Gerald Ford - wikipedia Gerald Ford Jump to : navigation , search This article is about the 38th U.S. President . For other uses , see Gerald Ford ( disambiguation ) . `` Gerald R. Ford '' redirects here . For the museum , see Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum . For the library , see Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . For international airport , see Gerald R. Ford International Airport . Gerald Ford Photo by David H. Kennerly , 1974 38th President of the United States In office August 9 , 1974 -- January 20 , 1977 Vice President None ( Aug -- Dec. 1974 ) Nelson Rockefeller ( 1974 -- 1977 ) Preceded by Richard Nixon Succeeded by Jimmy Carter 40th Vice President of the United States In office December 6 , 1973 -- August 9 , 1974 President Richard Nixon Preceded by Spiro Agnew Succeeded by Nelson Rockefeller House Minority Leader In office January 3 , 1965 -- December 6 , 1973 Deputy Leslie C. Arends Preceded by Charles A. Halleck Succeeded by John Jacob Rhodes Chair of the House Republican Conference In office January 3 , 1963 -- January 3 , 1965 Leader Charles A. Halleck Preceded by Charles B. Hoeven Succeeded by Melvin Laird Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan 's 5th district In office January 3 , 1949 -- December 6 , 1973 Preceded by Bartel J. Jonkman Succeeded by Richard Vander Veen Personal details Leslie Lynch King Jr . ( 1913 - 07 - 14 ) July 14 , 1913 Omaha , Nebraska , U.S. December 26 , 2006 ( 2006 - 12 - 26 ) ( aged 93 ) Rancho Mirage , California , U.S. Cause of death Cerebrovascular disease and diffuse arteriosclerosis Resting place Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum Political party Republican Spouse ( s ) Betty Bloomer ( m . 1948 ) Children Michael Jack Steven Susan Parents Leslie Lynch King Sr . Dorothy Ayer Gardner Ford Education University of Michigan , Ann Arbor ( BA ) Yale University ( LLB ) Signature Military service Allegiance United States of America Service / branch United States Navy Years of service 1942 -- 1946 Rank Lieutenant commander Battles / wars World War II Awards American Campaign Medal Asiatic - Pacific Campaign Medal ( 9 campaign stars ) World War II Victory Medal Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( born Leslie Lynch King Jr. ; July 14 , 1913 -- December 26 , 2006 ) was an American politician who served as the 38th President of the United States from August 1974 to January 1977 , following the resignation of Richard Nixon . Prior to this he served eight months as the 40th Vice President of the United States , following the resignation of Spiro Agnew . He was the first person appointed to the vice presidency under the terms of the 25th Amendment , and consequently the only person to have served as both Vice President and President of the United States without being elected to executive office . Before his appointment to the vice presidency , Ford served 25 years as U.S. Representative from Michigan 's 5th congressional district , the final nine of them as the House Minority Leader . As President , Ford signed the Helsinki Accords , marking a move toward détente in the Cold War . With the conquest of South Vietnam by North Vietnam nine months into his presidency , U.S. involvement in Vietnam essentially ended . Domestically , Ford presided over the worst economy in the four decades since the Great Depression , with growing inflation and a recession during his tenure . One of his most controversial acts was to grant a presidential pardon to President Richard Nixon for his role in the Watergate scandal . During Ford 's presidency , 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 . In the Republican presidential primary campaign of 1976 , Ford defeated former California Governor Ronald Reagan for the Republican nomination . He narrowly lost the presidential election to the Democratic challenger , former Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter . Following his years as President , Ford remained active in the Republican Party . After experiencing health problems , he died at home on December 26 , 2006 . Ford lived longer than any other U.S. president -- 93 years and 165 days -- while his 895 - day presidency is the shortest of all presidents who did not die in office . He is the most recent Vice President to become President as a result of succession to a mid-term vacancy . Contents ( hide ) 1 Early life 2 College and law school 3 U.S. Naval Reserve 3.1 Sea duty 3.2 Post-war 4 Marriage and children 5 House of Representatives ( 1949 -- 1973 ) 5.1 Warren Commission 5.2 House Minority Leader ( 1965 -- 1973 ) 6 Vice presidency ( 1973 -- 1974 ) 7 Presidency ( 1974 -- 1977 ) 7.1 Swearing - in 7.2 Pardon of Nixon 7.3 Draft dodgers and deserters 7.4 Administration officials 7.5 Midterm elections 7.6 Domestic policy 7.6. 1 Inflation 7.6. 2 Budget 7.6. 3 Swine flu 7.6. 4 Other domestic issues 7.7 Foreign policy 7.7. 1 Middle East 7.7. 2 Vietnam 7.7. 3 Mayaguez and Panmunjom 7.7. 4 Indonesian invasion of East Timor 7.8 Assassination attempts 7.9 Judicial appointments 7.9. 1 Supreme Court 7.9. 2 Other judicial appointments 7.10 1976 presidential election 8 Post-presidency ( 1977 -- 2006 ) 8.1 Activity 8.2 Health problems 9 Death and legacy 9.1 Longevity 9.2 Public image 10 Civic and Fraternal Organizations 10.1 Freemasonry 11 Honors 12 See also 13 References 14 Bibliography 14.1 Primary sources 15 External links Early life ( edit ) Ford was born Leslie Lynch King Jr. on July 14 , 1913 , at 3202 Woolworth Avenue in Omaha , Nebraska , where his parents lived with his paternal grandparents . His mother was Dorothy Ayer Gardner and his father was Leslie Lynch King Sr. , a wool trader and a son of prominent banker Charles Henry King and Martha Alicia King ( née Porter ) . Dorothy separated from King just sixteen days after her son 's birth . She took her son with her to the Oak Park , Illinois , home of her sister Tannisse and brother - in - law , Clarence Haskins James . From there , she moved to the home of her parents , Levi Addison Gardner and Adele Augusta Ayer , in Grand Rapids , Michigan . Dorothy and King divorced in December 1913 , and she gained full custody of her son . Ford 's paternal grandfather Charles Henry King paid child support until shortly before his death in 1930 . Leslie Lynch King Jr. ( later known as Gerald R. Ford ) in 1916 Ford later said his biological father had a history of hitting his mother . James M. Cannon , a member of the Ford administration , wrote in a biography of Ford that the Kings ' separation and divorce were sparked when , a few days after Ford 's birth , Leslie King took a butcher knife and threatened to kill his wife , his infant son , and Ford 's nursemaid . Ford later told confidantes that his father had first hit his mother on their honeymoon for smiling at another man . After two and a half years with her parents , on February 1 , 1916 , Dorothy married Gerald Rudolff Ford , a salesman in a family - owned paint and varnish company . They then called her son Gerald Rudolff Ford Jr . The future president was never formally adopted , and did not legally change his name until December 3 , 1935 ; he also used a more conventional spelling of his middle name . He was raised in Grand Rapids with his three half - brothers from his mother 's second marriage : Thomas Gardner `` Tom '' Ford ( 1918 -- 1995 ) , Richard Addison `` Dick '' Ford ( 1924 -- 2015 ) , and James Francis `` Jim '' Ford ( 1927 -- 2001 ) . Ford also had three half - siblings from the second marriage of Leslie King , Sr. , his biological father : Marjorie King ( 1921 -- 1993 ) , Leslie Henry King ( 1923 -- 1976 ) , and Patricia Jane King ( 1925 -- 1980 ) . They never saw one another as children and he did not know them at all . Ford was not aware of his biological father until he was 17 , when his parents told him about the circumstances of his birth . That year his biological father , whom Ford described as a `` carefree , well - to - do man who did n't really give a damn about the hopes and dreams of his firstborn son '' , approached Ford while he was waiting tables in a Grand Rapids restaurant . The two `` maintained a sporadic contact '' until Leslie King , Sr. 's death in 1941 . Ford said , `` My stepfather was a magnificent person and my mother equally wonderful . So I could n't have written a better prescription for a superb family upbringing . '' Eagle Scout Gerald Ford ( circled in red ) in 1929 ; Michigan Governor Fred W. Green at far left , holding hat Ford as a center on the University of Michigan football team , 1933 Ford was involved in the Boy Scouts of America , and earned that program 's highest rank , Eagle Scout . He is the only Eagle Scout to have ascended to the U.S. Presidency . Ford attended Grand Rapids South High School , where he was a star athlete and captain of the football team . In 1930 , he was selected to the All - City team of the Grand Rapids City League . He also attracted the attention of college recruiters . 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Anthony List Tea Party Patriots Turning Point USA Traditional Values Coalition United States Chamber of Commerce Young America 's Foundation Young Americans for Liberty Media ( show ) The American Conservative The American Spectator American Thinker Breitbart TheBlaze Chicago Tribune CNSNews.com Conservative Review Chronicles Daily Caller Daily Signal Daily Wire Drudge Report The Federalist Fox News FrontPage Magazine Gateway Pundit Hot Air Human Events Independent Journal Review Infowars LifeZette National Review The New American Newsmax Media New York Post One America News Network PJ Media RedState Right Side Broadcasting Network The Spotlight Taki 's Magazine Townhall TruthRevolt Twitchy Wall Street Journal Washington Examiner Washington Free Beacon Washington Times Weekly Standard WorldNetDaily VDARE Variants ( show ) Bold text Alt - right Christian right Conservative Democrat Counter-jihad Patriot movement Radical Right Tea Party movement See also ( show ) Bibliography American nationalism Black conservatism Green conservatism LGBT conservatism Libertarianism Women in conservatism Conservatism portal Attending the University of Michigan as an undergraduate , Ford became a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity ( Omicron chapter ) and washed dishes at his fraternity house to earn money for college expenses . Ford played center , linebacker , and long snapper for the school 's football team , and helped the Wolverines in two undefeated seasons and national titles in 1932 and 1933 . The team suffered a steep decline in his 1934 senior year , however , winning only one game . Ford was the team 's star nonetheless . After a game during which Michigan held heavily favored Minnesota ( the eventual national champion ) to a scoreless tie in the first half , assistant coach Bennie Oosterbaan later said , `` When I walked into the dressing room at halftime , I had tears in my eyes I was so proud of them . Ford and ( Cedric ) Sweet played their hearts out . They were everywhere on defense . '' Ford later recalled , `` During 25 years in the rough - and - tumble world of politics , I often thought of the experiences before , during , and after that game in 1934 . Remembering them has helped me many times to face a tough situation , take action , and make every effort possible despite adverse odds . '' His teammates later voted Ford their most valuable player , with one assistant coach noting , `` They felt Jerry was one guy who would stay and fight in a losing cause . '' During Ford 's senior year , a controversy developed when the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets refused to play a scheduled game if a black player named Willis Ward took the field . Even after protests from students , players and alumni , university officials opted to keep Ward out of the game . Ford was Ward 's best friend on the team and they roomed together while on road trips . Ford reportedly threatened to quit the team in response to the university 's decision , but eventually agreed to play against Georgia Tech when Ward personally asked him to play . In 1934 , Ford was selected for the Eastern Team on the Shriner 's East West Shrine Game at San Francisco ( a benefit for physically disabled children ) , played on January 1 , 1935 . As part of the 1935 Collegiate All - Star football team , Ford played against the Chicago Bears in the Chicago College All - Star Game at Soldier Field . In honor of his athletic accomplishments and his later political career , the University of Michigan retired Ford 's No. 48 jersey in 1994 . With the blessing of the Ford family , it was placed back into circulation in 2012 as part of the Michigan Football Legends program and issued to sophomore linebacker Desmond Morgan before a home game against Illinois on October 13 . Ford remained interested in football and his school throughout life , occasionally attending games . Ford also visited with players and coaches during practices , at one point asking to join the players in the huddle . Ford often had the Naval band play the University of Michigan fight song , The Victors , before state events instead of Hail to the Chief . Following his graduation in 1935 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics , Ford turned down contract offers from the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers of the National Football League . Instead , in September 1935 he took a job as the boxing coach and assistant varsity football coach at Yale University , and applied to its law school . Ford hoped to attend Yale 's law school beginning in 1935 . Yale officials at first denied his admission to the law school because of his full - time coaching responsibilities . He spent the summer of 1937 as a student at the University of Michigan Law School and was eventually admitted in the spring of 1938 to Yale Law School . Ford earned his LL. B. degree in 1941 ( later amended to Juris Doctor ) , graduating in the top 25 percent of his class . While attending Yale Law School , Ford joined a group of students led by R. Douglas Stuart Jr. , and signed a petition to enforce the 1939 Neutrality Act . The petition was circulated nationally and was the inspiration for the America First Committee , a group determined to keep the U.S. out of World War II . In the summer of 1940 he worked in Wendell Willkie 's presidential campaign . Ford graduated from law school in 1941 and was admitted to the Michigan bar shortly thereafter . In May 1941 , he opened a Grand Rapids law practice with a friend , Philip W. Buchen , who would later serve as Ford 's White House counsel . U.S. Naval Reserve ( edit ) The Gunnery officers of USS Monterey . Ford is second from the right , in the front row . Ford responded to the December 7 , 1941 , attack on Pearl Harbor by enlisting in the navy . He received a commission as ensign in the U.S. Naval Reserve on April 13 , 1942 . On April 20 , he reported for active duty to the V - 5 instructor school at Annapolis , Maryland . After one month of training , he went to Navy Preflight School in Chapel Hill , North Carolina , where he was one of 83 instructors and taught elementary navigation skills , ordnance , gunnery , first aid , and military drill . In addition , he coached in all nine sports that were offered , but mostly in swimming , boxing and football . During the year he was at the Preflight School , he was promoted to Lieutenant , Junior Grade , on June 2 , 1942 , and to lieutenant , in March 1943 . Sea duty ( edit ) Navy pilots in forward elevator well playing basketball . Jumper at left is Gerald R. Ford , mid-1944 After applying for sea duty , Ford was sent in May 1943 to the pre-commissioning detachment for the new aircraft carrier USS Monterey ( CVL - 26 ) , at New York Shipbuilding Corporation , Camden , New Jersey . From the ship 's commissioning on June 17 , 1943 , until the end of December 1944 , Ford served as the assistant navigator , Athletic Officer , and antiaircraft battery officer on board the Monterey . While he was on board , the carrier participated in many actions in the Pacific Theater with the Third and Fifth Fleets in late 1943 and 1944 . In 1943 , the carrier helped secure Makin Island in the Gilberts , and participated in carrier strikes against Kavieng , New Ireland in 1943 . During the spring of 1944 , the Monterey supported landings at Kwajalein and Eniwetok and participated in carrier strikes in the Marianas , Western Carolines , and northern New Guinea , as well as in the Battle of the Philippine Sea . After an overhaul , from September to November 1944 , aircraft from the Monterey launched strikes against Wake Island , participated in strikes in the Philippines and Ryukyus , and supported the landings at Leyte and Mindoro . Ford in Navy uniform , 1945 Although the ship was not damaged by Japanese forces , the Monterey was one of several ships damaged by the typhoon that hit Admiral William Halsey 's Third Fleet on December 18 -- 19 , 1944 . The Third Fleet lost three destroyers and over 800 men during the typhoon . The Monterey was damaged by a fire , which was started by several of the ship 's aircraft tearing loose from their cables and colliding on the hangar deck . During the storm , Ford narrowly avoided becoming a casualty himself . As he was going to his battle station on the bridge of the ship in the early morning of December 18 , the ship rolled twenty - five degrees , which caused Ford to lose his footing and slide toward the edge of the deck . The two - inch steel ridge around the edge of the carrier slowed him enough so he could roll , and he twisted into the catwalk below the deck . As he later stated , `` I was lucky ; I could have easily gone overboard . '' Ford , serving as General Quarters Officer of the Deck , was ordered to go below to assess the raging fire . He did so safely , and reported his findings back to the ship 's commanding officer , Captain Stuart Ingersoll . The ship 's crew was able to contain the fire , and the ship got underway again . After the fire , the Monterey was declared unfit for service , and the crippled carrier reached Ulithi on December 21 before continuing across the Pacific to Bremerton , Washington where it underwent repairs . On December 24 , 1944 , at Ulithi , Ford was detached from the ship and sent to the Navy Pre-Flight School at Saint Mary 's College of California , where he was assigned to the Athletic Department until April 1945 . One of his duties was to coach football . From the end of April 1945 to January 1946 , he was on the staff of the Naval Reserve Training Command , Naval Air Station , Glenview , Illinois , as the Staff Physical and Military Training Officer . On October 3 , 1945 , he was promoted to lieutenant commander . Ford received the following military awards : the American Campaign Medal , the Asiatic - Pacific Campaign Medal with nine ⁄ '' bronze stars ( for operations in the Gilbert Islands , Bismarck Archipelago , Marshall Islands , Asiatic and Pacific carrier raids , Hollandia , Marianas , Western Carolines , Western New Guinea , and the Leyte Operation ) , the Philippine Liberation Medal with two ⁄ '' bronze stars ( for Leyte and Mindoro ) , and the World War II Victory Medal . Post-war ( edit ) In January 1946 , Ford was sent to the Separation Center , Great Lakes to be processed out . He was released from active duty under honorable conditions on February 23 , 1946 . On June 28 , 1946 , the Secretary of the Navy accepted Ford 's resignation from the Naval Reserve . Ford remained in the inactive Naval Reserve until 1963 . Marriage and children ( edit ) The Fords on their wedding day , October 15 , 1948 On October 15 , 1948 , at Grace Episcopal Church in Grand Rapids , Ford married Elizabeth Bloomer Warren ( 1918 -- 2011 ) , a department store fashion consultant . Warren had been a John Robert Powers fashion model and a dancer in the auxiliary troupe of the Martha Graham Dance Company . She had previously been married to and divorced from William G. Warren . At the time of his engagement , Ford was campaigning for what would be his first of thirteen terms as a member of the United States House of Representatives . The wedding was delayed until shortly before the elections because , as The New York Times reported in a 1974 profile of Betty Ford , `` Jerry was running for Congress and was n't sure how voters might feel about his marrying a divorced ex-dancer . '' The couple had four children : Michael Gerald , born in 1949 John Gardner , known as Jack , born in 1951 Steven Meigs , born in 1956 Susan Elizabeth , born in 1957 House of Representatives ( 1949 -- 1973 ) ( edit ) A billboard for Ford 's 1948 Congressional Campaign After returning to Grand Rapids in 1946 , Ford became active in local Republican politics , and supporters urged him to take on Bartel J. Jonkman , the incumbent Republican congressman . Military service had changed his view of the world . `` I came back a converted internationalist '' , Ford wrote , `` and of course our congressman at that time was an avowed , dedicated isolationist . And I thought he ought to be replaced . Nobody thought I could win . I ended up winning two to one . '' During his first campaign in 1948 , Ford visited voters at their doorsteps and as they left the factories where they worked . Ford also visited local farms where , in one instance , a wager resulted in Ford spending two weeks milking cows following his election victory . Ford was a member of the House of Representatives for 25 years , holding the Grand Rapids congressional district seat from 1949 to 1973 . It was a tenure largely notable for its modesty . As an editorial in The New York Times described him , Ford `` saw himself as a negotiator and a reconciler , and the record shows it : he did not write a single piece of major legislation in his entire career . '' Appointed to the House Appropriations Committee two years after being elected , he was a prominent member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee . Ford described his philosophy as `` a moderate in domestic affairs , an internationalist in foreign affairs , and a conservative in fiscal policy . '' Ford was known to his colleagues in the House as a `` Congressman 's Congressman '' . In the early 1950s , Ford declined offers to run for either the Senate or the Michigan governorship . Rather , his ambition was to become Speaker of the House , which he called `` the ultimate achievement . To sit up there and be the head honcho of 434 other people and have the responsibility , aside from the achievement , of trying to run the greatest legislative body in the history of mankind ... I think I got that ambition within a year or two after I was in the House of Representatives '' . Warren Commission ( edit ) The Warren Commission presents its report to President Johnson Further information : Warren Commission and Assassination of John F. Kennedy On November 29 , 1963 , Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed Ford to the Warren Commission , a special task force set up to investigate the assassination of President John F. Kennedy . Ford was assigned to prepare a biography of Lee Harvey Oswald , the accused assassin . According to a 1963 FBI memo released in 2008 , Ford was in contact with the FBI throughout his time on the Warren Commission and relayed information to the deputy director , Cartha DeLoach , about the panel 's activities . In the preface to his book , A Presidential Legacy and The Warren Commission , Ford defended the work of the commission and reiterated his support of its conclusions . House Minority Leader ( 1965 -- 1973 ) ( edit ) Ford meets with President Richard Nixon as House Minority Leader . Congressman Gerald Ford , MSFC director Wernher von Braun , Congressman George H. Mahon , and NASA Administrator James E. Webb visit the Marshall Space Flight Center for a briefing on the Saturn program , 1964 . In 1964 , Lyndon Johnson led a landslide victory for his party , securing another term as president and taking 36 seats from Republicans in the House of Representatives . Following the election , members of the Republican caucus looked to select a new Minority Leader . Three members approached Ford to see if he would be willing to serve ; after consulting with his family , he agreed . After a closely contested election , Ford was chosen to replace Charles Halleck of Indiana as Minority Leader . With a Democrat majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate , the Johnson Administration proposed and passed a series of programs that was called by Johnson the `` Great Society . '' During the first session of the Eighty - ninth Congress alone , the Johnson Administration submitted 87 bills to Congress , and Johnson signed 84 , or 96 % , arguably the most successful legislative agenda in Congressional history . In 1966 , criticism over the Johnson Administration 's handling of the Vietnam War began to grow , with Ford and Congressional Republicans expressing concern that the United States was not doing what was necessary to win the war . Public sentiment also began to move against Johnson , and the 1966 midterm elections saw a 47 - seat swing in favor of the Republicans . This was not enough to give Republicans a majority in the House , but the victory gave Ford the opportunity to prevent the passage of further Great Society programs . Ford 's private criticism of the Vietnam War became public following a speech from the floor of the House , in which he questioned whether the White House had a clear plan to bring the war to a successful conclusion . The speech angered President Johnson , who accused Ford of having played `` too much football without a helmet '' . As Minority Leader in the House , Ford appeared in a popular series of televised press conferences with Illinois Senator Everett Dirksen , in which they proposed Republican alternatives to Johnson 's policies . Many in the press jokingly called this `` The Ev and Jerry Show . '' Johnson said at the time , `` Jerry Ford is so dumb he ca n't fart and chew gum at the same time . '' The press , used to sanitizing Johnson 's salty language , reported this as `` Gerald Ford ca n't walk and chew gum at the same time . '' After President Nixon was elected in November 1968 , Ford 's role shifted to being an advocate for the White House agenda . Congress passed several of Nixon 's proposals , including the National Environmental Policy Act and the Tax Reform Act of 1969 . Another high - profile victory for the Republican minority was the State and Local Fiscal Assistance act . Passed in 1972 , the act established a Revenue Sharing program for state and local governments . Ford 's leadership was instrumental in shepherding revenue sharing through Congress , and resulted in a bipartisan coalition that supported the bill with 223 votes in favor ( compared with 185 against ) . During the eight years ( 1965 -- 1973 ) that Ford served as Minority Leader , he won many friends in the House because of his fair leadership and inoffensive personality . Vice presidency ( 1973 -- 1974 ) ( edit ) Gerald and Betty Ford with the President and First Lady Pat Nixon after President Nixon nominated Ford to be Vice President , October 13 , 1973 To become House Speaker , Ford worked to help Republicans across the country get a majority in the chamber , often traveling on the rubber chicken circuit . After a decade of failing to do so , he promised his wife that he would try again in 1974 then retire in 1976 . On October 10 , 1973 , Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned and then pleaded no contest to criminal charges of tax evasion and money laundering , part of a negotiated resolution to a scheme in which he accepted $29,500 in bribes while governor of Maryland . According to The New York Times , Nixon `` sought advice from senior Congressional leaders about a replacement . The advice was unanimous . ' We gave Nixon no choice but Ford , ' House Speaker Carl Albert recalled later '' . Ford agreed to the nomination , telling his wife that the Vice Presidency would be `` a nice conclusion '' to his career . Ford was nominated to take Agnew 's position on October 12 , the first time the vice-presidential vacancy provision of the 25th Amendment had been implemented . The United States Senate voted 92 to 3 to confirm Ford on November 27 . Only three Senators , all Democrats , voted against Ford 's confirmation : Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin , Thomas Eagleton of Missouri and William Hathaway of Maine . On December 6 , 1973 , the House confirmed Ford by a vote of 387 to 35 . One hour after the confirmation vote in the House , Ford took the oath of office as Vice President of the United States . Ford became Vice President as the Watergate scandal was unfolding . On Thursday , August 1 , 1974 , Chief of Staff Alexander Haig contacted Ford to tell him that `` smoking gun '' evidence had been found . The evidence left little doubt that President Nixon had been a part of the Watergate cover - up . At the time , Ford and his wife , Betty , were living in suburban Virginia , waiting for their expected move into the newly designated vice president 's residence in Washington , D.C. However , `` Al Haig asked to come over and see me , '' Ford later said , `` to tell me that there would be a new tape released on a Monday , and he said the evidence in there was devastating and there would probably be either an impeachment or a resignation . And he said , ' I 'm just warning you that you 've got to be prepared , that things might change dramatically and you could become President . ' And I said , ' Betty , I do n't think we 're ever going to live in the vice president 's house . ' '' Presidency ( 1974 -- 1977 ) ( edit ) Main article : Presidency of Gerald Ford For a chronological guide to this subject , see Timeline of the presidency of Gerald Ford . Swearing - in ( edit ) Gerald Ford is sworn in as the 38th President of the United States by Chief Justice Warren Burger in the White House East Room , while Betty Ford looks on . When Nixon resigned on August 9 , 1974 , Ford assumed the presidency , making him the only person to assume the presidency without having been previously voted into either the presidential or vice presidential office . Immediately after taking the oath of office in the East Room of the White House , he spoke to the assembled audience in a speech broadcast live to the nation . Ford noted the peculiarity of his position : `` I am acutely aware that you have not elected me as your president by your ballots , and so I ask you to confirm me as your president with your prayers . '' He went on to state : Ford and his golden retriever , Liberty , in the Oval Office , 1974 I have not sought this enormous responsibility , but I will not shirk it . Those who nominated and confirmed me as Vice President were my friends and are my friends . They were of both parties , elected by all the people and acting under the Constitution in their name . It is only fitting then that I should pledge to them and to you that I will be the President of all the people . He also stated : My fellow Americans , our long national nightmare is over . Our Constitution works ; our great Republic is a government of laws and not of men . Here , the people rule . But there is a higher Power , by whatever name we honor Him , who ordains not only righteousness but love , not only justice , but mercy ... let us restore the golden rule to our political process , and let brotherly love purge our hearts of suspicion and hate . Message to Congress nominating Nelson A. Rockefeller to be Vice President ( August 20 , 1974 ) A portion of the speech would later be memorialized with a plaque at the entrance to his presidential museum . On August 20 , Ford nominated former New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller to fill the vice presidency he had vacated . Rockefeller 's top competitor had been George H.W. Bush . Rockefeller underwent extended hearings before Congress , which caused embarrassment when it was revealed he made large gifts to senior aides , such as Henry Kissinger . Although conservative Republicans were not pleased that Rockefeller was picked , most of them voted for his confirmation , and his nomination passed both the House and Senate . Some , including Barry Goldwater , voted against him . Pardon of Nixon ( edit ) Main article : Pardon of Richard Nixon President Ford appears at a House Judiciary Subcommittee hearing regarding his pardon of Richard Nixon Wikisource has original text related to this article : The Nixon Pardon On September 8 , 1974 , Ford issued Proclamation 4311 , which gave Nixon a full and unconditional pardon for any crimes he might have committed against the United States while President . In a televised broadcast to the nation , Ford explained that he felt the pardon was in the best interests of the country , and that the Nixon family 's situation `` is a tragedy in which we all have played a part . It could go on and on and on , or someone must write the end to it . I have concluded that only I can do that , and if I can , I must . '' Ford 's decision to pardon Nixon was highly controversial . Critics derided the move and said a `` corrupt bargain '' had been struck between the men . They said that Ford 's pardon was granted in exchange for Nixon 's resignation , which had elevated Ford to the presidency . Ford 's first press secretary and close friend Jerald terHorst resigned his post in protest after the pardon . According to Bob Woodward , Nixon Chief of Staff Alexander Haig proposed a pardon deal to Ford . He later decided to pardon Nixon for other reasons , primarily the friendship he and Nixon shared . Regardless , historians believe the controversy was one of the major reasons Ford lost the 1976 presidential election , an observation with which Ford agreed . In an editorial at the time , The New York Times stated that the Nixon pardon was a `` profoundly unwise , divisive and unjust act '' that in a stroke had destroyed the new president 's `` credibility as a man of judgment , candor and competence '' . On October 17 , 1974 , Ford testified before Congress on the pardon . He was the first sitting President since Abraham Lincoln to testify before the House of Representatives . In the months following the pardon , Ford often declined to mention President Nixon by name , referring to him in public as `` my predecessor '' or `` the former president . '' When , on a 1974 trip to California , White House correspondent Fred Barnes pressed Ford on the matter , Ford replied in surprisingly frank manner : `` I just ca n't bring myself to do it . '' After Ford left the White House in January 1977 , the former President privately justified his pardon of Nixon by carrying in his wallet a portion of the text of Burdick v. United States , a 1915 U.S. Supreme Court decision which stated that a pardon indicated a presumption of guilt , and that acceptance of a pardon was tantamount to a confession of that guilt . In 2001 , the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation awarded the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award to Ford for his pardon of Nixon . In presenting the award to Ford , Senator Edward Kennedy said that he had initially been opposed to the pardon , but later decided that history had proved Ford to have made the correct decision . Pardon given by President Ford under Proclamation 4313 Draft dodgers and Deserters ( edit ) On September 16 , shortly after he announced the Nixon pardon , Ford introduced a conditional amnesty program for Vietnam War draft dodgers who had fled to countries such as Canada , and for military deserters , in Presidential Proclamation 4313 . The conditions of the amnesty required that those reaffirm their allegiance to the United States and serve two years working in a public service job or a total of two years service for those who had served less than two years of honorable service in the military . The program for the Return of Vietnam Era Draft Evaders and Military Deserters established a Clemency Board to review the records and make recommendations for receiving a Presidential Pardon and a change in Military discharge status . Full pardon for draft dodgers came in the Carter Administration . Administration officials ( edit ) Upon assuming office , Ford inherited Nixon 's Cabinet . During Ford 's brief administration , all members were replaced except Secretary of State Kissinger and Secretary of the Treasury William E. Simon . Ford 's dramatic reorganization of his Cabinet in the fall of 1975 has been referred to by political commentators as the `` Halloween Massacre '' . One of Ford 's appointees , William Coleman , as Secretary of Transportation , was the second black man to serve in a presidential cabinet ( after Robert C. Weaver ) and the first appointed in a Republican administration . The Ford Cabinet Office Name Term President Gerald Ford 1974 -- 1977 Vice President none * Nelson Rockefeller 1974 -- 1977 Secretary of State Henry Kissinger 1974 -- 1977 Secretary of Treasury William E. Simon 1974 -- 1977 Secretary of Defense James R. Schlesinger 1974 -- 1975 Donald Rumsfeld 1975 -- 1977 Attorney General William B. Saxbe 1974 -- 1975 Edward H. Levi 1975 -- 1977 Secretary of the Interior Rogers Morton 1974 -- 1975 Stanley K. Hathaway Thomas S. Kleppe 1975 -- 1977 Secretary of Agriculture Earl Butz 1974 -- 1976 John Albert Knebel 1976 -- 1977 Secretary of Commerce Frederick B. Dent 1974 -- 1975 Rogers Morton Elliot Richardson 1975 -- 1977 Secretary of Labor Peter J. Brennan 1974 -- 1975 John Thomas Dunlop 1975 -- 1976 William Usery Jr . 1976 -- 1977 Secretary of Health , Education , and Welfare Caspar Weinberger 1974 -- 1975 F. David Mathews 1975 -- 1977 Secretary of Housing and Urban Development James Thomas Lynn 1974 -- 1975 Carla Anderson Hills 1975 -- 1977 Secretary of Transportation Claude Brinegar 1974 -- 1975 William Thaddeus Coleman Jr . 