Gerald Ford: Difference between revisions

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Domestically, Ford presided over the worst economy in the four decades since the [[Great Depression]], with growing inflation and [[1973–1975 recession|a recession]].<ref name="'70s">{{cite book|title= How We Got Here: The '70s|last= Frum|first= David|author-link= David Frum|year= 2000|publisher= Basic Books|location= New York City|isbn=978-0-465-04195-4|pages= xxiii, 301|url= https://archive.org/details/howwegothere70sd00frum}}</ref> In one of his most controversial acts, he granted a [[presidential pardon to Nixon]] for his role in the [[Watergate scandal]]. Foreign policy was characterized in procedural terms by the increased role Congress began to play, and by the corresponding curb on the powers of the president.<!-- (Please keep hidden until fully developed below) "This was made clear by developments in two major substantive issues during Ford's presidency: the Cyprus crisis and Arab Israeli relations." --><ref name="Lenczowski">{{cite book|first=George|last=Lenczowski|title=American Presidents, and the Middle East|year=1990|isbn=978-0-8223-0972-7|pages=142–143|publisher=Duke University Press|author-link=George Lenczowski}}</ref> Ford signed the [[Helsinki Accords]], which marked a move toward ''[[détente]]'' in the [[Cold War]]. With the collapse of [[South Vietnam]] nine months into his presidency, [[U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War]] essentially ended. In the [[1976 Republican Party presidential primaries|1976 Republican presidential primary]], he defeated [[Ronald Reagan]] for the Republican nomination, but narrowly lost the presidential election to the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] candidate, [[Jimmy Carter]]. Ford remains the only person to serve as president without winning an election for president or vice president.
Domestically, Ford presided over the worst economy in the four decades since the [[Great Depression]], with growing inflation and [[1973–1975 recession|a recession]].<ref name="'70s">{{cite book|title= How We Got Here: The '70s|last= Frum|first= David|author-link= David Frum|year= 2000|publisher= Basic Books|location= New York City|isbn=978-0-465-04195-4|pages= xxiii, 301|url= https://archive.org/details/howwegothere70sd00frum}}</ref> In one of his most controversial acts, he granted a [[presidential pardon to Nixon]] for his role in the [[Watergate scandal]]. Foreign policy was characterized in procedural terms by the increased role Congress began to play, and by the corresponding curb on the powers of the president.<!-- (Please keep hidden until fully developed below) "This was made clear by developments in two major substantive issues during Ford's presidency: the Cyprus crisis and Arab Israeli relations." --><ref name="Lenczowski">{{cite book|first=George|last=Lenczowski|title=American Presidents, and the Middle East|year=1990|isbn=978-0-8223-0972-7|pages=142–143|publisher=Duke University Press|author-link=George Lenczowski}}</ref> Ford signed the [[Helsinki Accords]], which marked a move toward ''[[détente]]'' in the [[Cold War]]. With the collapse of [[South Vietnam]] nine months into his presidency, [[U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War]] essentially ended. In the [[1976 Republican Party presidential primaries|1976 Republican presidential primary]], he defeated [[Ronald Reagan]] for the Republican nomination, but narrowly lost the presidential election to the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] candidate, [[Jimmy Carter]]. Ford remains the only person to serve as president without winning an election for president or vice president.


Following his years as president, Ford remained active in the Republican Party, but his moderate views on various social issues increasingly put him at odds with conservative members of the party in the 1990s and early 2000s. He also set aside the enmity he had felt towards Carter following the 1976 election and the two former presidents developed a close friendship. After experiencing a series of health problems, he [[Death and state funeral of Gerald Ford|died in Rancho Mirage, California]] in 2006. Surveys of historians and political scientists [[Historical rankings of presidents of the United States|have ranked]] Ford as a below-average president,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/16/presidential.survey/|title=Lincoln Wins: Honest Abe tops new presidential survey|publisher=[[CNN]]|date=February 16, 2009|access-date=December 2, 2020|archive-date=April 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210404080715/http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/16/presidential.survey/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2017/?page=overall|title=Presidential Historians Survey 2017|publisher=C-SPAN|access-date=December 2, 2020|archive-date=March 1, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170301043807/https://www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2017/?page=overall|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Presidents 2018 Rank by Category|url=https://scri.siena.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Presidents-2018-Rank-by-Category.pdf|access-date=December 2, 2020|archive-date=February 20, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220062843/https://scri.siena.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Presidents-2018-Rank-by-Category.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> though retrospective public polls on his time in office were more positive.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.gallup.com/poll/23995/Gerald-Ford-Retrospective.aspx|title=Gerald Ford Retrospective|date=December 29, 2006|publisher=[[Gallup, Inc.]]|access-date=January 5, 2023|archive-date=May 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210521142231/https://news.gallup.com/poll/23995/Gerald-Ford-Retrospective.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/polls-fords-image-improved-over-time/|title=Polls: Ford's Image Improved Over Time|publisher=[[CBS News]]|date=December 27, 2006|access-date=January 5, 2023|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106035223/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/polls-fords-image-improved-over-time/|url-status=live}}</ref>
Following his years as president, Ford remained active in the Republican Party, but his moderate views on various social issues increasingly put him at odds with conservative members of the party in the 1990s and early 2000s. He also set aside the enmity he had felt towards Carter following the 1976 election and the two former presidents developed a close friendship. After experiencing a series of health problems, he [[Death and state funeral of Gerald Ford|died in Rancho Mirage, California]] in 2006. Surveys of historians and political scientists [[Historical rankings of presidents of the United States|have ranked]] Ford as a below-average president,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/16/presidential.survey/|title=Lincoln Wins: Honest Abe tops new presidential survey|publisher=CNN|date=February 16, 2009|access-date=December 2, 2020|archive-date=April 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210404080715/http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/16/presidential.survey/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2017/?page=overall|title=Presidential Historians Survey 2017|publisher=C-SPAN|access-date=December 2, 2020|archive-date=March 1, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170301043807/https://www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2017/?page=overall|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Presidents 2018 Rank by Category|url=https://scri.siena.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Presidents-2018-Rank-by-Category.pdf|access-date=December 2, 2020|archive-date=February 20, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220062843/https://scri.siena.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Presidents-2018-Rank-by-Category.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> though retrospective public polls on his time in office were more positive.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.gallup.com/poll/23995/Gerald-Ford-Retrospective.aspx|title=Gerald Ford Retrospective|date=December 29, 2006|publisher=[[Gallup, Inc.]]|access-date=January 5, 2023|archive-date=May 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210521142231/https://news.gallup.com/poll/23995/Gerald-Ford-Retrospective.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/polls-fords-image-improved-over-time/|title=Polls: Ford's Image Improved Over Time|publisher=[[CBS News]]|date=December 27, 2006|access-date=January 5, 2023|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106035223/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/polls-fords-image-improved-over-time/|url-status=live}}</ref>


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