Corruption in the Nixon administration brought to the Presidency a man who had planned to retire from Congress shortly. Gerald Ford unexpectedly found himself thrust from what seemed to be the last days of his political career into the highest office in the country. How did he handle taking the reigns in one of the nation's most difficult times?
Fig.1 - Gerald Ford
Gerald Ford Early Life
Born in Michigan in 1913, Gerald Ford had an eventful personal life before entering politics. He played college football at Michigan, earning his economics degree, before turning down professional football offers from the Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions to coach boxing and Football at Yale. After fighting against the administration, who felt he couldn't successfully coach sports and study simultaneously, he was admitted to Yale Law School while getting promoted and even worked outside of Yale as a model. After Yale, he opened up a private law practice in Michigan in 1941
Military Service
Although he initially opposed US involvement in WWII, he joined the Naval Reserve as an officer after Pearl Harbor. During the war, he went on active duty first as an instructor at a Navy Preflight School, then aboard the aircraft carrier USS Monterey, before returning to instruction. While on the aircraft carrier, he was engaged in several combat actions in the Pacific Theater.
Gerald Ford: Political Career
Serving in the House of Representatives from 1949 until 1973, Gerald Ford became known for his moderate views on social issues, conservative views on economic issues, and support of solid international engagement. Following the Assassination of John F Kennedy, Congressional leadership assigned Ford to the Warren Commission, which investigated the assassination. In Congress, he was known for his ability to negotiate and seek compromise, leading to his election as House Minority Leader following the election of Johnson. Ford opposed Johnson's Great Society and criticized Johnson for having no plan to end the Vietnam War but did support much of Johnson's Civil Rights legislation. A strong supporter of President Richard Nixon's legislative agenda, Ford was elevated to the Vice Presidency at the end of 1973 when Nixon's Vice President, Spiro Agnew, resigned for crimes relating to taking bribes as Governor of Maryland.
Ford had long been a proponent of racial equality. While playing college football, he was outraged when Georgia Tech refused to play his team because it had a black player, Willis Ward. Ward was Ford's best friend on the team, and Ford only agreed to the game when Ward asked him to see it through.
President Gerald Ford
Less than a year in office, on August 9, 1975, Ford became President of the United States. The Watergate scandal had been breaking his entire time in office, but by August, it had forced Nixon to resign. In September, Ford controversially pardoned Nixon for any crimes. Some were outraged that Nixon got off free for his role in the Watergate conspiracy, while Ford and others believed that it was best to move on from the highly divisive issue. Ford would note later that giving and accepting a pardon was an admission that the person pardoned was guilty.
Did you know?
Ford's pardon would be called a "corrupt bargain," the same terminology used by detractors about the outcomes of the 1824 and 1876 US presidential elections.
Gerald Ford: Presidential Term
Ford attempted to move past the divisive Vietnam War years by offering amnesty to draft dodgers and military deserters. However, still, Democrats turned the Watergate outrage into a more than 2/3 majority in the House of Representatives in the 1974 elections. Inflation and unemployment rose during Ford's term, which he attempted to answer with various sometimes contradictory ideas. He proposed Americans voluntarily reduce consumption to curb inflation, proposed a tax increase to lower the deficit, then switched to a tax reduction and lowered spending, never actually achieving a balanced budget or curing the country's economic issues. Outrage over the Nixon pardon, the perception that he was continually flip-flopping, and the lack of results on the nation's financial problems led to Ford's 1976 presidential election defeat by Democrat Jimmy Carter.
Fig.2 - Nelson Rockefeller
Vice President to Gerald Ford
Ford nominated moderate New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller to fill the vice president role. Conservatives in the party did not approve of the choice, as the party had begun to drift away from the party's older "Eastern Establishment" moderate wing. Despite reservations, Congress confirmed Rockefeller as Vice President.
Fig.3 Gerald Ford and Margaret Thatcher
Gerald Ford: Foreign Policy
Ford continued thawing Cold War tensions that had begun under Nixon with Detente. The Helsinki accords were signed under his administration between the United States, Canada, and the countries of Europe. He further supported international cooperation by attending the first Group of Seven (G7) meeting, which had come from ideas developed under the Nixon administration. The G7 is a group of economically developed representative democracies that come together to cooperate on world affairs.
