What is the Legacy of President Gerald Ford?

[Philosoraptor]

I am not a historian, but I was deeply affected by the Nixon years, the years that made me politically aware for the first time. And I know how I will remember Gerald Ford.

I will of course remember him as Nixon's replacement, he pardoned Nixon, and I will remember him as a place holder until Jimmy Carter was elected. I also will remember him as one of the names on the Warren Commission Report, that investigated the John Kennedy Murder.

And of course, Chevy Chase.

[MrCoffee]

1. He pardoned Nixon...and I'm fresh out of suggestions.

[Dragonbreathp9d]

3. That was going to be my exact response

[Ganja Ninja]

9. Summed it all up in three words.

He pardoned Nixon.

[hatrack]

40. Hit people with golf balls, fell down stairs, evacuated Saigon

WIN buttons . . .

Anything else?

[Yupster]

53. He was a bridge president

He bridged the time between Nixon and the next election, which I guess is important. I don't have much bad to say about him, or good either. A placeholder that kept the system going. I guess that's not so bad.

[bowens43]

2. Only president who wasn't elected to any public office.?

[jmfleetwood]

5. Was elected and re-elected to the House many times

[Benhurst]

10. He was a member of Congress from Michigan for 25 years and

House Minority Leader from 1965 to 1973.

[RCinBrooklyn]

13. But never elected to V.P. or President n/t

[maveric]

4. He knows thet truth about the JFK assasination being on Warren Commission

I'd love to see Gerry Ford come clean about that whitewash before he leaves this existence.

Right now his legacy will be "WIN" buttons.
Remember those?

[saltpoint]

6. I hope Gerald Ford's hospitalization is swift and painless, but it is

very hard for me to come up with anything impressive about his presidency.

He didn't strike me as a very cerebral guy.

I kinda like Betty, though.

[raccoon]

18. No, he wasn't very cerebral, but the present occupant of the WH

makes him look like a genius. LOL

[saltpoint]

True. Bush lowers the standard for all time to come.

You know, I think if Ford survives this latest medical challenge, he should start a band-aid company.

I can't think of a better spokesman.

[calico1]

7. I would say his wife Betty will leave a

better legacy...the Betty Ford Clinic.

[AspenRose]

8. When he visited San Antonio, someone gave him a tamale

He ate the shuck as well as the tamale.

I was only a kid when it happened but I remember it.....

[MrCoffee]

11. that's just gross...

[AspenRose]

I think it was accidental....

No one 'showed him how' to eat it 'properly'

[bleedingheart]

22. when I was a kid I ate the paper wrapper on a cupcake...

it was the first time I ever got one...and I remember after I ate it my sister looked at me and said..."give me your wrapper so I can throw it away"...and I stared at her quizzically...and she burst out laughing....

(I was 13 years younger than she was..and was about 4-5 at the time)

[jedicord]

43. A friend from Wisconsin caught some catfish and cooked it up.

He said it tasted awful (he didn't know he had to skin 'em).

[RCinBrooklyn]

12. The Nixon Pardon & first President not elected by voters (chosen by Nixon)

[madinmaryland]

14. Don't forget that he created WIN!

Whip Inflation Now!



"WIN, Whip Inflation Now. The Ford administration had thousands of these pins made up, to show Mr. Inflation that Americans weren't afraid."

[Philosoraptor]

16. did we win?

[madinmaryland]

27. As I recall, Reagun crashed the economy in the early 80's,

that led to the end of inflation and put the country into a deep recession.

[bleedingheart]

19. hahaha...first thing I thought of...and you posted it first!

[madinmaryland]

31. It was funny, because there were really no plans to whip inflation,

other than the buttons!

[undeterred]

15. Does chimpy know who Gerald Ford is?

[calico1]

Chimpy thinks he owns the

Ford Motor Co.

:rofl:

[bleedingheart]

17. Whip Inflation Now

hahahaha cuz printing buttons that say WIN will really open a can of whup ass on Inflation

<>

that and the Nixon Pardon...