1975 -- 1977 Chief of Staff Alexander Haig Donald Rumsfeld 1974 -- 1975 Dick Cheney 1975 -- 1977 Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Russell E. Train 1974 -- 1977 Director of the Office of Management and Budget Roy Ash 1974 -- 1975 James Thomas Lynn 1975 -- 1977 United States Trade Representative William Denman Eberle 1974 -- 1975 Frederick B. Dent 1975 -- 1977 * A vacancy by ascension briefly occurred for the position of Vice President from August 9 , 1974 to December 19 , 1974 after Richard Nixon 's resignation from office . Other members of the administration : United States National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger ( 1974 -- 1975 ) Brent Scowcroft ( 1975 -- 1977 ) Director of Central Intelligence William Colby ( 1974 -- 1976 ) George H.W. Bush ( 1976 -- 1977 ) Press Secretary Jerald terHorst ( 1974 ) Ron Nessen ( 1974 -- 1977 ) United States Ambassador to the United Nations John A. Scali ( 1974 -- 1975 ) Daniel Patrick Moynihan ( 1975 -- 1976 ) William Scranton ( 1976 -- 1977 ) Ford selected George H.W. Bush as Chief of the US Liaison Office to the People 's Republic of China in 1974 , and then Director of the Central Intelligence Agency in late 1975 . Ford 's transition chairman and first Chief of Staff was former congressman and ambassador Donald Rumsfeld . In 1975 , Rumsfeld was named by Ford as the youngest - ever Secretary of Defense . Ford chose a young Wyoming politician , Richard Cheney , to replace Rumsfeld as his new Chief of Staff ; Cheney became the campaign manager for Ford 's 1976 presidential campaign . Midterm elections ( edit ) Ford in the Oval Office , 1974 Main articles : United States House elections , 1974 and United States Senate elections , 1974 The 1974 Congressional midterm elections took place less than three months after Ford assumed office and in the wake of the Watergate scandal . The Democratic Party turned voter dissatisfaction into large gains in the House elections , taking 49 seats from the Republican Party , increasing their majority to 291 of the 435 seats . This was one more than the number needed ( 290 ) for a two - thirds majority , the number necessary to override a Presidential veto or to propose a constitutional amendment . Perhaps due in part to this fact , the 94th Congress overrode the highest percentage of vetoes since Andrew Johnson was President of the United States ( 1865 -- 1869 ) . Even Ford 's former , reliably Republican House seat was won by a Democrat , Richard Vander Veen , who defeated Robert VanderLaan . In the Senate elections , the Democratic majority became 61 in the 100 - seat body . Domestic Policy ( edit ) Inflation ( edit ) President Ford meets with his Cabinet in 1975 The economy was a great concern during the Ford administration . One of the first acts the new president took to deal with the economy was to create , by Executive Order on September 30 , 1974 , the Economic Policy Board . In October 1974 , in response to rising inflation , Ford went before the American public and asked them to `` Whip Inflation Now '' . As part of this program , he urged people to wear `` WIN '' buttons . At the time , inflation was believed to be the primary threat to the economy , more so than growing unemployment ; there was a belief that controlling inflation would help reduce unemployment . To rein in inflation , it was necessary to control the public 's spending . To try to mesh service and sacrifice , `` WIN '' called for Americans to reduce their spending and consumption . On October 4 , 1974 , Ford gave a speech in front of a joint session of Congress ; as a part of this speech he kicked off the `` WIN '' campaign . Over the next nine days 101,240 Americans mailed in `` WIN '' pledges . In hindsight , this was viewed as simply a public relations gimmick which had no way of solving the underlying problems . The main point of that speech was to introduce to Congress a one - year , five - percent income tax increase on corporations and wealthy individuals . This plan would also take $4.4 billion out of the budget , bringing federal spending below $300 billion . At the time , inflation was over twelve percent . Budget ( edit ) The federal budget ran a deficit every year Ford was President . Despite his reservations about how the program ultimately would be funded in an era of tight public budgeting , Ford signed the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 , which established special education throughout the United States . Ford expressed `` strong support for full educational opportunities for our handicapped children '' according to the official White House press release for the bill signing . The economic focus began to change as the country sank into the worst recession since the Great Depression four decades earlier . The focus of the Ford administration turned to stopping the rise in unemployment , which reached nine percent in May 1975 . In January 1975 , Ford proposed a 1 - year tax reduction of $16 billion to stimulate economic growth , along with spending cuts to avoid inflation . Ford was criticized greatly for quickly switching from advocating a tax increase to a tax reduction . In Congress , the proposed amount of the tax reduction increased to $22.8 billion in tax cuts and lacked spending cuts . In March 1975 , Congress passed , and Ford signed into law , these income tax rebates as part of the Tax Reduction Act of 1975 . This resulted in a federal deficit of around $53 billion for the 1975 fiscal year and $73.7 billion for 1976 . When New York City faced bankruptcy in 1975 , Mayor Abraham Beame was unsuccessful in obtaining Ford 's support for a federal bailout . The incident prompted the New York Daily News ' famous headline `` Ford to City : Drop Dead '' , referring to a speech in which `` Ford declared flatly ... that he would veto any bill calling for ' a federal bail - out of New York City ' '' . Swine flu ( edit ) Main article : 1976 swine flu outbreak Ford was confronted with a potential swine flu pandemic . In the early 1970s , an influenza strain H1N1 shifted from a form of flu that affected primarily pigs and crossed over to humans . On February 5 , 1976 , an army recruit at Fort Dix mysteriously died and four fellow soldiers were hospitalized ; health officials announced that `` swine flu '' was the cause . Soon after , public health officials in the Ford administration urged that every person in the United States be vaccinated . Although the vaccination program was plagued by delays and public relations problems , some 25 % of the population was vaccinated by the time the program was canceled in December 1976 . The vaccine was blamed for twenty - five deaths ; more people died from the shots than from the swine flu . Other domestic issues ( edit ) Cheney , Rumsfeld and President Ford in the Oval Office , 1975 Ford was an outspoken supporter of the Equal Rights Amendment , issuing Presidential Proclamation no . 4383 in 1975 : In this Land of the Free , it is right , and by nature it ought to be , that all men and all women are equal before the law . Now , therefore , I , Gerald R. Ford , President of the United States of America , to remind all Americans that it is fitting and just to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment adopted by the Congress of the United States of America , in order to secure legal equality for all women and men , do hereby designate and proclaim August 26 , 1975 , as Women 's Equality Day . As president , Ford 's position on abortion was that he supported `` a federal constitutional amendment that would permit each one of the 50 States to make the choice '' . This had also been his position as House Minority Leader in response to the 1973 Supreme Court case of Roe v. Wade , which he opposed . Ford came under criticism for a 60 Minutes interview his wife Betty gave in 1975 , in which she stated that Roe v. Wade was a `` great , great decision '' . During his later life , Ford would identify as pro-choice . Foreign Policy ( edit ) Ford meets with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev during the Vladivostok Summit , November 1974 , to sign a joint communiqué on the SALT treaty Ford makes remarks at a Reciprocal Dinner in Beijing on December 4 , 1975 . Ford continued the détente policy with both the Soviet Union and China , easing the tensions of the Cold War . Still in place from the Nixon Administration was the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty ( SALT ) . The thawing relationship brought about by Nixon 's visit to China was reinforced by Ford 's December 1975 visit to that communist country . In 1975 , the Administration entered into the Helsinki Accords with the Soviet Union , creating the framework of the Helsinki Watch , an independent non-governmental organization created to monitor compliance that later evolved into Human Rights Watch . Ford attended the inaugural meeting of the Group of Seven ( G7 ) industrialized nations ( initially the G5 ) in 1975 and secured membership for Canada . Ford supported international solutions to issues . `` We live in an interdependent world and , therefore , must work together to resolve common economic problems , '' he said in a 1974 speech . According to internal White House and Commission documents posted in February 2016 by the National Security Archive at The George Washington University , the Gerald Ford White House significantly altered the final report of the supposedly independent 1975 Rockefeller Commission investigating CIA domestic activities , over the objections of senior Commission staff . The changes included removal of an entire 86 - page section on CIA assassination plots and numerous edits to the report by then - deputy White House Chief of Staff Richard Cheney . Middle East ( edit ) Countries visited by Ford during his presidency In the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean , two ongoing international disputes developed into crises . The Cyprus dispute turned into a crisis with the Turkish invasion of Cyprus , causing extreme strain within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO ) alliance . In mid-August , the Greek government withdrew Greece from the NATO military structure ; in mid-September 1974 , the Senate and House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted to halt military aid to Turkey . Ford , concerned with both the effect of this on Turkish - American relations and the deterioration of security on NATO 's eastern front , vetoed the bill . A second bill was then passed by Congress , which Ford also vetoed , although a compromise was accepted to continue aid until the end of the year . As Ford expected , Turkish relations were considerably disrupted until 1978 . Ford with Anwar Sadat in Salzburg , 1975 In the continuing Arab -- Israeli conflict , although the initial cease fire had been implemented to end active conflict in the Yom Kippur War , Kissinger 's continuing shuttle diplomacy was showing little progress . Ford considered it `` stalling '' and wrote , `` Their ( Israeli ) tactics frustrated the Egyptians and made me mad as hell . '' During Kissinger 's shuttle to Israel in early March 1975 , a last minute reversal to consider further withdrawal , prompted a cable from Ford to Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin , which included : I wish to express my profound disappointment over Israel 's attitude in the course of the negotiations ... Failure of the negotiation will have a far reaching impact on the region and on our relations . I have given instructions for a reassessment of United States policy in the region , including our relations with Israel , with the aim of ensuring that overall American interests ... are protected . You will be notified of our decision . On March 24 , Ford informed congressional leaders of both parties of the reassessment of the administration policies in the Middle East . `` Reassessment '' , in practical terms , meant canceling or suspending further aid to Israel . For six months between March and September 1975 , the United States refused to conclude any new arms agreements with Israel . Rabin notes it was `` an innocent - sounding term that heralded one of the worst periods in American - Israeli relations '' . The announced reassessments upset the American Jewish community and Israel 's well - wishers in Congress . On May 21 , Ford `` experienced a real shock '' when seventy - six U.S. senators wrote him a letter urging him to be `` responsive '' to Israel 's request for $2.59 billion in military and economic aid . Ford felt truly annoyed and thought the chance for peace was jeopardized . It was , since the September 1974 ban on arms to Turkey , the second major congressional intrusion upon the President 's foreign policy prerogatives . The following summer months were described by Ford as an American - Israeli `` war of nerves '' or `` test of wills '' . After much bargaining , the Sinai Interim Agreement ( Sinai II ) , was formally signed on September 1 , and aid resumed . Vietnam ( edit ) Ford and his daughter Susan watch as Henry Kissinger shakes hands with Mao Zedong , December 2 , 1975 One of Ford 's greatest challenges was dealing with the continued Vietnam War . American offensive operations against North Vietnam had ended with the Paris Peace Accords , signed on January 27 , 1973 . The accords declared a cease fire across both North and South Vietnam , and required the release of American prisoners of war . The agreement guaranteed the territorial integrity of Vietnam and , like the Geneva Conference of 1954 , called for national elections in the North and South . The Paris Peace Accords stipulated a sixty - day period for the total withdrawal of U.S. forces . The accords had been negotiated by United States National Security Advisor Kissinger and North Vietnamese politburo member Lê Đức Thọ . South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu was not involved in the final negotiations , and publicly criticized the proposed agreement . However , anti-war pressures within the United States forced Nixon and Kissinger to pressure Thieu to sign the agreement and enable the withdrawal of American forces . In multiple letters to the South Vietnamese president , Nixon had promised that the United States would defend Thieu 's government , should the North Vietnamese violate the accords . In December 1974 , months after Ford took office , North Vietnamese forces invaded the province of Phuoc Long . General Trần Văn Trà sought to gauge any South Vietnamese or American response to the invasion , as well as to solve logistical issues , before proceeding with the invasion . As North Vietnamese forces advanced , Ford requested Congress approve a $722 million aid package for South Vietnam , funds that had been promised by the Nixon administration . Congress voted against the proposal by a wide margin . Senator Jacob K. Javits offered `` ... large sums for evacuation , but not one nickel for military aid '' . President Thieu resigned on April 21 , 1975 , publicly blaming the lack of support from the United States for the fall of his country . Two days later , on April 23 , Ford gave a speech at Tulane University . In that speech , he announced that the Vietnam War was over `` ... as far as America is concerned '' . The announcement was met with thunderous applause . South Vietnamese refugees arrive on a U.S. Navy vessel during Operation Frequent Wind 1,373 U.S. citizens and 5,595 Vietnamese and third country nationals were evacuated from the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon during Operation Frequent Wind . In that operation , military and Air America helicopters took evacuees to U.S. Navy ships off - shore during an approximately 24 - hour period on April 29 to 30 , 1975 , immediately preceding the fall of Saigon . During the operation , so many South Vietnamese helicopters landed on the vessels taking the evacuees that some were pushed overboard to make room for more people . Other helicopters , having nowhere to land , were deliberately crash landed into the sea after dropping off their passengers , close to the ships , their pilots bailing out at the last moment to be picked up by rescue boats . Many of the Vietnamese evacuees were allowed to enter the United States under the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act . The 1975 Act appropriated $455 million toward the costs of assisting the settlement of Indochinese refugees . In all , 130,000 Vietnamese refugees came to the United States in 1975 . Thousands more escaped in the years that followed . Mayaguez and Panmunjom ( edit ) North Vietnam 's victory over the South led to a considerable shift in the political winds in Asia , and Ford administration officials worried about a consequent loss of U.S. influence there . The administration proved it was willing to respond forcefully to challenges to its interests in the region on two occasions , once when Khmer Rouge forces seized an American ship in international waters and again when American military officers were killed in the demilitarized zone ( DMZ ) between North and South Korea . The first crisis was the Mayaguez incident . In May 1975 , shortly after the fall of Saigon and the Khmer Rouge conquest of Cambodia , Cambodians seized the American merchant ship Mayaguez in international waters . Ford dispatched Marines to rescue the crew , but the Marines landed on the wrong island and met unexpectedly stiff resistance just as , unknown to the U.S. , the Mayaguez sailors were being released . In the operation , two military transport helicopters carrying the Marines for the assault operation were shot down , and 41 U.S. servicemen were killed and 50 wounded while approximately 60 Khmer Rouge soldiers were killed . Despite the American losses , the operation was seen as a success in the United States and Ford enjoyed an 11 - point boost in his approval ratings in the aftermath . The Americans killed during the operation became the last to have their names inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall in Washington , D.C. Some historians have argued that the Ford administration felt the need to respond forcefully to the incident because it was construed as a Soviet plot . But work by Andrew Gawthorpe , published in 2009 , based on an analysis of the administration 's internal discussions , shows that Ford 's national security team understood that the seizure of the vessel was a local , and perhaps even accidental , provocation by an immature Khmer government . Nevertheless , they felt the need to respond forcefully to discourage further provocations by other Communist countries in Asia . The second crisis , known as the axe murder incident , occurred at Panmunjom , a village which stands in the DMZ between the two Koreas . Encouraged by U.S. difficulties in Vietnam , North Korea had been waging a campaign of diplomatic pressure and minor military harassment to try and convince the U.S. to withdraw from South Korea . Then , in August 1976 , North Korean forces killed two U.S. officers and injured South Korean guards who were engaged in trimming a tree in Panmunjom 's Joint Security Area . The attack coincided with a meeting of the Conference of Non-Aligned Nations in Colombo , Sri Lanka , at which Kim Jong - il , the son of North Korean leader Kim Il - sung , presented the incident as an example of American aggression , helping secure the passage of a motion calling for a U.S. withdrawal from the South . At administration meetings , Kissinger voiced the concern that the North would see the U.S. as `` the paper tigers of Saigon '' if they did not respond , and Ford agreed with that assessment . After mulling various options the Ford administration decided that it was necessary to respond with a major show of force . A large number of ground forces went to cut down the tree , while at the same time the air force was deployed , which included B - 52 bomber flights over Panmunjom . The North Korean government backed down and allowed the tree - cutting to go ahead , and later issued an unprecedented official apology . Indonesian invasion of East Timor ( edit ) East Timor 's decolonization due to political instability in Portugal saw Indonesia posture to annex the new state in 1975 . Just hours before the Indonesian invasion of East Timor ( now Timor Leste ) on December 7 , 1975 , Ford and Kissinger had visited Indonesian President Suharto in Jakarta and guaranteed American compliance with the Indonesian operation . Suharto had been a key supporter of American influence in Indonesia and Southeast Asia and Ford did not desire to place pressure on the American - Indonesian relationship . Under Ford , a policy of arms sales to the Suharto regime began in 1975 , before the invasion . `` Roughly 90 % '' of the Indonesian army 's weapons at the time of East Timor 's invasion were provided by the U.S. according to George H. Aldrich , a former State Department deputy legal advisor . Post-invasion , Ford 's military aid averaged about $30 million annually throughout East Timor 's occupation , and arms sales increased exponentially under President Carter . This policy continued until 1999 . Assassination attempts ( edit ) Reaction immediately after the second assassination attempt Main articles : Gerald Ford assassination attempt in Sacramento and Sara Jane Moore Ford faced two assassination attempts during his presidency . In Sacramento , California , on September 5 , 1975 , Lynette `` Squeaky '' Fromme , a follower of Charles Manson , pointed a Colt . 