Detente: A Lessening of hostilities and aggression, used to describe the easing of US/USSR relations during the Nixon administration.
Did you know?
The Helsinki accords stabilized controversial Soviet gains in Europe during the Cold War but also subjected the Soviet countries to new Human Rights standards. The agreements gave freedom of speech a hold that was one of many elements in the buckling of the USSR.
Global Conflicts
While Ford pushed for cooperation in areas like the Helsinki Accords and the G7, he was frustrated with Middle Eastern conflicts. When he perceived Israel stalling during the Arab-Israeli peace talks in 1975, he reassessed US-Israeli relations during which aid to Israel would be cut. The Sinai Agreement between Israel and Egypt was signed later that year, resuming American assistance to Israel. US military aid to Turkey was cut in response to their invasion of Cyprus, resulting in a strain on NATO, as Turkey was a member nation. In 1975 Congress refused to authorize a $722 aid military aid package for South Vietnam after the North Vietnamese began to march South, resulting in the final withdrawal of American forces and the Fall of Saigon.
Did you know?
76 Senators signed a letter attempting to get Ford to resume Israeli aid during the cut-off.
After the Fall of Saigon, amid fears of being perceived as weak in Asia, two minor US conflicts occurred. In the Korean Axe Murder, Major (MAJ) Arthur G. Bonifas and First Lieutenant (1LT) Mark T. Barrett of the US Army were murdered with axes by North Korean soldiers. The men had been attempting to trim a tree blocking the line of sight to an observation post in the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea.
Fig.4 - The Caskets of MAJ Bonifas and 1LT Barrett
The US responded with Operation Paul Bunyan, where an overwhelming force arrived to cut the tree down entirely. This resulted in a rare apology from the North Korean government.
In the Mayaguez incident, the Khmer Rouge government in Cambodia seized a merchant ship, resulting in an assault on the island of Koh Tang by US Marines. The ship's crew was released shortly after what is often considered the last Vietnam War battle.
Fig.5 - Gerald Ford and Donald RumsfeldGerald Ford: Accomplishments
Ford is generally regarded as one of the less successful US Presidents. However, he succeeded in a massive expansion of special needs education domestically and fostered increased international cooperation. Ronald Reagan ran a competitive challenge to Ford for the 1976 presidential election before attempting to work out taking on Ford as his running mate in the 1980 election. Ford's demands to be a co-president, with significantly increased power in the role, resulted in the deal not coming to fruition. Ford continued for the rest of his life to be very active in Republican Party, often warning the party not to move too far to the right, especially on social issues. Despite their disagreements, he later became close friends with Jimmy Carter and worked with other former presidents of both parties on various projects.
Although he had opposed Roe V. Wade when it was decided, believing the issue should be resolved by the states, by the 2000s, Ford supported abortion rights and marriage equality.
Gerald Ford: Assassination Attempts
Not once but twice Ford was the target of attempted assassinations. A secret service agent managed to grab the gun, saving the President, as Manson Family cult member Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme tried to kill Ford in 1975. That same month Sara Jane Moore attempted Ford's life, but she missed her first bullet due to her unfamiliarity with the quirks of the recently purchased weapon before she was subdued.
Fromme and Moore are the only two women who have tried to assassinate a US president.
Gerald Ford: Cause of Death
Gerald Ford suffered from several natural health problems later in life. At the 2000 Republican Convention, he had two strokes. In January 2006, pneumonia sent the former President to the hospital for 11 days. Throughout that summer, he suffered worsening health due to heart problems before being confined to a bed by November of that year. He passed away the day after Christmas that year from issues related to vascular health.
Gerald Ford - Key takeaways
Became Vice President after the resignation of Spiro Agnew in 1973
Became President after the resignation of Richard Nixon in 1974
Controversially pardoned Richard Nixon when Nixon left office
Presided over a troubled economy
Lost the 1976 election to Jimmy Carter
Explanations 
Exams 
Magazine 
