Gerald R. Ford 1913 - 2006

He was born Leslie Lynch King Jr. He grew up to become Jerry Ford, the 38th President of the United States of America. His legacy includes the Warren Commission, helping to make Chevy Chase a star, the 1st (& so far only) person to become VP under the provisions of the 25th Amendment & then go on to become president as a result, & being the longest living person to serve as president of the USA. Not bad for a kid from Grand Rapids, MI? & this is only a part of the things he did that guarentee him a prominant place in history. He will probably be best known for the fact that he pardoned his predecessor, Nixon, for his role in Watergate. & the right or wrong of it will be discussed, & debated for a long time to come.

Watching the coverage Wednesday on Fox brought back a lot of memories of the mid 70, my college days, a time that saw our country at an all-time low as a result of Vietnam, Watergate & a poor economy. It also reminded me how much my opinion of him has changed for the better in the past 30 yrs since all this.

At the time of Nixon I was a staunch Democrat & gald to see that crook go. I thought Ford was a nice guy but not really capable to be president. & the 2 worst things he did was to pardon Nixon & then run for President in 1976 after initially saying he wouldn't. Clearly he couldn't be trusted to keep his word. I thought he deserved to loose the 2006 election.

However, as time has gone on & I looked back I began to see that he did the best he could with the poor hand that had been dealt him. He had to step into the Vice Presidency after Agnew was forced to resign in shame. He became the 1st VP not elected to the office to have to become the president. I had no problem with that, then or now, everything was done according to the 25th Amendment & said to me our Constitution works.

What I had the major problem with was the pardon of Nixon. I am sure he did what he thought was the right thing to heal our nation. I'm still not totally convinced it was. Part of me thinks we needed to go through the pain a trial for Nixon would have brought because the pardon kept the whole truth from getting out. & it wasn't fair that Nixon got off when so many of his staff didn't. But, I do respect him for trying to do what he thought was right despite the fact it cost him votes in the 76 election.

Then there was the Warren Commission. I'm not 1 of those conspiricy nuts. But, I do think some things were covered up & the Commission Report is flawed. Thus his association with it does taint him.

All that aside I see him as a much better president now than I did then. Like I said, he inherited a bad hand. & many of the problems , like those with our economy needed a longer time to be dealt with than he had in office. Remember the WIN (Whip Inflation Now) buttons? (Sadly, Carter, whom I supported from the 1976 Iowa Caucuses on has left me even more disappointed in the long run by what he did.)

It also took courage to let his press secretary Ron Nessen go on Saturday Night Live & esp for him to make a cameo voice over intro. Chevy Chase owes a lot to him. As did a lot of other commendians. While not being the klutz they portrayed him as, his couple of incidents did provide a lot of dodder for jokes, & a lot of laughs for me. Even Bob Hope used his golfing accidents as a kick off for his bicentennial comedy album America Is 200 Years Old...And There's Still Hope! (A stray golf shot by Ford sends Hope back in time 200 yrs a la Twain's A Connectecut Yankee.) Ford was able to laugh along & took the jokes well.

Then there are the what ifs? Like the fact that Nixon was considering Ronald Reagan to replace Agnew. Or Reagan nearly choosing Ford As VP in 1980. Or if Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme or Sara Jane Moore had suceeded in their assasination attempts. But they didn't. So, there are no real answers to any of these what ifs.

The next few days will see the pomp & circumstance that goes with a state funeral. (For more on that go to the Gerald Ford Memorial website & click on funeral services. There you will find more on presidential funerals in general as well as the unique specifics about President Ford's funeral.) The retrospectives, good & bad, will appear in print & on air, friends, colleagues & enemies will be interviewed, in a year a stamp will be issued in his honor etc.

Was he among the best, no & there was no need for him to be. But he was the right 1 for the time & circumstances which means he was definitely up there as 1 of our better presidents. & for all he did, he deserves America's Thanks.

(For more on President Ford check out the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum website.)

(In 1 of life's little ironies he died on the same day as Jack Benny who died on 26 Dec 1976 when he was president.)