45 - caliber handgun at Ford . As Fromme pulled the trigger , Larry Buendorf , a Secret Service agent , grabbed the gun , and Fromme was taken into custody . She was later convicted of attempted assassination of the President and was sentenced to life in prison ; she was paroled on August 14 , 2009 . In reaction to this attempt , the Secret Service began keeping Ford at a more secure distance from anonymous crowds , a strategy that may have saved his life seventeen days later . As he left the St. Francis Hotel in downtown San Francisco , Sara Jane Moore , standing in a crowd of onlookers across the street , pointed her . 38 - caliber revolver at him . Moore fired a single round but missed because the sights were off . Just before she fired a second round , retired Marine Oliver Sipple grabbed at the gun and deflected her shot ; the bullet struck a wall about six inches above and to the right of Ford 's head , then ricocheted and hit a taxi driver , who was slightly wounded . Moore was later sentenced to life in prison . She was paroled on December 31 , 2007 , after serving 32 years . Judicial appointments ( edit ) Further information : Gerald Ford judicial appointment controversies Supreme Court ( edit ) Main article : Gerald Ford Supreme Court candidates John Paul Stevens was Ford 's only Supreme Court appointment . In 1975 , Ford appointed John Paul Stevens as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States to replace retiring Justice William O. Douglas . Stevens had been a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit , appointed by President Nixon . During his tenure as House Republican leader , Ford had led efforts to have Douglas impeached . After being confirmed , Stevens eventually disappointed some conservatives by siding with the Court 's liberal wing regarding the outcome of many key issues . Nevertheless , in 2005 Ford praised Stevens . `` He has served his nation well , '' Ford said of Stevens , `` with dignity , intellect and without partisan political concerns . '' Other Judicial appointments ( edit ) Main article : List of federal judges appointed by Gerald Ford Ford appointed 11 judges to the United States Courts of Appeals , and 50 judges to the United States district courts . 1976 Presidential election ( edit ) Main article : United States presidential election , 1976 Governor Ronald Reagan congratulates President Ford after the president successfully wins the 1976 Republican nomination , while Bob Dole , Nancy Reagan , and Nelson Rockefeller look on . Ford reluctantly agreed to run for office in 1976 , but first he had to counter a challenge for the Republican party nomination . Former Governor of California Ronald Reagan and the party 's conservative wing faulted Ford for failing to do more in South Vietnam , for signing the Helsinki Accords , and for negotiating to cede the Panama Canal . ( Negotiations for the canal continued under President Carter , who eventually signed the Torrijos -- Carter Treaties . ) Reagan launched his campaign in autumn of 1975 and won numerous primaries , including North Carolina , Texas , Indiana , and California , but failed to get a majority of delegates ; Reagan withdrew from the race at the Republican Convention in Kansas City , Missouri . The conservative insurgency did lead to Ford dropping the more liberal Vice President Nelson Rockefeller in favor of U.S. Senator Bob Dole of Kansas . In addition to the pardon dispute and lingering anti-Republican sentiment , Ford had to counter a plethora of negative media imagery . Chevy Chase often did pratfalls on Saturday Night Live , imitating Ford , who had been seen stumbling on two occasions during his term . As Chase commented , `` He even mentioned in his own autobiography it had an effect over a period of time that affected the election to some degree . '' Ford 's 1976 election campaign benefitted from his being an incumbent president during several anniversary events held during the period leading up to the United States Bicentennial . The Washington , D.C. fireworks display on the Fourth of July was presided over by the President and televised nationally . On July 7 , 1976 , the President and First Lady served as hosts at a White House state dinner for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip of the United Kingdom , which was televised on the Public Broadcasting Service network . The 200th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts gave Ford the opportunity to deliver a speech to 110,000 in Concord acknowledging the need for a strong national defense tempered with a plea for `` reconciliation , not recrimination '' and `` reconstruction , not rancor '' between the United States and those who would pose `` threats to peace '' . Speaking in New Hampshire on the previous day , Ford condemned the growing trend toward big government bureaucracy and argued for a return to `` basic American virtues '' . Ford ( at right ) and Jimmy Carter in a debate on September 23 , 1976 . Democratic nominee and former Georgia governor Jimmy Carter campaigned as an outsider and reformer , gaining support from voters dismayed by the Watergate scandal and Nixon pardon . After the Democratic National Convention , he held a huge 33 - point lead over Ford in the polls . However , as the campaign continued , the race tightened , and , by election day , the polls showed the race as too close to call . There were three main events in the fall campaign . Most importantly , Carter repeated a promise of a `` blanket pardon '' for Christian and other religious refugees , and also all Vietnam War draft dodgers ( Ford had only issued a conditional amnesty ) in response to a question on the subject posed by a reporter during the presidential debates , an act which froze Ford 's poll numbers in Ohio , Wisconsin , Hawaii , and Mississippi . ( Ford had needed to shift just 11,000 votes in Ohio plus one of the other three in order to win . ) It was the first act signed by Carter , on January 20 , 1977 . Earlier , Playboy magazine had published a controversial interview with Carter ; in the interview Carter admitted to having `` lusted in my heart '' for women other than his wife , which cut into his support among women and evangelical Christians . Also , on September 24 , Ford performed well in what was the first televised presidential debate since 1960 . Polls taken after the debate showed that most viewers felt that Ford was the winner . Carter was also hurt by Ford 's charges that he lacked the necessary experience to be an effective national leader , and that Carter was vague on many issues . Ford campaigns at the Nassau County Veterans Coliseum in Hempstead , New York on October 31 , 1976 during the final days of the campaign . Televised presidential debates were reintroduced for the first time since the 1960 election . As such , Ford became the first incumbent president to participate in one . Carter later attributed his victory in the election to the debates , saying they `` gave the viewers reason to think that Jimmy Carter had something to offer '' . The turning point came in the second debate when Ford blundered by stating , `` There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe and there never will be under a Ford Administration . '' Ford also said that he did not `` believe that the Poles consider themselves dominated by the Soviet Union '' . In an interview years later , Ford said he had intended to imply that the Soviets would never crush the spirits of eastern Europeans seeking independence . However , the phrasing was so awkward that questioner Max Frankel was visibly incredulous at the response . As a result of this blunder , and Carter 's promise of a full presidential pardon for political refugees from the Vietnam era during the presidential debates , Ford 's surge stalled and Carter was able to maintain a slight lead in the polls . 1976 electoral vote results . In the end , Carter won the election , receiving 50.1 % of the popular vote and 297 electoral votes compared with 48.0 % and 240 electoral votes for Ford . The election was close enough that had fewer than 25,000 votes shifted in Ohio and Wisconsin -- both of which neighbored his home state -- Ford would have won the electoral vote with 276 votes to 261 for Carter . Though he lost , in the three months between the Republican National Convention and the election Ford had managed to close what was once an alleged 33 - point Carter lead to a 2 - point margin . Ford carried 27 states versus 23 carried by Carter . Had Ford won the election , the provisions of the 22nd Amendment would have disqualified him from running in 1980 , because he had served more than two years of Nixon 's remaining term . Post-presidency ( 1977 -- 2006 ) ( edit ) Activity ( edit ) The Nixon pardon controversy eventually subsided . Ford 's successor , Jimmy Carter , opened his 1977 inaugural address by praising the outgoing President , saying , `` For myself and for our Nation , I want to thank my predecessor for all he has done to heal our land . '' Ford remained relatively active in the years after his presidency . He continued to make appearances at events of historical and ceremonial significance to the nation , such as presidential inaugurals and memorial services . In January 1977 , he became the president of Eisenhower Fellowships in Philadelphia , then served as the chairman of its board of trustees from 1980 to 1986 . Later in 1977 , he reluctantly agreed to be interviewed by James M. Naughton , a New York Times journalist who was given the assignment to write the former President 's advance obituary , an article that would be updated prior to its eventual publication . In 1979 , Ford published his autobiography , A Time to Heal ( Harper / Reader 's Digest , 454 pages ) . A review in Foreign Affairs described it as , `` Serene , unruffled , unpretentious , like the author . This is the shortest and most honest of recent presidential memoirs , but there are no surprises , no deep probings of motives or events . No more here than meets the eye . '' During the term of office of his successor , Jimmy Carter , Ford received monthly briefs by President Carter 's senior staff on international and domestic issues , and was always invited to lunch at the White House whenever he was in Washington , D.C. Their close friendship developed after Carter had left office , with the catalyst being their trip together to the funeral of Anwar el - Sadat in 1981 . Until Ford 's death , Carter and his wife , Rosalynn , visited the Fords ' home frequently . Ford and Carter served as honorary co-chairs of the National Commission on Federal Election Reform in 2001 and of the Continuity of Government Commission in 2002 . Like Presidents Carter , George H.W. Bush , and Clinton , Ford was an honorary co-chair of the Council for Excellence in Government , a group dedicated to excellence in government performance , which provides leadership training to top federal employees . In retirement Ford also devoted much time to his love of golf , often playing both privately and in public events with comedian Bob Hope , a longtime friend . In 1977 , he shot a hole in one during a Pro-am held in conjunction with the Danny Thomas Memphis Classic at Colonial Country Club in Memphis , Tennessee . He hosted the Jerry Ford Invitational in Vail , Colorado from 1977 to 1996 . Ford considered a run for the Republican nomination in 1980 , foregoing numerous opportunities to serve on corporate boards to keep his options open for a rematch with Carter . Ford attacked Carter 's conduct of the SALT II negotiations and foreign policy in the Middle East and Africa . Many have argued that Ford also wanted to exorcise his image as an `` Accidental President '' and to win a term in his own right . Ford also believed the more conservative Ronald Reagan would be unable to defeat Carter and would hand the incumbent a second term . Ford was encouraged by his former Secretary of State , Henry Kissinger as well as Jim Rhodes of Ohio and Bill Clements of Texas to make the race . On March 15 , 1980 , Ford announced that he would forgo a run for the Republican nomination , vowing to support the eventual nominee . On July 16 , 1980 ( day 3 of the 1980 Republican National Convention ) Gerald Ford consults with Bob Dole , Howard Baker and Bill Brock before making a decision to ultimately decline the offer to serve as Ronald Reagan 's runningmate After securing the Republican nomination in 1980 , Ronald Reagan considered his former rival Ford as a potential vice-presidential runningmate , but negotiations between the Reagan and Ford camps at the Republican National Convention were unsuccessful . Ford conditioned his acceptance on Reagan 's agreement to an unprecedented `` co-presidency '' , giving Ford the power to control key executive branch appointments ( such as Kissinger as Secretary of State and Alan Greenspan as Treasury Secretary ) . After rejecting these terms , Reagan offered the vice-presidential nomination instead to George H.W. Bush . Ford did appear in a campaign commercial for the Reagan - Bush ticket , in which he declared that the country would be `` better served by a Reagan presidency rather than a continuation of the weak and politically expedient policies of Jimmy Carter '' . On October 8 , 1980 , Ford said President Nixon 's involvement in the general election potentially could negatively impact the Reagan campaign : `` I think it would have been much more helpful if Mr. Nixon had stayed in the background during this campaign . It would have been much more beneficial to Ronald Reagan . '' On October 3 , 1980 , Ford cast blame on Carter for the latter 's charges of ineffectiveness on the part of the Federal Reserve Board due to his appointing of most of its members : `` President Carter , when the going gets tough , will do anything to save his own political skin . This latest action by the president is cowardly . '' After the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan , Ford told reporters while appearing at a fundraiser for Thomas Kean that criminals who use firearms should get the death penalty in the event someone is injured with the weapon . After his presidency , Ford joined the American Enterprise Institute as a distinguished fellow . He founded the annual AEI World Forum in 1982 . Ford was awarded an honorary doctorate at Central Connecticut State University on March 23 , 1988 . After leaving the White House , Ford and his wife moved to Denver , Colorado . Ford successfully invested in oil with Marvin Davis , which later provided an income for Ford 's children . In September 1981 , Ford advised Reagan against succumbing to Wall Street demands and follow his own agenda for the economic policies of the US during an appearance on Good Morning America : `` He should n't let the gurus of Wall Street decide what the economic future of this country is going to be . They are wrong in my opinion . '' On October 20 , 1981 , Ford stated stopping the Reagan administration 's Saudi arms package could have a large negative impact to American relations in the Middle East during a news conference . On March 24 , 1982 , Ford offered an endorsement of President Reagan 's economic policies while also stating the possibility of Reagan being met with a stalemate by Congress if not willing to compromise while in Washington . During an August 1982 fundraising reception , Ford stated his opposition to a constitution amendment requiring the US to have a balanced budget , citing a need to elect `` members of the House and Senate who will immediately when Congress convenes act more responsibly in fiscal matters . '' Ford was a participant in the 1982 midterm elections , traveling to Tennessee in October of that year to help Republican candidates . In January 1984 , a letter signed by Ford and Carter and urging world leaders to extend their failed effort to end world hunger was released and sent to Secretary - General of the United Nations Javier Pérez de Cuéllar . In 1987 , Ford testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in favor of District of Columbia Circuit Court judge and former Solicitor General Robert Bork after Bork was nominated by President Reagan to be an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court . Bork 's nomination was rejected by a vote of 58 - 42 . In 1987 Ford 's Humor and the Presidency , a book of humorous