President Gerald R. Ford dies at 93

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Tue Dec 26, 2006 10:17 pm

Gerald R. Ford, led nation after Watergate scandal, dies at 93

JEFF WILSON

Associated Press

LOS ANGELES - Gerald R. Ford, who picked up the pieces of Richard Nixon's scandal-shattered White House as the 38th and only president in America's history never elected to nationwide office, has died, his wife, Betty, said Tuesday. He was 93.

"My family joins me in sharing the difficult news that Gerald Ford, our beloved husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather has passed away at 93 years of age," Mrs. Ford said in a brief statement issued from her husband's office in Rancho Mirage. "His life was filled with love of God, his family and his country."

The statement did not say where Ford died or list a cause of death.

Ford was an accidental president, Nixon's hand-picked successor, a man of much political experience who had never run on a national ticket. He was as open and straightforward as Nixon was tightly controlled and conspiratorial.

He took office minutes after Nixon flew off into exile in 1974 and declared "our long national nightmare is over." But he revived the debate a month later by granting Nixon a pardon for all crimes he committed as president. That single act, it was widely believed, cost Ford election to a term of his own in 1976, but it won praise in later years as a courageous act that allowed the nation to move on.

The Vietnam War ended in defeat for the U.S. during his presidency with the fall of Saigon in April 1975. In a speech as the end neared, Ford said: "Today, America can regain the sense of pride that existed before Vietnam. But it cannot be achieved by refighting a war that is finished as far as America is concerned." Evoking Abraham Lincoln, he said it was time to "look forward to an agenda for the future, to unify, to bind up the nation's wounds."

Ford also earned a place in the history books as the first unelected vice president, chosen by Nixon to replace Spiro Agnew, also forced from office by scandal.

He was in the White House only 895 days, but changed it more than it changed him.

RedGlitter · Post by **RedGlitter** » Tue Dec 26, 2006 10:49 pm

Wow, this is sad news. I remember being in fifth grade and taking a class "poll" on who we thought would be pres- Ford again or Jimmy Carter.

Janes Brown..Ford..??

They always seem to go in threes. It really seems that happens. :-2

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Wed Dec 27, 2006 12:44 am

what sad news....may he rest in peace.

911 · Post by **911** » Wed Dec 27, 2006 10:19 am

He was the only president with all the grace of an elephant ballerina! :wah:

But I really liked him. And he will be missed.

There was a time there when we had like 5 living presidents at one time. I wonder how many other times that has happened in history?

chonsigirl · Post by **chonsigirl** » Wed Dec 27, 2006 10:23 am

That is sad news, he took a job he knew would be hard and thankless. He should be remembered for the things he tried to accomplish in such a short time.

Adam Zapple · Post by **Adam Zapple** » Wed Dec 27, 2006 10:52 am

He's the only president I've ever shaken hands with. As clumsy as he was portrayed, he was actually the most athletic president we have probably ever had.

Lulu2 · Post by **Lulu2** » Wed Dec 27, 2006 4:31 pm

I respected him (and her) for being "real people." He had a credibility which we haven't see in awhile.

Uncle Kram · Post by **Uncle Kram** » Wed Dec 27, 2006 4:42 pm

As a kid in the UK he always seemed a decent chap to me. 93 was a good age.Always remember people saying he couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time

Lulu2 · Post by **Lulu2** » Wed Dec 27, 2006 6:40 pm

He did have some horribly public falls/stumbles and gaffes. This must've been especially galling to him, since he was apparently a very fine athlete.

At one time.

Uncle Kram · Post by **Uncle Kram** » Thu Dec 28, 2006 3:54 am

CARLA;497749 wrote:

He was in the White House only 895 days, but changed it more than it changed him.

This comment seems to capture it

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Thu Dec 28, 2006 4:21 am

I've been listening to tributes on the radio. He commented about his presidency by saying:

"I was a Ford, not a Lincoln."

He played football as center for Michigan (I believe), and they won 2 national championships with him on the team. He had offers to go pro, but went to law school instead.

*ADDED*

Here's a short bio.

http://www.constitutioncenter.org/educa ... 7098.shtml

Shweet tatersalad · Post by **Shweet tatersalad** » Thu Dec 28, 2006 1:15 pm

A brave and soft spoken man who was thrust into a world of turmoil and had the decency too forgive those who put him there.

K.Snyder · Post by **K.Snyder** » Sat Dec 30, 2006 10:54 am

They are having the funeral on right now...

The man was 93...can't really ask for a much more long and prosperous life...May he rest in peace.

On a side note:

My 4th cousin was actually the riderless horseman behind John F. Kennedy's funeral precession....

That was before he went to Vietnam, and served three tours as a green beret and eventually a C.I.A agent...

I'm trying to look up JFK's funeral records...

(At least this is what I've been told by many in my family)