honest and conscientious effort to heal the wounds.”
He was accused far and wide of having made a “deal’ with Nixon: The promise of a pardon for the presidency. In response he took the unprecedented step for a president in appearing before the House Judiciary Subcommittee. On October 17 1974, with confidence and candor he testified: “I want to assure this Committee, members of Congress, and the American people, there was no deal.”
With the passage of time, many who were outraged at the Nixon pardon have changed their minds. In 2001 ,The John F. Kennedy Library Foundation awarded its Profile in Courage Award to Ford for his pardon of Nixon. In presenting the award, Senator Edward Kennedy said that while he initially opposed the pardon, history had proven the President made the right decision.
Gerald Ford died on December 26, 2006 of natural causes at his home in Rancho Mirage, California. He was 93.
• Retired attorney Jim Thomas lives in Atlanta. Email jmtlawyerspeak@ yahoo. com