political anecdotes , was published . By 1988 , Ford was a member of several corporate boards including Commercial Credit , Nova Pharmaceutical , The Pullman Company , Tesoro Petroleum , and Tiger International , Inc . Ford also became an honorary director of Citigroup , a position he held till his death . In 1977 , Ford established the Gerald R. Ford Institute of Public Policy at Albion College in Albion , Michigan , to give undergraduates training in public policy . In April 1981 , he opened the Gerald R. Ford Library in Ann Arbor , Michigan , on the north campus of his alma mater , the University of Michigan , followed in September by the Gerald R. Ford Museum in Grand Rapids . In October 1990 , Ford appeared in Gettysburg , Pennsylvania with Bob Hope to commemorate the centennial anniversary of the birth of former President Dwight D. Eisenhower , where the two unveiled a plague with the signatures of each living former president . In April 1991 , Ford joined former presidents Richard Nixon , Ronald Reagan , and Jimmy Carter , in supporting the Brady Bill . Three years later , he wrote to the U.S. House of Representatives , along with Carter and Reagan , in support of the assault weapons ban . At the 1992 Republican National Convention , Ford compared the election cycle to his 1976 loss to Carter and urged attention be paid to electing a Republican Congress : `` If it 's change you want on Nov. 3 , my friends , the place to start is not at the White House but in the United States ' Capitol . Congress , as every school child knows , has the power of the purse . For nearly 40 years , Democratic majorities have held to the time - tested New Deal formula , tax and tax , spend and spend , elect and elect . '' Ford at his 90th birthday with Laura Bush , President George W. Bush , and Betty Ford in the White House State Dining Room in 2003 In April 1997 , Ford joined President Bill Clinton , former President Bush , and Nancy Reagan in signing the `` Summit Declaration of Commitment '' in advocating for participation by private citizens in solving domestic issues within the United States . On January 20 , 1998 , during an interview at his Palm Springs home , Ford said the Republican Party 's nominee in the 2000 presidential election would lose if very conservative in their ideals : `` If we get way over on the hard right of the political spectrum , we will not elect a Republican President . I worry about the party going down this ultra-conservative line . We ought to learn from the Democrats : when they were running ultra-liberal candidates , they did n't win . '' In the prelude to the impeachment of President Clinton , Ford conferred with former President Carter and the two agreed to not speak publicly on the controversy , a pact broken by Carter when answering a question from a student at Emory University . In October 2001 , Ford broke with conservative members of the Republican Party by stating that gay and lesbian couples `` ought to be treated equally . Period . '' He became the highest ranking Republican to embrace full equality for gays and lesbians , stating his belief that there should be a federal amendment outlawing anti-gay job discrimination and expressing his hope that the Republican Party would reach out to gay and lesbian voters . He also was a member of the Republican Unity Coalition , which The New York Times described as `` a group of prominent Republicans , including former President Gerald R. Ford , dedicated to making sexual orientation a non-issue in the Republican Party '' . On November 22 , 2004 , New York Republican Governor George Pataki named Ford and the other living former Presidents ( Carter , George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton ) as honorary members of the board rebuilding the World Trade Center . In a pre-recorded embargoed interview with Bob Woodward of The Washington Post in July 2004 , Ford stated that he disagreed `` very strongly '' with the Bush administration 's choice of Iraq 's alleged weapons of mass destruction as justification for its decision to invade Iraq , calling it a `` big mistake '' unrelated to the national security of the United States and indicating that he would not have gone to war had he been President . The details of the interview were not released until after Ford 's death , as he requested . Health problems ( edit ) Gerald Ford and Roy W. Hill , Rancho Mirage California Gerald Ford , Anne T. Hill , and Edgar L. McCoubrey , Rancho Mirage California Ford suffered two minor strokes at the 2000 Republican National Convention , but made a quick recovery after being admitted to Hahnemann University Hospital . In January 2006 , he spent 11 days at the Eisenhower Medical Center near his residence at Rancho Mirage , California , for treatment of pneumonia . On April 23 , 2006 , President George W. Bush visited Ford at his home in Rancho Mirage for a little over an hour . This was Ford 's last public appearance and produced the last known public photos , video footage , and voice recording . While vacationing in Vail , Colorado , Ford was hospitalized for two days in July 2006 for shortness of breath . On August 15 he was admitted to St. Mary 's Hospital of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester , Minnesota , for testing and evaluation . On August 21 , it was reported that he had been fitted with a pacemaker . On August 25 , he underwent an angioplasty procedure at the Mayo Clinic . On August 28 , Ford was released from the hospital and returned with his wife Betty to their California home . On October 13 , he was scheduled to attend the dedication of a building of his namesake , the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan , but due to poor health and on the advice of his doctors he did not attend . The previous day , Ford had entered the Eisenhower Medical Center for undisclosed tests ; he was released on October 16 . By November 2006 , he was confined to a bed in his study . Death and Legacy ( edit ) Ford 's casket lies in state at the United States Capitol as his widow , Betty , kneels in prayer Main article : Death and state funeral of Gerald Ford Ford died on December 26 , 2006 , at his home in Rancho Mirage , California , of arteriosclerotic cerebrovascular disease and diffuse arteriosclerosis . He had end - stage coronary artery disease and severe aortic stenosis and insufficiency , caused by calcific alteration of one of his heart valves . He was 93 . Ford died on the 34th anniversary of President Harry Truman 's death ; he was the last surviving member of the Warren Commission . On December 30 , 2006 , Ford became the 11th U.S. President to lie in state . A state funeral and memorial services was held at the National Cathedral in Washington , D.C. , on January 2 , 2007 . After the service , Ford was interred at his Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids , Michigan . Citizens lining outside of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids , Michigan during a public visitation of Ford . Scouting was so important to Ford that his family asked that Scouts participate in his funeral . A few selected Scouts served as ushers inside the National Cathedral . About 400 Eagle Scouts were part of the funeral procession , where they formed an honor guard as the casket went by in front of the museum . Ford selected the song to be played during his funeral procession at the U.S. Capitol . After his death in December 2006 , the University of Michigan Marching Band played the school 's fight song for him one final time , for his last ride from the Gerald R. Ford Airport in Grand Rapids , Michigan . The State of Michigan commissioned and submitted a statue of Ford to the National Statuary Hall Collection , replacing Zachariah Chandler . It was unveiled on May 3 , 2011 in the Capitol Rotunda . On the proper right side is inscribed a quotation from a tribute by Thomas P. `` Tip '' O'Neill , Speaker of the House at the end of Ford 's presidency : `` God has been good to America , especially during difficult times . At the time of the Civil War , he gave us Abraham Lincoln . And at the time of Watergate , he gave us Gerald Ford -- the right man at the right time who was able to put our nation back together again . '' On the proper left side are words from Ford 's swearing - in address : `` Our constitution works . Our great republic is a government of laws and not of men . Here the people rule . '' Ford 's wife , Betty Ford , died on July 8 , 2011 . Like her husband , she was 93 years old when she died . Longevity ( edit ) On November 12 , 2006 , upon surpassing Ronald Reagan 's lifespan , Ford released his last public statement : The length of one 's days matters less than the love of one 's family and friends . I thank God for the gift of every sunrise and , even more , for all the years He has blessed me with Betty and the children ; with our extended family and the friends of a lifetime . That includes countless Americans who , in recent months , have remembered me in their prayers . Your kindness touches me deeply . May God bless you all and may God bless America . Ford 's age at the time of his death was 93 years and 165 days , making him the longest - lived U.S. President , his lifespan being 45 days longer than Ronald Reagan 's . He was the third - longest - lived Vice President , falling short only of John Nance Garner , 98 , and Levi P. Morton , 96 . Ford also had the third - longest post-presidency ( 29 years and 11 months ) after Jimmy Carter ( 36 years , 9 months and counting ) and Herbert Hoover ( 31 years and 7 months ) . Public image ( edit ) President George W. Bush with Ford and his wife Betty on April 23 , 2006 ; this is the last known public photo of Gerald Ford . Ford was the only person to hold the presidential office without being elected as either president or vice-president . The choice of Ford to fulfill Spiro Agnew 's vacated role as vice president was based on Ford 's reputation for openness and honesty . `` In all the years I sat in the House , I never knew Mr. Ford to make a dishonest statement nor a statement part - true and part - false . He never attempted to shade a statement , and I never heard him utter an unkind word , '' said Martha Griffiths . The trust the American people had in him was rapidly and severely tarnished by his pardon of Nixon . Nonetheless , many grant in hindsight that he had respectably discharged with considerable dignity a great responsibility that he had not sought . His subsequent loss to Carter in 1976 has come to be seen as an honorable sacrifice he made for the nation . In spite of his athletic record and remarkable career accomplishments , Ford acquired a reputation as a clumsy , likable , and simple - minded Everyman . An incident in 1975 , when he tripped while exiting Air Force One in Austria , was famously and repeatedly parodied by Chevy Chase , cementing Ford 's image as a klutz . Pieces of Ford 's common Everyman image have also been attributed to Ford 's inevitable comparison to Nixon , as well as his perceived Midwestern stodginess and self - deprecation . Civic and fraternal organizations ( edit ) Ford was a member of several civic organizations , including the Junior Chamber of Commerce ( Jaycees ) , American Legion , AMVETS , Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks , Sons of the Revolution , and Veterans of Foreign Wars . Freemasonry ( edit ) Ford was initiated into Freemasonry on September 30 , 1949 . He later said in 1975 , `` When I took my obligation as a master mason -- incidentally , with my three younger brothers -- I recalled the value my own father attached to that order . But I had no idea that I would ever be added to the company of the Father of our Country and 12 other members of the order who also served as Presidents of the United States . '' Ford was made a 33 ° Scottish Rite Mason on September 26 , 1962 . In April 1975 , Ford was elected by a unanimous vote Honorary Grand Master of the International Supreme Council , Order of DeMolay , a position in which he served until January 1977 . Ford received the degrees of York Rite Masonry ( Chapter and Council degrees ) in a special ceremony in the Oval Office on January 11 , 1977 , during his term as President of the United States . Honors ( edit ) Ford honored on U.S Postage , issue of 2007 Ford received the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award in May 1970 , as well as the Silver Buffalo Award , from the Boy Scouts of America . In 1974 , he also received the highest distinction of the Scout Association of Japan , the Golden Pheasant Award . In 1985 , he received the 1985 Old Tom Morris Award from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America , GCSAA 's highest honor . In 1992 , the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation awarded Ford its Lone Sailor Award for his naval service and his subsequent government service . In 1999 , Ford was honored with a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars . Also in 1999 , Ford was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton . In 2001 , he was presented with the John F. Kennedy Profiles in Courage Award for his decision to pardon Richard Nixon to stop the agony America was experiencing over Watergate . The following were named after Ford : The Ford House Office Building in the U.S. Capitol Complex , formerly House Annex 2 . Gerald R. Ford Freeway ( Nebraska ) Gerald R. Ford Freeway ( Michigan ) Gerald Ford Memorial Highway , I - 70 in Eagle County , Colorado Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids , Michigan Gerald R. Ford Library in Ann Arbor , Michigan Gerald R. Ford Museum in Grand Rapids , Michigan Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy , University of Michigan Gerald R. Ford Institute of Public Policy , Albion College USS Gerald R. Ford ( CVN - 78 ) Gerald R. Ford Middle School , Grand Rapids , Michigan President Gerald R. Ford Park in Alexandria , Virginia , located in the neighborhood where Ford lived while serving as a Representative and Vice President President Ford Field Service Council , Boy Scouts of America The council where he was awarded the rank of Eagle Scout . Serves 25 counties in Western and Northern Michigan with its headquarters located in Grand Rapids , Michigan . See also ( edit ) List of Freemasons List of Presidents of the United States List of Presidents of the United States by previous experience Presidents of the United States on U.S. postage stamps References ( edit ) Jump up ^ Frum , David ( 2000 ) . How We Got Here : The ' 70s . New York , New York : Basic Books . pp. xxiii , 301 . ISBN 0 - 465 - 04195 - 7 . ^ Jump up to : George Lenczowski ( 1990 ) . American Presidents , and the Middle East . Duke University Press . pp. 142 -- 143 . ISBN 0 - 8223 - 0972 - 6 . Jump up ^ Young , Jeff C. ( 1997 ) . The Fathers of American Presidents . Jefferson , NC : McFarland & Co . ISBN 0 - 7864 - 0182 - 6 . ^ Jump up to : Funk , Josh ( December 27 , 2006 ) . `` Nebraska - born Ford Left State as Infant '' . Fox News . Associated Press . Archived from the original on April 29 , 2011 . Retrieved September 2 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Cannon , James . `` Gerald R. Ford '' . Character Above All . Public Broadcasting System . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald R. Ford Genealogical Information '' . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum . University of Texas . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Richard Ford remembered as active steward of President Gerald Ford 's legacy '' . MLive . March 20 , 2015 . Retrieved December 21 , 2015 . Jump up ^ `` A Common Man on an Uncommon Climb '' ( PDF ) . The New York Times . August 19 , 1976 . p. 28 . Retrieved April 26 , 2009 . ^ Jump up to : Kunhardt Jr. , Phillip ( 1999 ) . Gerald R. Ford `` Healing the Nation '' . New York : Riverhead Books . pp. 79 -- 85 . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 . ^ Jump up to : Townley , Alvin ( 2007 ) ( December 26 , 2006 ) . Legacy of Honor : The Values and Influence of America 's Eagle Scouts . New York : St. Martin 's Press . pp. 12 -- 13 and 87 . ISBN 0 - 312 - 36653 - 1 . Retrieved December 29 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Investigatory Records on Gerald Ford , Applicant for a Commission '' ( PDF ) . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . December 30 , 1941 . Retrieved November 18 , 2010 . Jump up ^ Wertheimer , Linda ( December 27 , 2006 ) . `` Special Report : Former President Gerald Ford Dies ; Sought to Heal Nation Disillusioned by Watergate Scandal '' . National Public Radio . Retrieved April 26 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Perry , Will ( 1974 ) . `` No Cheers From the Alumni '' . The Wolverines : A Story of Michigan Football ( PDF ) . Huntsville , Alabama : The Strode Publishers . pp. 150 -- 152 . ISBN 0 - 87397 - 055 - 1 . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Kruger , Brian ; Moorehouse , Buddy ( August 9 , 2012 ) . `` Willis Ward , Gerald Ford and Michigan Football 's darkest day '' . The Detroit News . Retrieved October 22 , 2012 . Jump up ^ Greene , J.R. ( 1995 ) . The Presidency of Gerald R. Ford ( American Presidency Series ) . University Press of Kansas . p. 2 . ISBN 978 - 0 - 7006 - 0638 - 2 . Jump up ^ `` Ford Named Michigan Football Legend ; Morgan to Wear No. 48 Jersey '' . Jump up ^ `` Clumsy image aside , Ford was Accomplished Athlete '' . Los Angeles Times . December 28 , 2006 . Retrieved September 2 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Rozell , Mark J. ( October 15 , 1992 ) . The Press and the Ford Presidency . University of Michigan Press . p. 38 . ISBN 0 - 472 - 10350 - 4 . ^ Jump up to : `` Timeline of President Ford 's Life and Career '' . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Wendy Wolff ( 1997 ) . Vice Presidents of the United States 1789 -- 1993 . United States Government Printing Office . Jump up ^ `` The U-M Remembers Gerald R. Ford '' . The University of Michigan . Retrieved January 2 , 2007 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald R. Ford Biography '' . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum . Retrieved January 2 , 2007 . Jump up ^ Doenecke , Justus D. ( 1990 ) . `` In Danger Undaunted : The Anti-Interventionist Movement of 1940 -- 1941 As Revealed in the Papers of the America First Committee ( Hoover Archival Documentaries ) '' . Hoover Institution Press . