WASN'T MUCH OF A PRESIDENT?! Sparky-Watts, what are you thinking?
The Gerald Ford I recall came to power at a time when the people's faith in their government was at an all-time low. Viet Nam, Watergate, Spiro Agnew, Richard Nixon, relations at an all-time low with the USSR (remember them?) all were taking place when Mr. Ford took hold of the Presidency.
I recall VERY well the day Richard Nixon resigned. The mood of the country was solemn. Anger had been replaced by relief and, not a little, fear for the future. The country needed a healer. Someone bigger and kinder than any man in office had been up to that time. Enter Gerald Ford.
For what it's worth, I wish there were more like him in politics. He was one of the last TRUE statesmen. He believed, as did many others then and now, that he did the right thing in pardoning Nixon even when it was political suicide.
Show me politicians today with enough guts to have an opinion on ANYTHING without first checking the poll numbers.
Oh, and his VP was Nelson Rockefeller
What you state is an opinion, but presented as fact. Indeed it is debatable as to the effectiveness of Ford's tenure, and to suggest that it's not is a questionable suggestion. You've all but anointed him as the last of the altruistic politicians. Let's put down the Kool-aid as TC likes to say.
Personally, I too don't think the pardoning of Nixon was "best" for our nation and society in general.
In his address on the Pardoning of Nixon, Ford stated:
I deeply believe in equal justice for all Americans, whatever their station or former station. The law, whether human or divine, is no respecter of persons; but the law is a respecter of reality.
In the very next paragraph he states:
The facts, as I see them, are that a former President of the United States, instead of enjoying equal treatment with any other citizen accused of violating the law, would be cruelly and excessively penalized either in preserving the presumption of his innocence or in obtaining a speedy determination of his guilt in order to repay a legal debt to society.
Meaning, because of his position, he is subject to special treatment and special rules, unlike the rest of us. Why? Because he'd be subject to "Excessive" punishment? By this logic, all celebs should be up for "Special treatment" because they might be unjustly chastised, branded, or cruelly treated as a result of any implications of injustice.
When examining the situation at the time, and considering the climate contemporary with Ford's office, one still must question the veracity of his pardoning statements, and the agenda behind them.
If one doesn't like the possibility of additional punishment from the constituency (aka the public courtroom) then don't become President. It is after all, perhaps the quintessential public persona garnering a celebrity spotlight which outshines even most infamous of famous people.
If anything, because of the fact that the pres is a figurehead of great importance, the laws should doubly apply. The President of the US should be held to a higher standard, not a lower one. Because of the power they wield, anything illegal should be
less forgivable.
The precedent was set: as President, break the law, you'll get a pardon because "it's for the good of the nation". Cheat, lie, steal, don't worry. Politicians aren't lacking in character these days just because they are all inherently bad people these days, but rather lack character because they know they can get away with it. And this act, agree or not, is a big reason why such a comfort is enjoyed by these officials we so cautiously/callously elect into power. More often then not, we regret it.
Was it better for the country that everyone became more disillusioned with politics and politicians? Were all future leaders more effective as a result of the cliche of the "Crooked politician"? No.
Clearly his statements were IMO double talk...in writing.
Lastly, let's not forget he was a political crony of the Nixon administration.
I'll admit it's easy to play Monday morning quarterback years into the future, but my point isn't so much that Ford is a crooked, horrible president, he wasn't. And I'll even agree that I think at heart he was a good man, but had to deal with some real serious partisan pressures. My point rather, was to show that questioning whether he was "Much of a President" isn't as insane a proposition as your post might seem to suggest.