[bleedingheart]

20. Gerald Ford was a Vietnam War HAWK loved war...

[JeffR]

21. A decent man

The only Republican president since Ike who deserves to be described as decent in any sense of the term. Other than the Nixon pardon - which I believe was dictated by the GOP power structure as opposed to being Ford's personal brainchild - the man inherited an absolute shitstorm from Tricky Dick. Mostly, he calmed things down. And the last American soldiers came home from Vietnam on his watch.

Not to give him too much credit, but on balance I think he can be proud of how he handled the job. And compared to Shrub, he was Fred Astaire.

[peekaloo]

23. Not even the Manson gals could kill him!

:sarcasm:

[jedicord]

44. Wow you just dated yourself!

That's how I used to show people how to spell my first name "like Lynette Squeaky Fromme", the Manson girl who shot Ford. Doesn't work any more, 'cause no one knows who or what I'm talking about.

[peekaloo]

54. Ewww I would never date someone like myself.

:P

as someone recently pointed out to me, we aren't old, just better informed. ;-)

[liberalmuse]

24. Rummy and Cheney...

These bastards served under him and helped cover up Nixon's war crimes.

[Strawman]

25. Perhaps as the last moderate Republican president

Before the fundies took over the party under Reagan. Don't think Chimpy will be a co-chairman of People For the American Way after he retires like Ford was.

[kentuck]

26. He was considered one of the dumbest Congressmen in Washington...

....and Nixon thought he was an insurance . They would not kick him out to get the dumbass Ford...

[HamdenRice]

28. A decent guy who actually brought the country together

I know that's a hackneyed phrase -- "bring the country together" -- and I don't think anyone has actually accomplished it in a generation. But I think it really applies to Ford. As a young teen who watched Watergate unfold with my family, with morbid horror and fascination, I can honestly say that Gerald Ford was truly a nice guy and the country breathed a collective sigh of relief when he became president. The end of the Nixon administration was like bad Shakespearean drama. I remember by the end, Nicholas von Hoffman, the commentator for 60 Minutes, actually said in his weekly commentary that Nixon was "a dead rat on the nation's kitchen floor" that needed to be swept up and thrown in the trash, or something to that effect -- that's what he said about a sitting president on the most watched show on TV at the time -- and no one batted an eyelash. That's how the nation felt.

Ford came in and he was clearly a decent, honest midwestern guy, completely bi-partisan and smarter than he was later made to appear by Saturday Night Live, his golf swing (remember? he used to bean lots of people with golf balls), his inability to pronounce "judgement" (but his strange compulsion to put that word in lots of his speeches) and his inability to walk up or down the stairs of air force one without doing a prat fall. But this evidence of his utter goofiness actually was comforting after Nixon's diabolical cunning.

I think Ford's biggest mis-step -- the one time he didn't show class -- was when NYC went bankrupt, city leaders created a responsible bail out plan and asked for federal guarantees, and Ford, facing a tough primary against uber conservative Ronald Reagan, began bashing New York as a failed liberal experiment, throwing red meat to the conservative movement, even though Ford was himself one of a vanishing breed of fairly liberal Republicans. It wasn't Ford's style and it was transparent pandering.

Ford was dealt a bad hand -- the wreckage of the Nixon administration -- including the final loss of Viet Nam, the bankrupcty of New York, inflation and recession caused by the war, the return of VN vets, the collapse of the US military, especially the Army, and on and on.

Overall a nice guy in the worst possible job.

[etherealtruth]

52. Great summation! n/t

[PsN2Wind]

29. Parleyed the pardon of Nixon

into, at this time, the second longest stint as ex-prez, with all the pension and perks of those that were elected or took over the office because of the death of the prez. Helluva gig, about three years as VP and Prez, being appointed to both positions as replacement for resigning crooks, and about 30 years as ex-prez.

[leveymg]

30. Chevy Chase: "It's . . . (pratfall) . . , Saturday Night Live!

That, the Warren Commission, Nixon's Pardon, the Betty Ford Clinic, Cheney and Rumsfeld.



Not a distinguished legacy, I'm afraid.