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 . p. 7 ^ Jump up to : Naughton , James M. ; Adam Clymer ( December 26 , 2006 ) . `` Gerald Ford , 38th President , Dies at 93 years and 165 day '' . The New York Times . Naval Historical Center . Retrieved October 19 , 2007 . ^ Jump up to : Hove , Duane ( 2003 ) . American Warriors : Five Presidents in the Pacific Theater of World War II . Burd Street Press . ISBN 1 - 57249 - 307 - 0 . Jump up ^ `` Lieutenant Gerald Ford and Typhoon Cobra '' . Naval Historical Foundation . February 7 , 2013 . Retrieved February 8 , 2013 . Jump up ^ Howard , Jane ( December 8 , 1974 ) . `` The 38th First Lady : Not a Robot At All '' . The New York Times . Jump up ^ Winget , Mary Mueller ( 2007 ) . Gerald R. Ford . Twenty - First Century Books . ISBN 978 - 0 - 8225 - 1509 - 8 . Retrieved September 3 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Kruse , Melissa ( January 3 , 2003 ) . `` The Patterson Barn , Grand Rapids , Michigan -- Barn razing erases vintage landmark '' . The Grand Rapids Press . p . D1 . Archived from the original on April 29 , 2011 . Retrieved September 3 , 2009 . ^ Jump up to : `` Gerald R. Ford '' . The New York Times . December 28 , 2006 . Retrieved December 29 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald R. Ford '' . The White House . Retrieved October 25 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Celebrating the life of President Gerald R. Ford on what would have been his 96th birthday , H.R. 409 , 111th Congress , 1st Session ( 2009 ) . Jump up ^ `` Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum '' . Ford.utexas.edu . Retrieved August 9 , 2009 . ^ Jump up to : James M. Naughton ; Adam Clymer ( December 27 , 2006 ) . `` Gerald Ford , 38th President , Dies at 93 '' . The New York Times . Retrieved October 19 , 2009 . Jump up ^ `` LBJ Appoints Gerald Ford to the Warren Commission '' . Miller Center of Public Affairs . Archived from the original on September 25 , 2015 . Retrieved August 20 , 2015 . Jump up ^ Newton , Jim ( 2007 ) . Justice for All : Earl Warren and the Nation He Made . Penguin Group . ISBN 978 - 1 - 59448 - 270 - 0 . Jump up ^ Stephens , Joe ( August 8 , 2008 ) . `` Ford Told FBI of Skeptics on Warren Commission '' . The Washington Post . Retrieved September 8 , 2009 . Jump up ^ `` Ford told FBI about panel 's doubts on JFK murder '' . USA Today . August 9 , 2008 . Retrieved September 2 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Ford , Gerald R. ( 2007 ) . A Presidential Legacy and The Warren Commission . The FlatSigned Press . ISBN 978 - 1 - 934304 - 02 - 0 . ^ Jump up to : Roger H. Davidson ; Susan Webb Hammond ; Raymond Smock ( 1988 ) . Masters of the House : Congressional leadership over two centuries . Westview Press . pp. 267 -- 275 . Jump up ^ Unger , Irwin , 1996 : ' The Best of Intentions : the triumphs and failures of the Great Society under Kennedy , Johnson , and Nixon ' : Doubleday , p. 104 . Jump up ^ Gray , Paul ( December 27 , 2006 ) . `` Gerald Ford : Steady Hand for a Nation in Crisis '' . Time . Retrieved September 16 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Ford , Gerald ( May 23 , 2001 ) . `` Address by President Gerald R. Ford , May 23 , 2001 '' . United States Senate . Retrieved December 30 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Jackson , Harold ( December 27 , 2006 ) . `` Guardian newspaper obituary '' . The Guardian . London . Retrieved December 30 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Reeves , Richard ( 1975 ) . A Ford , not a Lincoln . Jump up ^ James Midgley ; Michelle Livermore ( 2008 ) . The Handbook of Social Policy . SAGE . p. 162 . ISBN 1 - 4129 - 5076 - 7 . Jump up ^ Hoff , Joan ( 1995 ) . Nixon Reconsidered . Basic Books . p. 69 . ISBN 0 - 465 - 05105 - 7 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald R. Ford 's Remarks Upon Taking the Oath of Office as President '' . The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . August 9 , 1974 . Retrieved November 18 , 2010 . Jump up ^ `` Remarks By President Gerald Ford On Taking the Oath Of Office As President '' . Watergate.info. 1974 . Archived from the original on July 3 , 2008 . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Miller , Danny ( December 27 , 2006 ) . `` Coming of Age with Gerald Ford '' . Huffington Post . Retrieved September 8 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Ford , Gerald R. ( August 9 , 1974 ) . `` Gerald R. Ford 's Remarks on Taking the Oath of Office as President '' . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . Archived from the original on August 13 , 2012 . Retrieved May 2 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` The Daily Diary of President Gerald R. Ford '' ( PDF ) . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . August 20 , 1976 . Retrieved November 19 , 2010 . Jump up ^ `` The Vice Presidency : Rocky 's Turn to the Right '' . Time . May 12 , 1975 . Retrieved September 8 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Ford , Gerald ( September 8 , 1974 ) . `` President Gerald R. Ford 's Proclamation 4311 , Granting a Pardon to Richard Nixon '' . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum . University of Texas . Retrieved December 30 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Ford , Gerald ( September 8 , 1974 ) . `` Presidential Proclamation 4311 by President Gerald R. Ford granting a pardon to Richard M. Nixon '' . Pardon images . University of Maryland . Archived from the original on October 11 , 2007 . Retrieved December 30 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Ford Pardons Nixon -- Events of 1974 -- Year in Review '' . UPI.com . Retrieved November 4 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Ford , Gerald ( September 8 , 1974 ) . `` Gerald R. Ford Pardoning Richard Nixon '' . Great Speeches Collection . The History Place . Retrieved December 30 , 2006 . ^ Jump up to : Shane , Scott ( December 29 , 2006 ) . `` For Ford , Pardon Decision Was Always Clear - Cut '' . The New York Times . p . A1 . Retrieved September 8 , 2009 . Jump up ^ `` Ford Testimony on Nixon Pardon -- C - SPAN Video Library '' . C-spanvideo.org . October 17 , 1974 . Retrieved December 30 , 2012 . Jump up ^ `` Sitting presidents and vice presidents who have testified before congressional committees '' ( PDF ) . Senate.gov. 2004 . Retrieved November 22 , 2015 . Jump up ^ `` Fred Barnes on Conversations with Bill Kristol '' . Jump up ^ Shadow , by Bob Woodward , chapter on Gerald Ford ; Woodward interviewed Ford on this matter , about twenty years after Ford left the presidency Jump up ^ `` Award Announcement '' . JFK Library Foundation . May 1 , 2001 . Archived from the original on January 15 , 2007 . Retrieved March 31 , 2007 . Jump up ^ `` Sen. Ted Kennedy crossed political paths with Grand Rapids ' most prominent Republican , President Gerald R. Ford '' , The Grand Rapids Press , August 26 , 2009 . Retrieved January 5 , 2010 . Jump up ^ Hunter , Marjorie ( September 16 , 1974 ) . `` Ford Offers Amnesty Program Requiring 2 Years Public Work ; Defends His Pardon Of Nixon '' . The New York Times . Retrieved August 10 , 2013 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald R. Ford : Proclamation 4313 -- Announcing a Program for the Return of Vietnam Era Draft Evaders and Military Deserters '' . ucsb.edu . Jump up ^ `` Carter 's Pardon '' . McNeil / Lehrer Report . Public Broadcasting System . January 21 , 1977 . Archived from the original on February 28 , 2007 . Retrieved December 30 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Secretary of Transportation : William T. Coleman Jr. ( 1975 -- 1977 ) -- AmericanPresident.org ( January 15 , 2005 ) . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` George Herbert Walker Bush Profile '' . CNN . Archived from the original on October 28 , 2006 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Richard B. Cheney Archived September 3 , 1999 , at the Wayback Machine ... United States Department of Defense . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Bush vetoes less than most presidents , CNN , May 1 , 2007 . Retrieved October 19 , 2007 . Jump up ^ Renka , Russell D. Nixon 's Fall and the Ford and Carter Interregnum . Southeast Missouri State University , ( April 10 , 2003 ) . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . ^ Jump up to : Greene , John Robert . The Presidency of Gerald R. Ford . University Press of Kansas , 1995 Jump up ^ Gerald Ford Speeches : Whip Inflation Now Archived August 29 , 2008 , at the Wayback Machine . ( October 8 , 1974 ) , Miller Center of Public Affairs . Retrieved May 18 , 2011 Jump up ^ Brinkley , Douglas . Gerald R. Ford . New York : Times Books , 2007 Jump up ^ `` WIN buttons and Arthur Burns '' . Econbrowser. 2006 . Archived from the original on January 6 , 2007 . Retrieved January 24 , 2007 . ^ Jump up to : Crain , Andrew Downer . The Ford Presidency . Jefferson , North Carolina : McFarland , 2009 Jump up ^ Dale Jr. , Edwin L. ( November 22 , 1974 ) . `` Consumer prices up 0.9 % in October , 12.2 % for year ; annual rate is highest since 1947 '' . The New York Times . p. 1 . Jump up ^ CRS Report RL33305 , The Crude Oil Windfall Profit Tax of the 1980s : Implications for Current Energy Policy Archived February 11 , 2012 , at the Wayback Machine. , by Salvatore Lazzari , p. 5 . Jump up ^ `` President Gerald R. Ford 's Statement on Signing the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 '' , Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library , December 2 , 1975 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Campbell , Ballard C. ( 2008 ) . `` 1973 oil embargo '' . Disasters , accidents and crises in American history : a reference guide to the nation 's most catastrophic events . New York : Facts On File . p. 353 . ISBN 978 - 0 - 8160 - 6603 - 2 . Jump up ^ Dale Jr. , Edwin L. ( June 7 , 1975 ) . `` U.S. jobless rate up to 9.2 % in May , highest since ' 41 '' . The New York Times . p. 1 . Stein , Judith ( 2010 ) . `` 1975 ' Capitalism is on the run ' '' . Pivotal decade : how the United States traded factories for finance in the seventies . New Haven : Yale University Press . pp. 116 -- 117 . ISBN 978 - 0 - 300 - 11818 - 6 . Jump up ^ `` Office of Management and Budget . `` Historical Table 1.1 '' `` . The White House . Retrieved January 22 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Roberts , Sam ( December 28 , 2006 ) . `` Infamous ' Drop Dead ' Was Never Said by Ford '' . The New York Times . Retrieved February 16 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Van Riper , Frank ( October 30 , 1975 ) . `` Ford to New York : Drop Dead '' . Daily News . New York . Archived from the original on October 6 , 2008 . Retrieved February 20 , 2012 . Jump up ^ Pandemic Pointers . Living on Earth , March 3 , 2006 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Mickle , Paul . 1976 : Fear of a great plague . The Trentonian . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Ford , Gerald R. ( August 26 , 1975 ) . `` Proclamation 4383 -- Women 's Equality Day , 1975 '' . The American Presidency Project . Retrieved May 2 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` Presidential Campaign Debate Between Gerald R. Ford and Jimmy Carter , October 22 , 1976 '' . Fordlibrarymuseum.gov . Retrieved September 8 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Ford , Gerald ( September 10 , 1976 ) . `` Letter to the Archbishop of Cincinnati '' . The American Presidency Project . Retrieved June 12 , 2007 . Jump up ^ Greene , John Edward . ( 1995 ) . The presidency of Gerald R. Ford . Lawrence : University Press of Kansas . p. 33 . ISBN 0 - 7006 - 0639 - 4 . Jump up ^ `` The Best of Interviews With Gerald Ford '' . Larry King Live Weekend . CNN . February 3 , 2001 . Retrieved June 12 , 2007 . ^ Jump up to : Mieczkowski , Yanek ( 2005 ) . Gerald Ford and the Challenges of the 1970s . Lexington , Kentucky : University Press of Kentucky . pp. 283 -- 284 , 290 -- 294 . ISBN 0 - 8131 - 2349 - 6 . Jump up ^ `` Trip To China '' . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . University of Texas . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` President Gerald R. Ford 's Address in Helsinki Before the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe '' . USA-presidents.info . Archived from the original on October 10 , 2007 . Retrieved April 4 , 2007 . Jump up ^ `` About Human Rights Watch '' . Human Rights Watch . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` President Ford got Canada into G7 '' . Canadian Broadcasting Company . December 27 , 2006 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` National Security Archive - 30 + Years of Freedom of Information Action '' . nsarchive.gwu.edu . Jump up ^ `` Ford White House Altered Rockefeller Commission Report '' . nsarchive.gwu.edu . Jump up ^ Gerald Ford , A Time to Heal , 1979 , p. 240 Jump up ^ Rabin , Yitzak ( 1996 ) , The Rabin Memoirs , University of California Press , p. 256 , ISBN 978 - 0 - 520 - 20766 - 0 Jump up ^ Goldstein ) , Yitzhak Rabin ; ( translated by Dov ( 1996 ) . The Rabin memoirs ( Expanded ed . ) . Berkeley : University of California Press . p. 261 . ISBN 0 - 520 - 20766 - 1 . Jump up ^ George Lenczowski , American Presidents , and the Middle East , 1990 , p. 150 Jump up ^ Gerald Ford , A Time to Heal , 1979 , p. 298 Jump up ^ Church , Peter , ed. ( 2006 ) . A Short History of South - East Asia . Singapore : John Wiley & Sons . pp. 193 -- 194 . ISBN 978 - 0 - 470 - 82181 - 7 . ^ Jump up to : Brinkley , Douglas ( 2007 ) . Gerald R. Ford . New York , NY : Times Books . pp. 89 -- 98 . ISBN 0 - 8050 - 6909 - 7 . Jump up ^ Karnow , Stanley ( 1991 ) . Vietnam : A History . Viking . Jump up ^ `` Vietnam 's President Thieu resigns '' . BBC News . April 21 , 1975 . Retrieved September 24 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Bowman , John S. ( 1985 ) . The Vietnam War : An Almanac . Pharos Books . p. 434 . ISBN 0 - 911818 - 85 - 5 . Jump up ^ Plummer Alston Jones ( 2004 ) . `` Still struggling for equality : American public library services with minorities '' . Libraries Unlimited . p. 84 . ISBN 1 - 59158 - 243 - 1 Jump up ^ Robinson , William Courtland ( 1998 ) . Terms of refuge : the Indochinese exodus & the international response . Zed Books . p. 127 . ISBN 1 - 85649 - 610 - 4 . Jump up ^ Gawthorpe , A.J. ( 2009 ) , `` The Ford Administration and Security Policy in the Asia - Pacific after the Fall of Saigon '' , The Historical Journal , 52 ( 3 ) : 697 -- 716 . Jump up ^ `` Debrief of the Mayaguez Captain and Crew '' . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . May 19 , 1975 . Retrieved November 18 , 2010 . Jump up ^ `` Capture and Release of SS Mayaguez by Khmer Rouge forces in May 1975 '' . United States Merchant Marine . 2000 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Gerald R. Ford , A Time to Heal , p. 284 Jump up ^ Cécile Menétray - Monchau ( August 2005 ) , `` The Mayaguez Incident as an Epilogue to the Vietnam War and its Reflection on the Post-Vietnam Political Equilibrium in Southeast Asia '' , Cold War History , p. 346 . Jump up ^ Gawthorpe , Andrew J. ( September 1 , 2009 ) . `` The Ford Administration and Security Policy in the Asia - Pacific after the Fall of Saigon '' . The Historical Journal . 52 ( 03 ) : 707 -- 709 . ISSN 1469 - 5103 . doi : 10.1017 / S0018246X09990082 . Jump up ^ Oberdorfer , Don ( 2001 ) , The two Koreas : a contemporary history ( New York , NY : Basic Books ) , pp. 47 -- 83 . Jump up ^ Gawthorpe , `` The Ford Administration and Security Policy '' , p. 711 . Jump up ^ Gawthorpe , `` The Ford Administration and Security Policy '' , pp. 710 -- 714 . Jump up ^ Ricklefs , `` A History of Modern Indonesia since c. 1200 '' , p. 342 . Jump up ^ 1977 hearing of the House International Relations Committee Jump up ^ `` Report : U.S. Arms Transfers to Indonesia 1975 -- 1997 -- World Policy Institute -- Research Project '' . World Policy Institute . Retrieved July 13 , 2014 . Jump up ^ `` 1975 Year in Review : Ford Assassinations Attempts '' . Upi.com . Retrieved May 30 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` Election Is Crunch Time for U.S. Secret Service '' . National Geographic News . Retrieved March 2 , 2008 . Jump up ^ `` Charles Manson follower Lynette ' Squeaky ' Fromme released from prison after more than 30 years '' . Daily News . New York . Associated Press . August 14 , 2009 . Retrieved September 7 , 2011 . Jump up ^ United States Secret Service . `` Public Report of the White House Security Review '' . United States Department of the Treasury . Retrieved January 3 , 2007 . Jump up ^ Lee , Vic ( January 2 , 2007 ) . `` Interview : Woman Who Tried To Assassinate Ford '' . San Francisco : KGO - TV . Retrieved January 3 , 2007 . Jump up ^ `` John Paul Stevens '' . Oyez . Archived from the original on August 22 , 2006 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` News Release , Congressman Gerald R. Ford '' ( PDF ) . The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . April 15 , 1970 . Retrieved November 18 , 2010 . Jump up ^ Levenick , Christopher ( September 25 , 2005 ) . `` The Conservative Persuasion '' . The Daily Standard . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Letter from Gerald Ford to Michael Treanor Archived June 14 , 2007 , at the Wayback Machine ... Fordham University , September 21 , 2005 . Retrieved March 2 , 2008 . Jump up ^ Biographical Directory of Federal Judges , a public - domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center . Jump up ^ Another Loss For the Gipper . Time , March 29 , 1976 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ VH1 News Presents : Politics : A Pop Culture History Premiering Wednesday , October 20 at 10 : 00 pm ( ET / PT ) . PRNewswire October 19 , 2004 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Election of 1976 : A Political Outsider Prevails. C - SPAN . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Shabecoff , Philip . `` 160,000 Mark Two 1775 Battles ; Concord Protesters Jeer Ford -- Reconciliation Plea '' , The New York Times , April 20 , 1975 , p. 1 . Jump up ^ Shabecoff , Philip . `` Ford , on Bicentennial Trip , Bids U.S. Heed Old Values '' , The New York Times , April 19 , 1975 , p. 1 . Jump up ^ `` 1976 Presidential Debates '' . CNN . Retrieved September 28 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Lehrer , Jim ( 2000 ) . `` 1976 : No Audio and No Soviet Domination '' . Debating Our Destiny . PBS . Retrieved March 31 , 2007 . Jump up ^ `` Presidential Election 1976 States Carried '' . multied.com . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Jimmy Carter '' . U.S. Inaugural Addresses . Bartleby.com . January 20 , 1977 . Retrieved August 14 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Perrone , Marguerite . `` Eisenhower Fellowship : A History 1953 -- 2003 '' . 2003 . Jump up ^ Naughton , James M ( December 27 , 2006 ) . `` The Real Jerry Ford '' . PoynterOnline . Retrieved March 31 , 2007 . Jump up ^ Smith , Gaddis ( 1979 ) . `` A Time to Heal '' . Foreign Affairs . Council on Foreign Relations . Archived from the original on November 7 , 2004 . Retrieved April 26 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Kornblut , Anne ( December 29 , 2006 ) . `` Ford Arranged His Funeral to Reflect Himself and Drew in a Former Adversary '' . The New York Times . Retrieved April 4 , 2007 . Jump up ^ Updegrove , Mark K. ( August -- September 2006 ) . `` Flying Coach to Cairo '' . American Heritage . 