The Good Man from Grand Rapids: Part II
In the first part of my blog about Gerald R. Ford, I primarily discussed his personal strengths and attributes. This is what the majority of the media and Gerry Ford's admirers have been dwelling on since Tuesday...but there was more to him than merely his honesty and humility. In fact, he was quite unique in regard to his brief tenure as President. Here are some fascinating distinctions about the man we called Mr. President for 895 days, from August 9, 1974 until January 20, 1977:
- He was the only man to ever ascend to both Vice President and President without being elected. Indeed, his dream was to become Speaker of the House, not President or Vice.
- Only four Presidents--William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, James Garfield, and Warren G. Harding --served briefer terms as U.S. President.
- He was faced with the task of properly ending the longest war in American history, not an enviable assignment.
- He was one of the few presidents--Lincoln, Carter, and Grant being notable others--who rose from obscurity and, at times, near-poverty to become the most powerful democratic leader on Earth.
- In 1976 Ford became the first President to approve female cadets at the nation's public military academies, a very bold and unexpected move.
- Upon his death on December 26, 2006, Ford died as the oldest U.S. President ever.
- Ford is still the only Eagle Scout to become President.
- He was married to his wife, Betty, for an incredible 58 years, despite her struggles with alcohol and breast cancer, and his own political difficulties.
- Despite being quite possibly the best athlete in Presidential history--an MVP center on two national title football teams at Michigan (1932-33)--Ford was unfairly portrayed by liberal operations like Saturday Night Live and Hollywood as a clumsy fool. Surprise, surprise.
- The bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence occurred during Ford's Presidency; this was a very special and thoroughly celebrated affair that helped boost the country's morale after Watergate and Vietnam.
In addition to these unique distinctions, Ford was actually able to accomplish a moderate amount in his 895 days as chief executive. On his insistence, American forces rescued around 237,000 pro-democracy Vietnamese refugees in 1975, saving them from certain death or persecution at the hands of the Communist regime. This was a major blow to the vengeful Viet Cong, onlooking China, and world Communism and tyranny. Around 140,000 of these refugees settled in the U.S., and have contributed greatly to our society in the past three decades. That same year, Ford deftly handled the Mayaguez crisis off the coast of Cambodia, in which 39 American hostages were successfully rescued by U.S. Marines despite heavy losses. This sent a clear message that failure in Vietnam did not mean America would lose its nerve in other international crises. In addition to this, Ford signed the historic Helsinki Accords with Brezhnev's Soviet Union, which furthered detente and led to internal changes within Eastern Europe that promoted greater freedom of expression and the planting of democratic ideas. This was one crucial step in the eventual downfall of the Soviet empire.
Finally, Ford was able to curb a great deal of the nation's severe inflation; he kept Dr. Henry Kissinger on as a very effective and influential, although controversial, Secretary of State; and he began placing more diplomatic pressure on South Africa's racist apartheid government, something no other President before him had done. Within a decade, that regime too would begin to collapse. It's too bad Gerry was not elected in 1976; these were not the actions of an incompetent dupe, as he has been so stupidly portrayed. Rather, they were the accomplishments of a loyal public servant who showed the same face in public as in private, a rarity in Washington and in life.
Quote of the Day: "I am a Ford, not a Lincoln. My addresses will never be as eloquent as Mr. Lincoln's. But I will do my very best to equal his brevity and his plain speaking." - Gerald R. Ford, December 1973, after being named as Nixon's new Vice President. These are the brief, plain words of an intelligent but humble man who knew himself and the seriousness of his new responsibilities. Within eight short months, he would be promoted even further by circumstances. Thank God it was him, and not Spiro T. Agnew...or anyone else.
- He was the only man to ever ascend to both Vice President and President without being elected. Indeed, his dream was to become Speaker of the House, not President or Vice.
- Only four Presidents--William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, James Garfield, and Warren G. Harding --served briefer terms as U.S. President.
- He was faced with the task of properly ending the longest war in American history, not an enviable assignment.