[lpbk2713]

35. True. Chevy Chase may owe his successful career to Ford.

[noonwitch]

32. He wasn't in office very long, but is a good man

I'm from Grand Rapids, his hometown. He is beloved by all there, liberal and conservative, mainly because he is a good man, he supports a lot of kids causes like Boy Scouts and adoption (he was adopted himself) and because he was the congressman for 25 years.


As president, he will always be remembered for pardoning Nixon. As I see it, he did the right thing so that the country could move on. It cost him re-election in 1976, though.

He can be remembered for his contribution to the eventual Camp David accords that Carter completed. Kissinger, in both Nixon and Ford's administrations, laid the groundwork for the eventual deal brokered by Carter between Sadat and Begin.
Ford also continued in Nixon's footsteps in continuing diplomatic relations with China.

He also will always be remembered by UM football fans as a great QB.

[DemoTex]

33. In addition to his pardon of Nixon ..

1. April 30, 1975: The fall of Saigon (and Viet Nam, Republic of).
2. May 12-15, 1975: Mayagüez incident with the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.
3. May 1975: Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge took power in Cambodia (Killing Fields ensued).
4. November 2, 1975: President Gerald Ford fires CIA Director William Colby and replaces him with George H.W. Bush.
5. Appointed John Paul Stevens to the Supreme Court.
6. September 1975: Survived two assassination attempts in less than a month (Squeaky Fromme and Sara Jane Moore).
7. December 1975: Indonesia invaded East Timor as Ford/Kissinger gave the wink & nod in Jakarta.
8. Ford's Secretary of Defense? Donald Rumsfeld.

[i miss america]

34. For me, it is Dana Carvey's SNL skit

Tom Brokaw: Okay, who are we up to?

Voice of Producer: Uh.. we're still on Presidents. Gerald Ford.

Tom Brokaw: Gerald Ford? Well, he's in good shape..

Voice of Producer: Just covering our bases, Tom. You never know..

Tom Brokaw: Alright, alright.. < graphic of Gerald Ford, "1913-1996" appears over Tom's left shoulder > "Gerald Ford dead today at the age of 83."

Voice of Producer: Okay, good. Annd, one for next year.

Tom Brokaw: Alright.. < graphic of Gerald Ford, "1913-1997" > "Gerald Ford dead today, at age 84."

Voice of Producer: Uh.. a little sadder.

Tom Brokaw: Alright. < sad > "Gerald Ford dead today.. at age 84.."

Voice of Producer: That was good. Good.

Tom Brokaw: Okay, what now?

Voice of Producer: Now let's do one for if he's shot.

Tom Brokaw: Well, what are the chances of that?

Voice of Producer: We're just covering contingencies.

Tom Brokaw: I mean, it just seems that Gerald Ford..

Voice of Producer: Look - you're the one who wants to spend the whole winter in Barbados, okay? Now, we gotta be ready with something, just in case. Alright, Tom?

Tom Brokaw: Alright, alright.. < graphic of Gerald Ford, "1913-1996" > "Gerald Ford shot dead today, at age 83."

Voice of Producer: Uh.. add the word "senseless".

Tom Brokaw: Alright. "Gerald Ford shot dead today, at the senseless age of 83."

Voice of Producer: Um.. uh..

Tom Brokaw: Alright, alright.. "Gerald Ford shot senselessly dead, at the age of 83."

Voice of Producer: Good, good.. Okay, now suicide.

Tom Brokaw: What?!

Voice of Producer: Just read it!

Tom Brokaw: Alright. "Gerald Ford dead today, after jupming out of an office building, senselessly."

Voice of Producer: That's a nice touch. Okay, moving on.

Tom Brokaw: Okay. "Gerald Ford dead today, from an overdose of crack cocaine."

Voice of Producer: Good, good.. Next.

Tom Brokaw: Alright. < graphic of Gerald Ford and a commuter plane > "Stunning news from Michigan, as former President Gerald Ford was chopped into little bits by the propeller of a commuter plane."

Voice of Producer: Good. One take.

Tom Brokaw: Alright, we got it?

Voice of Producer: No. We've got "eaten by wolves".

Tom Brokaw: What? Now, come on!

Voice of Producer: Just read it!

Tom Brokaw: Gerald Ford isn't gonna be eaten by wolves!