57 ( 4 ) . Retrieved September 28 , 2011 . `` Certainly few observers in January 1977 would have predicted that Jimmy and I would become the closest of friends , '' Ford said in 2000 . Jump up ^ Thomas , Evan ( 2007 ) . `` The 38th President : More Than Met the Eye '' . Newsweek . Retrieved January 4 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Allen , Richard V. `` How the Bush Dynasty Almost Was n't '' Archived July 6 , 2008 , at the Wayback Machine. , Hoover Institution , reprinted from the New York Times Magazine , July 30 , 2000 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Reagan campaign ad '' . Livingroomcandidate.org . November 4 , 1979 . Retrieved January 22 , 2011 . Jump up ^ Uhlenbrock , Tom ( October 8 , 1980 ) . `` Former President Gerald Ford said Wednesday former President Richard ... '' . UPI . Jump up ^ `` Former President Gerald Ford Friday accused President Carter of ... '' . UPI . October 3 , 1980 . Jump up ^ Brownstein , Pamela ( April 3 , 1981 ) . `` Former President Gerald Ford says people who commit crimes ... '' . UPI . Jump up ^ Whipple , Scott ( October 18 , 2005 ) . `` A $3 m gift '' . The New Britain Herald . Archived from the original on May 1 , 2011 . Retrieved September 9 , 2009 . Jump up ^ `` The Man Who Ate Hollywood '' . Vanity Fair . November 2005 . Retrieved February 19 , 2012 . Jump up ^ `` Former President Gerald Ford had some advice today for ... '' . UPI . September 18 , 1981 . Jump up ^ `` Former President Gerald Ford continued his campaign in favor ... '' . UPI . October 20 , 1981 . Jump up ^ Sawislak , Arnold ( March 24 , 1982 ) . `` Former President Gerald Ford endorsed President Reagan 's handling of ... '' . UPI . Jump up ^ Henry , Tamara . `` Gerald Ford : ' Carter administration blew it ' '' . UPI . Jump up ^ `` Former President Gerald Ford and former Vice President Walter ... '' . UPI . October 21 , 1982 . Jump up ^ `` Former presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter have signed ... '' . UPI . January 2 , 1984 . Jump up ^ `` Archives - Philly.com '' . articles.philly.com . Jump up ^ Greenhouse , Linda ; Times , Special to the New York ( October 24 , 1987 ) . `` Bork& # 146 ; s Nomination Is Rejected , 58 - 42 ; Reagan & # 146 ; Saddened& # 146 ; '' -- via www.nytimes.com . Jump up ^ New York Media , LLC ( January 25 , 1988 ) . New York Magazine . New York Media , LLC . pp. 19 -- . ISSN 0028 - 7369 . Retrieved February 19 , 2012 . Jump up ^ `` Ford 's Citigroup Connection '' . The Wall Street Journal . December 27 , 2006 . Retrieved February 19 , 2012 . Jump up ^ Lessenberry , Jack ( April 20 , 1981 ) . `` Ford to Formally Unveil His Presidential Library '' . Toledo Blade . Retrieved September 3 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Ford , Gerald R. ( September 18 , 1981 ) . `` Remarks at the Dedication of the Gerald R. Ford Museum in Grand Rapids , Michigan '' . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . Retrieved November 18 , 2010 . Jump up ^ Tucker , Brian ( September 18 , 1981 ) . `` Reagan Praises Ford at Opening of Museum '' . Boston Globe . Retrieved September 3 , 2009 . Jump up ^ `` Ike commemorated with 100th birthday bash '' . UPI . October 14 , 1990 . Jump up ^ `` Carter , Ford Join Other Former Presidents in Backing Gun Bill '' . Los Angeles Times . Associated Press . April 29 , 1991 . Retrieved July 4 , 2014 . Jump up ^ Eaton , William J. ( May 5 , 1994 ) . `` Ford , Carter , Reagan Push for Gun Ban '' . Los Angeles Times . Retrieved July 4 , 2014 . Jump up ^ Langford , Mark . `` Ford warns Clinton victory would return America to Carter era '' . UPI . Jump up ^ Bennet , James ( April 29 , 1997 ) . `` Presidents Call for Big Citizenship , Not Big Government '' . New York Times . Jump up ^ Berke , Richard L. ( January 20 , 1998 ) . `` Ford Urges G.O.P. to Drop Abortion Issue and Shift Center '' . New York Times . Jump up ^ `` Carter breaks silence on Clinton , says nation will heal '' . Emory . September 28 , 1998 . Jump up ^ Price , Deb . `` Gerald Ford : Treat gay couples equally '' Archived January 20 , 2013 , at the Wayback Machine ... The Detroit News , October 29 , 2001 . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 Jump up ^ Stolberg , Sheryl Gay . `` Vocal Gay Republicans Upsetting Conservatives '' , The New York Times , June 1 , 2003 , p . N26 . Jump up ^ Woodward , Bob . `` Ford Disagreed With Bush About Invading Iraq '' . The Washington Post , December 28 , 2006 . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 Jump up ^ `` Embargoed Interview Reveals Ford Opposed Iraq War '' Archived December 28 , 2006 , at the Wayback Machine ... Democracy Now Headlines for December 28 , 2006 . Retrieved December 28 , 2006 Jump up ^ `` Gerald Ford recovering after strokes '' . BBC , August 2 , 2000 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ Hospitalized After Suffering a Stroke , Former President Ford Is Expected to Fully Recover The New York Times , August 3 , 2000 . Retrieved July 5 , 2008 . Jump up ^ Former `` President Ford , 92 , hospitalized with pneumonia '' . USA Today , Associated Press , January 17 , 2006 . Retrieved October 19 , 2007 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald Ford released from hospital '' . MSNBC , Associated Press , July 26 , 2006 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Former President Gerald Ford Released from Hospital '' . Fox News . October 16 , 2006 . Archived from the original on April 29 , 2011 . Retrieved September 3 , 2009 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald Ford Dies At Age 93 '' . CNN Transcript December 26 , 2006 . Retrieved March 2 , 2008 . Jump up ^ DeFrank T : Write It When I 'm Gone , G. Putnam & Sons , New York , NY , 2007 . Jump up ^ Stout , David ( January 2 , 2007 ) . `` Bush and ex-presidents eulogize Gerald R. Ford '' . The New York Times . Retrieved September 3 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Davey , Monica ( January 4 , 2007 ) . `` Ford Is Buried After Thousands in Hometown Pay Respects '' . The New York Times . Retrieved October 16 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Ray , Mark ( 2007 ) . `` Eagle Scout Welcome Gerald Ford Home '' . Scouting Magazine . Boy Scouts of America . Retrieved March 5 , 2007 . Jump up ^ Anne E. Kornblut , `` Ford Arranged His Funeral to Reflect Himself and Drew in a Former Adversary '' , The New York Times , December 29 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Funeral : Marching Band Plays in His Honor '' . Eugene Register - Guard . January 3 , 2007 . Retrieved September 2 , 2009 . Jump up ^ `` Former first lady Betty Ford dies at 93 '' . MSNBC . July 9 , 2011 . Retrieved September 9 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` Ford eclipses Reagan as oldest ex-president '' . USA Today . November 12 , 2006 . Retrieved March 2 , 2008 . Jump up ^ `` US ex-President Gerald Ford dies '' . BBC News . December 27 , 2006 . Retrieved October 16 , 2009 . ^ Jump up to : `` Gerald Ford , Betty 's Husband '' . The Phoenix Media / Communications Group . Retrieved December 4 , 2009 . ^ Jump up to : `` Gerald R Ford '' . The Independent . London . January 21 , 2009 . Retrieved December 2 , 2009 . Jump up ^ Jake , Coyle ( September 12 , 2008 ) . `` ' SNL ' returns with spotlight on prez impersonators '' . CBS Interactive Inc . Retrieved September 16 , 2008 . Jump up ^ `` Chevy Chase recalls Ford as ' a terrific guy ' : ' SNL ' comedian became famous in the 1970s portraying president as klutz '' . MSNBC . December 27 , 2006 . Retrieved September 16 , 2008 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald R. Ford 1913 -- 2006 '' . Van Nuys , Calif. : Sons of the Revolution in the State of California . 2006 . Retrieved January 8 , 2010 . Jump up ^ The Supreme Council , Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite , Southern Jurisdiction , USA . Jump up ^ `` Gerald Ford '' . The American Presidency Project . University of California -- Santa Barbara . Retrieved January 17 , 2007 . Jump up ^ masons , Wayne Bradywrote in ; 07 : 29 : 00 , 2006 - 12 - 31 07 : 29 : 00 Wayne Brady mr_lunch masons 2006 - 12 - 31 . `` Masonic Record of Gerald Ford '' . Retrieved 2016 - 12 - 06 . Jump up ^ `` Masonic American Presidents The Grand Lodge of Minnesota '' . www.mn-masons.org . Retrieved 2016 - 12 - 06 . Jump up ^ Larson , Donna ( January 11 , 1977 ) . `` The Daily Diary of President Gerald R. Ford '' ( PDF ) . www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov . Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library . Retrieved December 6 , 2016 . Jump up ^ reinanzaka-sc.o.oo7.jp/kiroku/documents/20140523-3-kiji-list.pdf Jump up ^ `` Old Tom Morris Award Recipients '' . Golf Course Superintendents Association of America . Retrieved September 28 , 2011 . Jump up ^ `` Palm Springs Walk of Stars : By Date Dedicated '' ( PDF ) . Jump up ^ `` Politicians Who Received the Medal of Freedom '' . The Political Graveyard . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald Ford '' . John F. Kennedy Library Foundation . 2001 . Retrieved December 31 , 2006 . Jump up ^ `` Gerald R. Ford Middle School , Grand Rapids Public Schools '' . grpublicschools.org . Retrieved February 25 , 2012 . Jump up ^ `` President Ford Field Service Council , Boy Scouts of America '' . michiganscouting.org . Retrieved September 11 , 2010 . Bibliography ( edit ) Brinkley , Douglas ( 2007 ) . Gerald R. Ford . New York , NY : Times Books . ISBN 0 - 8050 - 6909 - 7 . full - scale biography Cannon , James . Gerald R. Ford : An Honorable Life ( Ann Arbor : University of Michigan Press , 2013 ) 482 pp. latest full - scale biography Cannon , James ( 1993 ) . Time and Chance : Gerald R. Ford 's Appointment with History . Ann Arbor : University of Michigan Press . ISBN 0 - 472 - 08482 - 8 . older full - scale biography Conley , Richard S. `` Presidential Influence and Minority Party Liaison on Veto Overrides : New Evidence from the Ford Presidency '' . American Politics Research 2002 30 ( 1 ) : 34 -- 65 . ISSN 1532 - 673X Fulltext : in Swetswise Firestone , Bernard J. and Alexej Ugrinsky ( eds ) ( 1992 ) . Gerald R. Ford and the Politics of Post-Watergate America . Westport , Conn. : Greenwood Press . ISBN 0 - 313 - 28009 - 6 . CS1 maint : Extra text : authors list ( link ) Greene , John Robert ( 1992 ) . The Limits of Power : The Nixon and Ford Administrations . Bloomington : Indiana University Press . ISBN 0 - 253 - 32637 - 0 . Greene , John Robert ( 1995 ) . The Presidency of Gerald R. Ford . Lawrence : University Press of Kansas . ISBN 0 - 7006 - 0639 - 4 . , the major scholarly study Hersey , John Richard . The President : A Minute - By - Minute Account of a Week in the Life of Gerald Ford . New York : Alfred A. Knopf. 1975 . Hult , Karen M. and Walcott , Charles E. Empowering the White House : Governance under Nixon , Ford , and Carter . University Press of Kansas , 2004 . Jespersen , T. Christopher . `` Kissinger , Ford , and Congress : the Very Bitter End in Vietnam '' . Pacific Historical Review 2002 71 ( 3 ) : 439 -- 473 . ISSN 0030 - 8684 Fulltext : in University of California ; Swetswise ; Jstor and Ebsco Jespersen , T. Christopher . `` The Bitter End and the Lost Chance in Vietnam : Congress , the Ford Administration , and the Battle over Vietnam , 1975 -- 76 '' . Diplomatic History 2000 24 ( 2 ) : 265 -- 293 . ISSN 0145 - 2096 Fulltext : in Swetswise , Ingenta , Ebsco Maynard , Christopher A. `` Manufacturing Voter Confidence : a Video Analysis of the American 1976 Presidential and Vice-presidential Debates '' . Historical Journal of Film , Radio and Television 1997 17 ( 4 ) : 523 -- 562 . ISSN 0143 - 9685 Fulltext : in Ingenta Primary sources ( edit ) Ford , Gerald R. ( 1994 ) . Presidential Perspectives from the National Archives . Washington , DC : National Archives and Records Administration . ISBN 1 - 880875 - 04 - 7 . Ford , Gerald R. ( 1987 ) . Humor and the Presidency . New York : Arbor House . ISBN 0 - 87795 - 918 - 8 . Ford , Gerald R. ( 1979 ) . A Time to Heal : The Autobiography of Gerald R. Ford . New York , NY : Harper & Row . ISBN 0 - 06 - 011297 - 2 . `` Gerald Ford Presidential Autograph Letters '' . SMF . Shapell Manuscript Foundation . Ford , Gerald R. ( 1973 ) . Selected Speeches . Arlington , Va. : R.W. Beatty . ISBN 0 - 87948 - 029 - 7 . Ford , Gerald R. ( 1965 ) . Portrait of the assassin ( Lee Harvey Oswald ) . ASIN B0006BMZM4 . Ford , Betty ( 1978 ) . The Times of My Life . New York : Harper & Row . ISBN 0 - 06 - 011298 - 0 . Casserly , John J. ( 1977 ) . The Ford White House : Diary of a Speechwriter . Boulder : Colorado Associated University Press . ISBN 0 - 87081 - 106 - 1 . Coyne , John R. ( 1979 ) . Fall in and Cheer . Garden City / N.Y. : Doubleday . ISBN 0 - 385 - 11119 - 3 . DeFrank , Thomas . ( 2007 ) . Write It When I 'm Gone : Remarkable Off - the - Record Conversations with Gerald R. Ford . New York : G.P. Putnam 's Sons . ISBN 0 - 399 - 15450 - 7 . Gergen , David . ( 2000 ) . Eyewitness to Power : The Essence of Leadership . New York , NY : Simon & Schuster . ISBN 0 - 684 - 82663 - 1 . , by speechwriter Hartmann , Robert T. ( 1980 ) . Palace Politics : An Insider 's Account of the Ford Years . New York : McGraw - Hill . ISBN 0 - 07 - 026951 - 3 . , by chief of staff Hersey , John ( 1980 ) . Aspects of the Presidency : Truman and Ford in Office ( The President : A Minute - by - Minute Account of a Week in the Life of Gerald Ford ) . New Haven : Ticknor & Fields . ISBN 0 - 89919 - 012 - X . Kissinger , Henry A. ( 1999 ) . Years of Renewal . New York : Touchstone . ISBN 0 - 684 - 85572 - 0 . by Secretary of State Thompson , Kenneth ( ed . ) ( 1980 ) . The Ford Presidency : Twenty - Two Intimate Perspectives of Gerald Ford . Lanham : University Press of America . ISBN 0 - 8191 - 6960 - 9 . CS1 maint : Extra text : authors list ( link ) External links ( edit ) Find more aboutGerald Fordat Wikipedia 's sister projects Definitions from Wiktionary Media from Commons Quotations from Wikiquote Texts from Wikisource Official sites Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation White House biography Media coverage `` Gerald Ford collected news and commentary '' . The New York Times . Appearances on C - SPAN `` Life Portrait of Gerald R. Ford '' , from C - SPAN 's American Presidents : Life Portraits , November 22 , 1999 Other United States Congress . `` Gerald Ford ( id : F000260 ) '' . Biographical Directory of the United States Congress . Gerald Ford : A Resource Guide from the Library of Congress . Essays on Gerald Ford , each member of his cabinet and First Lady from the Miller Center of Public Affairs Works by or about Gerald Ford at Internet Archive Gerald Ford on IMDb Gerald R. Ford 38th President of the United States ( 1974 -- 1977 ) 40th Vice President of the United States ( 1973 -- 1974 ) U.S. Representative for MI - 5 ( 1949 -- 1973 ) Presidency ( timeline ) Inauguration Federal - Aid Highway Amendments of 1974 Education for All Handicapped Children Act Vladivostok Summit Meeting on Arms Control Helsinki Accords National Security Study Memorandum 200 Nixon pardon Whip inflation now Wilson desk Assassination attempts ( Sacramento San Francisco ) State of the Union Addresses ( 1975 1976 ) Cabinet Federal judiciary appointments Supreme Court candidates controversies Life Early life Gerald R. Ford Birthsite and Gardens President Gerald R. Ford Jr . Boyhood Home Gerald R. Ford Jr . House Warren Commission AEI World Forum Death and state funeral Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library Elections United States House of Representatives elections , 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1960 1962 1964 1966 1968 1970 1972 Republican Party presidential primaries , 1976 1980 Republican National Convention , 1976 1980 United States presidential election , 1976 Legacy Gerald R. Ford International Airport Gerald R. Ford Award Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy Ford House Office Building USS Gerald R. Ford ( CVN - 78 ) Gerald R. Ford Freeway U.S. Postage stamps Family Betty Ford ( wife ) Michael Gerald Ford ( son ) John Gardner Ford ( son ) Steven Meigs Ford ( son ) Susan Ford Bales ( daughter ) Dorothy Gardner Ford ( mother ) Leslie Lynch King Sr. ( father ) Thomas Gardner Ford ( half - brother ) Charles Henry King ( grandfather ) Liberty ( family dog ) ← Richard Nixon Jimmy Carter → Category Offices and distinctions U.S. House of Representatives Preceded by Bartel J. Jonkman Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan 's 5th congressional district 1949 -- 1973 Succeeded by Richard Vander Veen Preceded by Charles A. Halleck House Minority Leader 1965 -- 1973 Succeeded by John Jacob Rhodes Party political offices Preceded by Charles B. Hoeven Chair of the House Republican Conference 1963 -- 1965 Succeeded by Melvin Laird Preceded by Charles A. Halleck House Republican Leader 1965 -- 1973 Succeeded by John Jacob Rhodes First Response to the State of the Union address 1966 , 1967 , 1968 Served alongside : Everett Dirksen ( 1966 , 1967 ) , Howard Baker , George H.W. Bush , Peter Dominick , Robert Griffin , Thomas Kuchel , Mel Laird , Bob Mathias , George Murphy , Dick Poff , Chuck Percy , Al Quie , Charlotte Reid , Hugh Scott , Bill Steiger , John Tower ( 1968 ) Vacant Title next held by Donald Fraser , Scoop Jackson , Mike Mansfield , John McCormack , Patsy Mink , Ed Muskie , Bill Proxmire Preceded by Richard Nixon Republican nominee for President of the United States 1976 Succeeded by Ronald Reagan Political offices Preceded by Spiro Agnew Vice President of the United States 1973 -- 1974 Succeeded by Nelson Rockefeller Preceded by Richard Nixon President of the United States 1974 -- 1977 Succeeded by Jimmy Carter Diplomatic posts Preceded by Valéry Giscard d'Estaing Chair of the Group of Seven 1976 Succeeded by James Callaghan Honorary titles Preceded by Ronald Reagan Oldest living President of the United States 2004 -- 2006 Succeeded by George H.W. 