- He was one of the few presidents--Lincoln, Carter, and Grant being notable others--who rose from obscurity and, at times, near-poverty to become the most powerful democratic leader on Earth.
- In 1976 Ford became the first President to approve female cadets at the nation's public military academies, a very bold and unexpected move.
- Upon his death on December 26, 2006, Ford died as the oldest U.S. President ever.
- Ford is still the only Eagle Scout to become President.
- He was married to his wife, Betty, for an incredible 58 years, despite her struggles with alcohol and breast cancer, and his own political difficulties.
- Despite being quite possibly the best athlete in Presidential history--an MVP center on two national title football teams at Michigan (1932-33)--Ford was unfairly portrayed by liberal operations like Saturday Night Live and Hollywood as a clumsy fool. Surprise, surprise.
- The bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence occurred during Ford's Presidency; this was a very special and thoroughly celebrated affair that helped boost the country's morale after Watergate and Vietnam.
In addition to these unique distinctions, Ford was actually able to accomplish a moderate amount in his 895 days as chief executive. On his insistence, American forces rescued around 237,000 pro-democracy Vietnamese refugees in 1975, saving them from certain death or persecution at the hands of the Communist regime. This was a major blow to the vengeful Viet Cong, onlooking China, and world Communism and tyranny. Around 140,000 of these refugees settled in the U.S., and have contributed greatly to our society in the past three decades. That same year, Ford deftly handled the Mayaguez crisis off the coast of Cambodia, in which 39 American hostages were successfully rescued by U.S. Marines despite heavy losses. This sent a clear message that failure in Vietnam did not mean America would lose its nerve in other international crises. In addition to this, Ford signed the historic Helsinki Accords with Brezhnev's Soviet Union, which furthered detente and led to internal changes within Eastern Europe that promoted greater freedom of expression and the planting of democratic ideas. This was one crucial step in the eventual downfall of the Soviet empire.
Finally, Ford was able to curb a great deal of the nation's severe inflation; he kept Dr. Henry Kissinger on as a very effective and influential, although controversial, Secretary of State; and he began placing more diplomatic pressure on South Africa's racist apartheid government, something no other President before him had done. Within a decade, that regime too would begin to collapse. It's too bad Gerry was not elected in 1976; these were not the actions of an incompetent dupe, as he has been so stupidly portrayed. Rather, they were the accomplishments of a loyal public servant who showed the same face in public as in private, a rarity in Washington and in life.
Quote of the Day: "I am a Ford, not a Lincoln. My addresses will never be as eloquent as Mr. Lincoln's. But I will do my very best to equal his brevity and his plain speaking." - Gerald R. Ford, December 1973, after being named as Nixon's new Vice President. These are the brief, plain words of an intelligent but humble man who knew himself and the seriousness of his new responsibilities. Within eight short months, he would be promoted even further by circumstances. Thank God it was him, and not Spiro T. Agnew...or anyone else.
posted by Douglas Schrock at 6:05 PM
2 Comments:
My "take on what Reagan did to our country"? Hope there's no negative implication there, haha... I would put him in our top 10 Presidents (at about number 8 or 9) for winning the Cold War peacefully, liberating Grenada and Nicaragua quickly (unlike Iraq), restoring power to the states, and lowering or raising taxes based on the country's needs. Also, he helped renew the country's pride in itself. Mistakes? Weak policy towards terrorism, and his subordinates' deep mishandling of Iran-Contra. As for the books you listed, I've not read any completely. I did read some of Fast Food Nation...kinda disturbing. Jane Eyre will be on my to-read list at some point!
I would totally agree...I'm amazed at how perceptive Ford's views were on every President he was asked about. As much as I love Reagan, a lot of the credit goes back to Truman and Eisenhower's containment protocols, Kennedy's defense build-up, and Ford and (I hate to admit it...) Carter's strong position on human rights in the USSR. Nonetheless, Reagan did a great job of reaching out to Gorbachev and encouraging reforms while still keeping our deterrence strong. Being the actor he was, Reagan had a tendency to be showy and a tad narcissistic at times; thus taking much of the credit.
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