Voice of Producer: Taft was.

Tom Brokaw: Really? Taft?

Voice of Producer: Uh.. yeah.

Tom Brokaw: Alright, alright.. < graphic of Ford surrounded by a pair of wolves > "Tragedy today, as former President Gerald Ford was eaten by wolves. He was delicious." Now.. now, that's just superfluous, you know?

Voice of Producer: It's a former President, Tom. What do you say - he's not delicious?

Tom Brokaw: Alright, fine.. what's next?

Voice of Producer: The double story.

Tom Brokaw: Alright. < graphic of Ford and map of France > "A fireball destroyed France today, and Gerald Ford is dead." Now, what are the odds of that?

Voice of Producer: Fine. We'll get Stone Phillips to do it. You know, I'm sure Stone Phillips would be thrilled to break a story like that!

Tom Brokaw: Alright. Let's keep moving.. < graphic of Ford and the corpse of Richard Nixon > "Stunning news from Yorba Linda today, as Richard Nixon's corpse climbed out of his grave and strangled Gerald For to death."

Voice of Producer: Excellent.

Tom Brokaw: Alright. < graphic of Ford and circus lion > "Gerald Ford was mauled senselessly by a circus lion in a convenience store."

Voice of Producer: Good. Next.

Tom Brokaw: Alright. "Gerald Ford is dead today, and I'm gay." Now, wait a minute!

Voice of Producer: What? That'd be a huge story - Ford dying, and you coming out!

Tom Brokaw: But I'm not gay!

Voice of Producer: Today you're not gay, you know.. but then one day you wake up, you like men, and Gerald Ford dies, and we're screwed. Everyone's hearing about it from Dan Rather!

Tom Brokaw: Alright, alright.. what's this for?

< graphic of Gerald Ford and the Zimbabwee flag appears >

Voice of Producer: Alright, this one's for if we're invaded by Zimbabwee.

Tom Brokaw: Would I still be the anchor if Zimbabwee invaded us?

Voice of Producer: Yeah.. if you break the Gerald Ford story, you will..

Tom Brokaw: Alright. "Hola bambe, hungala dimba Gerald Ford.. *click* *click* *click* *click* ..hola bambe, allah bumba bubba hulla humba hey."

Voice of Producer: Very nice. Very nice. A little sadder, please.

Tom Brokaw: Alright, alright.. < sadly > "Hola bambe, hungala dimba Gerald Ford.. *click* *click* ..hola bambe.."

< fade >

[HamdenRice]

45. That's the funniest thing I've read in ages!

People write LOL but don't mean it, but I am laughing at my computer! I never saw that skit.

[Hidden Stillness]

36. An Old Fashioned, Honest/Decent Republican

President Ford was just about the last example that I can think of, of an old fashioned, moderately liberal-ish type of Republican, from the North, who was an American first, not a vicious partisan Republican, stepping in line with their leadership. The type, once common, who would have been horrified at the thought of cutting people off Social Security and leaving them with nothing, dismantling legal protections and social programs, etc., as extremist. Republicans have always been pro-business, so they were always a threat to do something, but I never remember from the semi-liberal type, such as Ford, etc., the sheer terror at the prospect of what fundamental system of democracy they would rip to shreds next. You don't realize how basically well the two Parties got along until now, when Republicans are so anti-American and fascist, as they are now, and were not then. Ford still believed the old "we are all in this together" approach of Government, and although it didn't always work--the WIN program, for example, which never really attacked the problem or caught on--and never, never used divisive attacks, such as on abortion rights, gays, etc. There was no mean-spiritedness from Ford. Further, Betty Ford was very famously a feminist during the '70s, (like Helen Milliken, married to the then-Governor of Michigan, the moderately liberal William Milliken, another of this older type of Republican that got along with us, and not endlessly trying to slit our throats, as now), and there was actually a "Betty Ford craze" for a while, when she was very popular, for her feminism, her brave and honest revelation of her drinking problem, and Gerald Ford's unwavering support of her, etc. The longer this current nightmare era goes on, the more I appreciate and wish for, the return of this other type. They used to be Americans.