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Johnson ( 1961 -- 1963 ) Hubert Humphrey ( 1965 -- 1969 ) Spiro Agnew ( 1969 -- 1973 ) Gerald Ford ( 1973 -- 1974 ) Nelson Rockefeller ( 1974 -- 1977 ) Walter Mondale ( 1977 -- 1981 ) George H.W. Bush ( 1981 -- 1989 ) Dan Quayle ( 1989 -- 1993 ) Al Gore ( 1993 -- 2001 ) Dick Cheney ( 2001 -- 2009 ) Joe Biden ( 2009 -- 2017 ) Mike Pence ( 2017 -- present ) Category Commons Minority Leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives Bailey Richardson Williams Clark Mann Clark Kitchin Garrett Garner Snell Martin Rayburn Martin Rayburn Martin Halleck Ford Rhodes Michel Gephardt Pelosi Boehner Pelosi Republican Party Leaders in the United States House of Representatives Payne Mann Mondell Longworth Tilson Snell Martin Halleck Martin Halleck Martin Halleck Ford Rhodes Michel Armey DeLay Blunt Boehner Cantor McCarthy ( i ) - interim Members of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan Territory Woodbridge Sibley Richard Wing Biddle Wing Lyon Jones At - large Crary J. Howard Kelley Staebler 1st district McClelland Buel Penniman D. Stuart W. Howard Cooper W. Howard Granger Beaman Waldron Field A.S. Williams Newberry Lord Maybury J.L. Chipman Griffin Corliss Lucking Denby Doremus Codd Clancy Sosnowski Clancy Sadowski Tenerowicz Sadowski Machrowicz Nedzi Conyers Stupak Benishek Bergman 2nd district Lyon J.S. Chipman E. Bradley C. Stuart Sprague C. Stuart Noble Waldron Beaman Upson Stoughton Waldron Willits Eldredge Allen Gorman Spalding H. Smith Townsend Wedemeyer Beakes Bacon Beakes Michener Lehr Michener Meader Vivian Esch Pursell Hoekstra Huizenga 3rd district Hunt Bingham J. Conger Clark Walbridge Kellogg Longyear Blair Willard McGowan Lacey O'Donnell Burrows Milnes A. Todd Gardner J. Smith Frankhauser J. Smith A.B. Williams Hooper Kimball Main Shafer Johansen P. Todd G. Brown Wolpe Henry Ehlers Amash 4th district Stevens Peck Leach Trowbridge Kellogg Ferry Foster Burrows Potter Keightley Burrows Yaple Burrows Thomas Hamilton Ketcham Foulkes Hoffman Hutchinson Stockman Siljander Upton Camp Moolenaar 5th district Baldwin Trowbridge O. Conger Foster W. Williams Stone Webber Houseman Comstock M. Ford Belknap M. Ford Belknap Richardson W. Smith Diekema Sweet Mapes Jonkman G. Ford Vander Veen Sawyer Henry Barcia D.E. Kildee D.T. Kildee 6th district Driggs Strickland Sutherland Begole Durand Brewer Spaulding Winans Brewer Stout Aitken S. Smith Kelley Hudson Person Cady Blackney Transue Blackney Clardy Hayworth Chamberlain Carr Dunn Carr Upton 7th district O. Conger Rich Carleton Whiting Snover Weeks McMorran Cramton Wolcott McIntosh O'Hara Mackie Riegle D.E. Kildee N. Smith Schwarz Walberg Schauer Walberg 8th district N. Bradley Ellsworth Horr Tarsney Bliss Youmans Linton Brucker Fordney Vincent Hart Crawford Bentley Harvey Traxler Carr Chrysler Stabenow Rogers M. Bishop 9th district Hubbell Cutcheon H. Wheeler Moon R. Bishop McLaughlin Harry W. Musselwhite Engel Thompson Griffin Vander Jagt D.E. Kildee Knollenberg Peters Levin 10th district Hatch Fisher F. Wheeler Weadock Crump Aplin Loud Woodruff Loud Currie Woodruff Cederberg Albosta Schuette Camp Bonior Miller Mitchell 11th district Breitung Moffatt Seymour Stephenson Avery Mesick Darragh Dodds Lindquist Scott Bohn P. Brown Luecke F. Bradley Potter Knox Clevenger Ruppe Davis Knollenberg McCotter Curson Bentivolio Trott 12th district Stephenson Shelden Young MacDonald James Hook Bennett Hook Bennett O'Hara Bonior Levin J. Dingell Jr . D. Dingell 13th district Nichols McLeod Brennan McLeod O'Brien McLeod O'Brien Coffin O'Brien Diggs Crockett Collins W. Ford Rivers Kilpatrick Clarke Conyers 14th district Weideman Rabaut Youngblood Rabaut Ryan Nedzi Hertel Conyers Peters Lawrence 15th district J. Dingell Sr . J. Dingell Jr . W. Ford Collins Kilpatrick J. Dingell Jr . 16th district Lesinski Sr . Lesinski Jr . J. Dingell Jr . 17th district Dondero Oakman Griffiths Brodhead Levin 18th district Dondero Broomfield Huber Blanchard Broomfield 19th district Farnum McDonald Broomfield Members of the Warren Commission Earl Warren ( Chairman ) Hale Boggs John Sherman Cooper Allen Dulles Gerald Ford John J. McCloy Richard Russell Jr . Cold War USA USSR ANZUS NATO Non-Aligned Movement SEATO Warsaw Pact 1940s Hukbalahap Rebellion Dekemvriana Yalta Conference Guerrilla war in the Baltic states Forest Brothers Operation Priboi Operation Jungle Occupation of the Baltic states Cursed soldiers Operation Unthinkable Potsdam Conference Gouzenko Affair Operation Masterdom Operation Beleaguer Operation Blacklist Forty Iran crisis of 1946 Greek Civil War Corfu Channel incident Turkish Straits crisis Restatement of Policy on Germany First Indochina War Truman Doctrine Asian Relations Conference Marshall Plan 1948 Czechoslovak coup d'état Tito -- Stalin Split Berlin Blockade Western betrayal Iron Curtain Eastern Bloc Western Bloc Chinese Civil War ( Second round ) Malayan Emergency Albanian Subversion 1950s Bamboo Curtain Korean War McCarthyism 1953 Iranian coup d'état Uprising of 1953 in East Germany Dirty War ( Mexico ) Bricker Amendment 1954 Guatemalan coup d'état Partition of Vietnam First Taiwan Strait Crisis Geneva Summit ( 1955 ) Bandung Conference Poznań 1956 protests Hungarian Revolution of 1956 Suez Crisis `` We will bury you '' Operation Gladio Arab Cold War Syrian Crisis of 1957 1958 Lebanon crisis Iraqi 14 July Revolution Sputnik crisis Second Taiwan Strait Crisis Cuban Revolution Kitchen Debate Sino - Soviet split 1960s Congo Crisis 1960 U-2 incident Bay of Pigs Invasion 1960 Turkish coup d'état Soviet -- Albanian split Berlin Wall Portuguese Colonial War Angolan War of Independence Guinea - Bissau War of Independence Mozambican War of Independence Cuban Missile Crisis Sino - Indian War Communist insurgency in Sarawak Iraqi Ramadan Revolution 1963 Syrian coup d'état Vietnam War 1964 Brazilian coup d'état United States occupation of the Dominican Republic ( 1965 -- 66 ) South African Border War Transition to the New Order Domino theory ASEAN Declaration Laotian Civil War 1966 Syrian coup d'état Argentine Revolution Korean DMZ Conflict Greek military junta of 1967 -- 74 USS Pueblo incident Six - Day War War of Attrition Dhofar Rebellion Protests of 1968 French May Cultural Revolution Prague Spring Communist insurgency in Malaysia Invasion of Czechoslovakia Iraqi Ba'athist Revolution Goulash Communism Sino - Soviet border conflict CPP -- NPA -- NDF rebellion Corrective Move 1970s Détente Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Black September in Jordan Corrective Movement ( Syria ) Cambodian Civil War Realpolitik Ping - pong diplomacy 1971 Turkish military memorandum Corrective Revolution ( Egypt ) Four Power Agreement on Berlin Bangladesh Liberation War 1972 Nixon visit to China North Yemen - South Yemen Border Conflict 1973 Chilean coup d'état Yom Kippur War Carnation Revolution Strategic Arms Limitation Talks Rhodesian Bush War Angolan Civil War Mozambican Civil War Ogaden War Ethiopian Civil War Lebanese Civil War Sino - Albanian split Cambodian -- Vietnamese War Sino - Vietnamese War Iranian Revolution Operation Condor Dirty War Korean Air Lines Flight 902 Saur Revolution New Jewel Movement 1979 Herat uprising Seven Days to the River Rhine Struggle against political abuse of psychiatry in the Soviet Union 1980s Soviet -- Afghan War 1980 and 1984 Summer Olympics boycotts 1980 Turkish coup d'état Invasion of Grenada 1986 Black Sea incident 1988 Black Sea bumping incident Solidarity Soviet reaction Contras Central American crisis RYAN Korean Air Lines Flight 007 Able Archer 83 Star Wars People Power Revolution Glasnost Perestroika Nagorno - 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Kalamazoo Canal Auto Makers River Rouge Plant Willow Run Ambassador Bridge Detroit -- Windsor Tunnel Flint Sit - Down Strike Mackinac Bridge Politics Lewis Cass Gerald Ford 1932 Michigan Wolverines football -- Dickinson national champions Thomas D. Austin Chuck Bernard William F. Borgmann Cecil Cantrill , Jr . Russell Damm Herman Everhardus Stanley Fay Gerald Ford John P. Heston John Kowalik Abe Marcovsky Harry Newman Russell D. Oliver Ted Petoskey John Regeczi Carl Savage Willis Ward Ivy Williamson Whitey Wistert Head coach : Harry Kipke Assistant coaches : Jack Blott Franklin Cappon Ray Courtright Cliff Keen Bennie Oosterbaan Wally Weber 1933 Michigan Wolverines football -- national champions Thomas Austin Chuck Bernard William F. Borgmann Tony Dauksza Herman Everhardus Stanley Fay Gerald Ford John Heston Willard Hildebrand John Kowalik Russell D. Oliver Ted Petoskey John Regeczi Bill Renner Carl Savage Estel Tessmer Willis Ward Louis Westover Whitey Wistert Head coach : Harry Kipke Assistant coaches : Jack Blott Franklin Cappon Ray Courtright Cliff Keen Bennie Oosterbaan Wally Weber Cabinet of President Richard Nixon ( 1969 -- 74 ) Vice President Spiro T. Agnew ( 1969 -- 73 ) None ( 1973 ) Gerald R. Ford ( 1973 -- 74 ) Secretary of State William P. Rogers ( 1969 -- 73 ) Henry A. Kissinger ( 1973 -- 74 ) Secretary of the Treasury David M. Kennedy ( 1969 -- 71 ) John B. Connally ( 1971 -- 72 ) George P. Shultz ( 1972 -- 74 ) William E. Simon ( 1974 ) Secretary of Defense Melvin R. Laird ( 1969 -- 73 ) Elliot L. Richardson ( 1973 ) James R. Schlesinger ( 1973 -- 74 ) Attorney General John N. Mitchell ( 1969 -- 72 ) Richard G. Kleindienst ( 1972 -- 73 ) Elliot L. Richardson ( 1973 ) William B. Saxbe ( 1974 ) Postmaster General Winton M. Blount ( 1969 -- 71 ) Secretary of the Interior Walter J. Hickel ( 1969 -- 70 ) Rogers C.B. Morton ( 1970 -- 74 ) Secretary of Agriculture Clifford M. Hardin ( 1969 -- 71 ) Earl L. Butz ( 1971 -- 74 ) Secretary of Commerce Maurice H. Stans ( 1969 -- 72 ) Peter G. Peterson ( 1972 -- 73 ) Frederick B. Dent ( 1973 -- 74 ) Secretary of Labor George P. Shultz ( 1969 -- 70 ) James D. Hodgson ( 1970 -- 73 ) Peter J. Brennan ( 1973 -- 74 ) Secretary of Health , Education , and Welfare Robert H. Finch ( 1969 -- 70 ) Elliot L. Richardson ( 1970 -- 73 ) Caspar W. Weinberger ( 1973 -- 74 ) Secretary of Housing and Urban Development George W. Romney ( 1969 -- 73 ) James T. Lynn ( 1973 -- 74 ) Secretary of Transportation John Volpe ( 1969 -- 73 ) Claude S. Brinegar ( 1973 -- 74 ) Cabinet of President Gerald Ford ( 1974 -- 77 ) ( hide ) Cabinet Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger ( 1974 -- 77 ) Secretary of the Treasury William E. Simon ( 1974 -- 77 ) Secretary of Defense James R. Schlesinger ( 1974 -- 75 ) Donald H. Rumsfeld ( 1975 -- 77 ) Attorney General William B. Saxbe ( 1974 -- 75 ) Edward H. Levi ( 1975 -- 77 ) Secretary of the Interior Rogers C.B. Morton ( 1974 -- 75 ) Stanley K. Hathaway ( 1975 ) Thomas S. Kleppe ( 1975 -- 77 ) Secretary of Agriculture Earl L. Butz ( 1974 -- 76 ) John A. Knebel ( 1976 -- 77 ) Secretary of Commerce Frederick B. Dent ( 1974 -- 75 ) Rogers C.B. Morton ( 1975 -- 76 ) Elliot L. Richardson ( 1976 -- 77 ) Secretary of Labor Peter J. Brennan ( 1974 -- 75 ) John T. Dunlop ( 1975 -- 76 ) W.J. Usery Jr. ( 1976 -- 77 ) Secretary of Health , Education , and Welfare Caspar W. Weinberger ( 1974 -- 75 ) F. David Mathews ( 1975 -- 77 ) Secretary of Housing and Urban Development James T. Lynn ( 1974 -- 75 ) Carla A. Hills ( 1975 -- 77 ) Secretary of Transportation Claude S. Brinegar ( 1974 -- 75 ) William T. Coleman Jr. ( 1975 -- 77 ) ( hide ) Cabinet - level Vice President None ( 1974 ) Nelson A. Rockefeller ( 1974 -- 77 ) White House Chief of Staff Alexander M. Haig Jr. ( 1974 ) Donald H. Rumsfeld ( 1974 -- 75 ) Richard B. Cheney ( 1975 -- 77 ) Director of the Office of Management and Budget Roy L. Ash ( 1974 -- 75 ) James T. Lynn ( 1975 -- 76 ) Director of Central Intelligence William E. Colby ( 1974 -- 76 ) George H.W. Bush ( 1976 -- 77 ) Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Russell E. Train ( 1974 -- 77 ) Special Representative for Trade Negotiations William D. Eberle ( 1974 -- 75 ) Frederick B. Dent ( 1975 -- 77 ) Ambassador to the United Nations John A. Scali ( 1974 -- 75 ) Daniel P. Moynihan ( 1975 -- 76 ) William W. Scranton ( 1976 -- 77 ) ( 1972 ← ) United States presidential election , 1976 ( → 1980 ) Democratic Party Convention Primaries Nominee Jimmy Carter VP nominee Walter Mondale Candidates Birch Bayh Lloyd Bentsen Jerry Brown Robert Byrd Hugh Carey Frank Church Fred R. Harris Hubert Humphrey Henry M. Jackson Leon Jaworski Barbara Jordan Eugene McCarthy Ellen McCormack Walter Mondale Jennings Randolph Terry Sanford Milton Shapp campaign Sargent Shriver Adlai Stevenson III Mo Udall George Wallace Republican Party Convention Primaries Nominee Gerald Ford VP nominee Bob Dole Candidates James L. Buckley Ronald Reagan Harold Stassen Third party and independent candidates American Party Nominee Thomas J. Anderson American Independent Party Nominee Lester Maddox Communist Party Nominee Gus Hall VP nominee Jarvis Tyner Libertarian Party Nominee Roger MacBride VP nominee David Bergland People 's Party Nominee Margaret Wright VP nominee Benjamin Spock Prohibition Party Nominee Ben Bubar VP nominee Earl Dodge Socialist Workers Party Nominee Peter Camejo VP nominee Willie Mae Reid U.S. Labor Party Nominee Lyndon LaRouche Other 1976 elections : House Senate Gubernatorial Theodore Roosevelt Award winners 1967 : Eisenhower 1968 : Saltonstall 1969 : White 1970 : Hovde 1971 : Kraft Jr . 1972 : Holland 1973 : Bradley 1974 : Owens 1975 : Ford 1976 : Hamilton 1977 : Bradley 1978 : Zornow 1979 : Chandler 1980 : Cooley 1981 : Linkletter 1982 : Cosby 1983 : Palmer 1984 : Lawrence 1985 : Fleming 1986 : Bush 1987 : Zable 1988 : Not presented 1989 : Ebert 1990 : Reagan 1991 : Gibson 1992 : Kemp 1993 : Alexander 1994 : Johnson 1995 : Mathias 1996 : Wooden 1997 : Payne 1998 : Dole 1999 : Richardson 2000 : Staubach 2001 : Cohen 2002 : Shriver 2003 : de Varona 2004 : Page 2005 : Ride 2006 : Kraft 2007 : Tagliabue 2008 : Glenn 2009 : Albright 2010 : Mitchell 2011 : Dunwoody 2012 : Allen 2013 : Dungy 2014 : Mills 2015 : Jackson 2016 : Ueberroth 2017 : Brooke - Marciniak National Football Foundation Gold Medal winners 1958 : Dwight D. Eisenhower 1959 : Douglas MacArthur 1960 : Herbert Hoover & Amos Alonzo Stagg 1961 : John F. Kennedy 1962 : Byron `` Whizzer '' White 1963 : Roger Q. Blough 1964 : Donold B. Lourie 1965 : Juan T. Trippe 1966 : Earl H. `` Red '' Blaik 1967 : Frederick L. Hovde 1968 : Chester J. LaRoche 1969 : Richard Nixon 1970 : Thomas J. Hamilton 1971 : Ronald Reagan 1972 : Gerald Ford 1973 : John Wayne 1974 : Gerald B. Zornow 1975 : David Packard 1976 : Edgar B. Speer 1977 : Louis H. Wilson 1978 : Vincent dePaul Draddy 1979 : William P. Lawrence 1980 : Walter J. Zable 1981 : Justin W. Dart 1982 : Silver Anniversary Awards ( NCAA ) - All Honored Jim Brown , Willie Davis , Jack Kemp , Ron Kramer , Jim Swink 1983 : Jack Kemp 1984 : John F. McGillicuddy 1985 : William I. Spencer 1986 : William H. Morton 1987 : Charles R. Meyer 1988 : Clinton E. Frank 1989 : Paul Brown 1990 : Thomas H. Moorer 1991 : George H.W. Bush 1992 : Donald R. Keough 1993 : Norman Schwarzkopf 1994 : Thomas S. Murphy 1995 : Harold Alfond 1996 : Gene Corrigan 1997 : Jackie Robinson 1998 : John H. McConnell 1999 : Keith Jackson 2000 : Fred M. Kirby II 2001 : Billy Joe `` Red '' McCombs 2002 : George Steinbrenner 2003 : Tommy Franks 2004 : William V. Campbell 2005 : Jon F. Hanson 2006 : Joe Paterno & Bobby Bowden 2007 : Pete Dawkins & Roger Staubach 2008 : John Glenn 2009 : Phil Knight & Bill Bowerman 2010 : Bill Cosby 2011 : Robert Gates 2012 : Roscoe Brown 2013 : National Football League & Roger Goodell 2014 : Tom Catena & George Weiss 2015 : Condoleezza Rice 2016 : Archie Manning Biography portal Conservatism portal Government of the United States portal Michigan portal Politics portal United States Navy portal VIAF : 110300539 LCCN : n79022087 ISNI : 0000 0001 1479 978X GND : 118534297 SELIBR : 237206 SUDOC : 027638928 BNF : cb124889486 ( data ) BIBSYS : 90245932 MusicBrainz : b65822da - ce5a - 4a80 - 8ec1 - 0bf7c9821971 NLA : 35093197 NDL : 00439822 US Congress : F000260 IATH : w6m043ks Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gerald_Ford&oldid=807079147 '' Categories : Gerald Ford 1913 births 2006 deaths 20th - century American Episcopalians 21st - century American Episcopalians 20th - century American politicians American adoptees American anti-communists American athlete - politicians American Episcopalians American football centers American gun control advocates American military personnel of World War II American people of English descent American people of the Vietnam War American shooting survivors Assassination attempt survivors Burials in Michigan Congressional Gold Medal recipients Distinguished Eagle Scouts East Grand Rapids , Michigan Gerald Ford family History of the United States ( 1964 -- 80 ) Lawyers from Alexandria , Virginia Members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan Members of the Warren Commission Michigan lawyers Michigan Republicans Michigan Wolverines football players Military personnel from Michigan Minority Leaders of the United States House of Representatives Nixon administration cabinet members Nixon administration personnel involved in the Watergate scandal Politicians from Alexandria , Virginia People from Kent County , Michigan People from Rancho Mirage , California Players of American football from Michigan Politicians from Grand Rapids , Michigan Politicians from Omaha , Nebraska Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Presidents of the United States Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana , 1st Class Republican Party ( United States ) presidential nominees Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives Republican Party Presidents of the United States Republican Party Vice Presidents of the United States Sons of the American Revolution University of Michigan Law School alumni United States Navy officers United States presidential candidates , 1976 Vice Presidents of the United States Yale Bulldogs football coaches Yale Law School alumni Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Wikipedia indefinitely move - protected pages Use mdy dates from October 2017 CS1 maint : Extra text : authors list Articles with Internet Archive links Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with ISNI identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with SELIBR identifiers Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers Wikipedia articles with BIBSYS identifiers Wikipedia articles with MusicBrainz identifiers Wikipedia articles with NLA identifiers Wikipedia articles with SNAC - ID identifiers Featured articles Talk Variants Contents About Wikipedia Wikinews Wikiquote Wikisource Afrikaans Alemannisch አማርኛ Aragonés Arpetan Asturianu Azərbaycanca تۆرکجه বাংলা Bân - lâm - gú Беларуская Беларуская ( тарашкевіца )  Bikol Central Bislama Български Boarisch Bosanski Brezhoneg Català Чӑвашла Cebuano Čeština Corsu Cymraeg Dansk Deutsch Eesti Ελληνικά Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Français Frysk Gaeilge Gaelg Gàidhlig Galego 客家 語 / Hak - kâ - ngî 한국어 Հայերեն हिन्दी Hornjoserbsce Hrvatski Ido Ilokano Bahasa Indonesia Interlingua IsiZulu Íslenska Italiano עברית Basa Jawa Kapampangan ქართული Қазақша Kernowek Kinyarwanda Kiswahili Kurdî Latina Latviešu Lëtzebuergesch Lietuvių Lumbaart Magyar Malagasy മലയാളം मराठी მარგალური مصرى مازِرونی Bahasa Melayu Mìng - dĕ̤ng - ngṳ̄ မြန်မာဘာသာ Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Norsk nynorsk Occitan Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча ਪੰਜਾਬੀ پنجابی Piemontèis Plattdüütsch Polski Português Ripoarisch Română Rumantsch Русский Scots Shqip Sicilianu Simple English Slovenčina Slovenščina Soomaaliga Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska Tagalog தமிழ் ไทย Тоҷикӣ Türkçe Українська اردو Tiếng Việt Winaray ייִדיש Yorùbá 粵語 Žemaitėška 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 25 October 2017 , at 19 : 29 . 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