GERALD R. FORD | 1974-1977
Taking the oath of office on August 9, 1974, Gerald R. Ford declared, "I assume the Presidency under extraordinary circumstances…This is an hour of history that troubles our minds and hurts our hearts." It was indeed an unprecedented time. He had been the first vice president chosen under the terms of the Twenty-fifth Amendment, and he succeeded the first president ever to resign. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, on July 14, 1913, Ford grew up in Michigan. He went to Yale and earned a law degree. During World War II he was a lieutenant commander in the navy. After the war he returned to Grand Rapids, where he entered Republican politics and was elected to Congress in 1948. He served there for 25 years, earning a reputation for integrity and openness. From 1965 to 1973, he was House minority leader.
As president, Ford tried to calm earlier controversies by granting former President Nixon a full pardon. Gradually, he selected a cabinet of his own and began to confront the almost insuperable challenges facing his administration. Ford’s first goal was to curb inflation. Then, when recession became a serious domestic problem, he shifted to measures aimed at stimulating the economy. Still fearing inflation, Ford vetoed a number of nonmilitary appropriations bills that would have further increased the already heavy budgetary deficit. During his first 14 months as president he vetoed 39 measures. His vetoes were usually sustained.
A domestic goal was to help business operate more freely by reducing taxes upon it and easing the controls exercised by regulatory agencies. "We …declared our independence 200 years ago, and we are not about to lose it now to paper shufflers and computers," he said. In foreign affairs Ford acted vigorously to maintain U. S. power and prestige after the collapse of Cambodia and South Viet Nam. Preventing a new war in the Middle East remained a major objective. By providing aid to both Israel and Egypt, the Ford Administration helped persuade the two countries to accept an interim truce agreement. Détente with the Soviet Union continued. President Ford and Soviet leader Leonid I. Brezhnev set new limitations upon nuclear weapons.
In 1976, President Ford won the Republican nomination for the presidency, but lost the election to his Democratic opponent, former Governor Jimmy Carter of Georgia.
On Inauguration Day, President Carter began his speech: "For myself and for our Nation, I want to thank my predecessor for all he has done to heal our land." A grateful people concurred.