[MessiahRp]

37. Taggart looked like him in Beverly Hills Cop 2

Other than that really it's all about Pardoning Nixon.

Before he was President he was part of the Warren Commission coverup of the JFK Assassination.

Rp

[Armstead]

38. A decent man who unfortunately brought us some rotten ones

Ford himself seemed like a basic honest and decent old-fashioned Republican.

Unfortunately, he also aligned himself with what was to become the Frankenstein's Monster of modern politics. He helped boost Cheney and Rumsfield, and allowed them and the Neo-Cons and the Corporate Fascists and the Political Molochs to set the stage for what came after.

[liberalpragmatist]

42. To be fair, he also appointed Stevens to the SC - nt

[Freddie Stubbs]

39. He was a member of the Warren Commission

[Penndems]

41. A brief history of former President Ford's accomplishments:

Foreign policy milestones under the Ford Administration:

1. After entering into negotiations with the former Soviet Union, created the Helsinki Accords, which later became Human Rights Watch.

2. Second President to visit The People's Republic of China.

3. Fall of Saigon, and the end of the Viet Nam War.

4. Mayaguez-Khmer Rouge Incident.

5. SALT II treaty.

*******************************************************************
From a domestic standpoint:

1. Pardoned Richard Nixon.

2. WIN ("Whip Inflation Now") buttons.

3. Swine flu shots.

4. Was President during our Bicentennial.

5. During second Presidential debate with then-Governor Jimmy Carter, opined that Poland wasn't Communist (which, of course, it was at the time.) :eyes:

6. Survived assassination attempt.

7. Oh, yeah - Slipped and fell down steps after disembarking from Air Force One.




(on edit: additional text)

[HamdenRice]

46. Nice summary -- but a couple of quibles

The Helsinki accords did not "become" Human Rights Watch. The Helsinki accords were agreements between the US and Soviets on human rights. Private citizens then organized a non-governmental organization, Helsinki Watch, to monitor the Soviet's compliance and to pressure western governments to enforce them when the Soviets did not comply (mostly by haranguing the Soviets). The fear was that the accords were "just paper" to both sides, and that the Americans and Europeans would not call the Soviets to account. Helsinki Watch made the accords much more important that the governments actually thought they would be. Helsink Watch then expanded to an organization with several divisions -- Africa Watch, Latin American Watch, etc., and then they reorganized as one organization, Human Rights Watch. It is not a creation of the accords.

Incidentally the Helsinki accords were a huge benefit to Israel, because one of the undertakings was that the Soviets would allow Jews to emmigrate from Russia where they faced pervasive discrimination.

Second, Ford did not say that Poland was not communist. He said that it was not under Soviet domination. The second phrasing is not as "dumb" as the first, because there was a lot of debate back then about whether eastern European countries were under less direct domination from the Soviets than they had been. Yugoslavia was clearly charting its own course under Tito (it was always called "Tito's Yogoslavia"); Hungary was already pursuing a new economic model and politically, Poland, with its strong Catholic church and union movement, was much more complicated than mere Soviet puppet.

But Carter did jump on it in the debate and make Ford look silly.

[Penndems]

48. Your quibbles are better summarized than my points, HamdenRice

Thanks for offering a far clearer explanation than this ole State Department hand did. :)

You're dead-on with your analysis of the Helsinki Accords. However, I would submit that former President Ford's assertion that Poland wasn't under Soviet domination sounds to my ears more like a diplomatic euphemism for "Poland isn't Communist", LOL.

[hootinholler]

47. Vetoed FOIA

Congress over-rode the veto to pass it. Extra points if you know that Rumsfeld and Cheney talked him into the veto.

-Hoot

[johnaries]

49. "I'm a Ford, not a Lincoln". Boy, was that an understatement!

Always, he was the first President who was never elected to office. He was appointed VP after Agnew resigned.

[Jed Dilligan]

50. I recall him getting along with Homer Simpson pretty well

Where Bush sr. failed.

[A-Schwarzenegger]

51. Hoover's gofer on Warren Commission, eager participant in lies

of that Commission, including trying to move the wounds
in the Report up several inches to support single bullet
theory.