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'''Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr.''' (born Leslie Lynch King, Jr.) was the 38th [[President of the United States of America]], serving from 1974 to January 1977.  He was the first person to be appointed President without being elected to either the presidency or vice-presidency.  A [[Republican]], Ford also served as U.S. Representative, 1948-73, and was the House Minority Leader in 1964.  His most famous and daring decision was to pardon former President [[Richard Nixon]] of any crimes for the good of the nation.  Nixon appointed Ford as Vice President on the resignation of [[Spiro Agnew]].  When Nixon subsequently resigned as President, Ford succeeded him.

'''Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr.''' (born Leslie Lynch King, Jr.) was the 38th [[President of the United States of America]], serving from 1974 to January 1977.  He was the first person to be appointed President without being elected to either the presidency or vice-presidency.  A [[Republican]], Ford also served as U.S. Representative, 1948-73, and was the House Minority Leader in 1964.  His most famous and daring decision was to pardon former President [[Richard Nixon]] of any crimes for the good of the nation.  Nixon appointed Ford as Vice President on the resignation of [[Spiro Agnew]].  When Nixon subsequently resigned as President, Ford succeeded him.  

Ford was born in Omaha, [[Nebraska]], but did not live there long, as his mother left her husband and fled with the child within a month due to domestic abuse.  He was not legally adopted by his mother's second husband, but they called him "Gerald Rudolff Ford Jr."  He legally changed his name to the one he is known by when he was 22 years old.  He was raised in [[Michigan]], and became an Eagle Scout. He attended the University of Michigan, where he was a football star. After this, he attended graduate school at Yale, then served in the Navy during [[World War II]].<ref>http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/gf38.html</ref>

Ford is married to Elizabeth Bloomer Warren and they have four children.

Gerald Ford in his own words:

Ford was born in Omaha, [[Nebraska]], but did not live there long, as his mother left her husband and fled with the child within a month due to domestic abuse.  He was not legally adopted by his mother's second husband, but they called him "Gerald Rudolff Ford Jr."  He legally changed his name to the one he is known by when he was 22 years old.  He was raised in [[Michigan]], and became an Eagle Scout. He attended the University of Michigan where he was a football star for the Wolverines. He later declined contracts to play professional football for the NFL, instead choosing to go to [[Yale]] Law School. <ref>http://www.historyguy.com/biofiles/ford_gerald.html</ref> After graduation he co-founded a law practice, however, after the attack on [[Pearl Harbor]] he decided to enlist in the [[Navy]]. In the spring of 1943 he began service in the light aircraft carrier USS MONTEREY. He was first assigned as athletic director, then gunnery division officer, an assistant navigator with major operations in the South Pacific, and then a lieutenant commander. He encountered a near death experience in December 1944 during a vicious typhoon in the [[Philippine]] Sea. He came close to being swept overboard from his ship. <ref>http://www.ford.utexas.edu/grf/fordbiop.asp</ref> After the war was over in 1946 he returned to his law firm in Grand Rapids.

Upon assuming the presidency after President Nixon's resignation:

Like many returning veterans, Ford became involved in politics. In 1948 he was elected to the [[United States House of Representatives]] from Michigan's fifth congressional district after defeating an incumbent Republican in a primary campaign. He was a prominent member of the House Appropriations Committee. In [[Congress]], he supported President [[Harry S. Truman]]'s programs for post-Word War 2 recovery in [[Europe]] and supported the need to block communist expansionism from the [[Soviet Union]]. Ford quickly gained stature in Congress. In 1961, he became chairman of the House Republican Conference, making him the third most powerful Republican in the House of Representatives. In November 1963, President [[Lyndon Johnson]] appointed Ford as a member of the Warren Commission, to investigate the events of President [[John F. Kennedy]]'s assassination. The Commission's findings were that [[Lee Harvey Oswald]] was the lone assassin.

''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. And I hope that such prayers will also be the first of many ....''

On January 4, 1965, Ford was elected House Minority Leader by a vote of 73-67. Although his ambition was always to became [[Speaker of the House]]. Ideologically Ford was flexible. He once described himself as "a moderate in domestic affairs, an internationalist in foreign affairs, and a [[conservative]] in fiscal policy." 

''As we bind up the internal wounds ... let us restore the [[Golden Rule]] to our political process, and let brotherly love purge our hearts of suspicion and of hate. In the beginning, I asked you to pray for me. Before closing, I ask again your prayers, for Richard Nixon and his family. May our former President, who brought peace to millions, find it for himself. May [[God]] bless and comfort his wonderful wife and daughters, whose love and loyalty will forever be a shining legacy to all who bear the lonely burdens of the White House ...''

On October 10, 1973, Vice President under Richard Nixon, Spiro Agnew resigned for office after pleading no contest to failure to report income. Nixon chose Representative Ford as his replacement and was confirmed by the [[Democrat]]-controlled U.S. [[Senate]]. During that period the [[Watergate affair]] was a major issue, when members of the campaign to reelect Richard Nixon broke into the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate Hotel during the 1972 presidential election campaign. Being loyal to the President, Ford defended Nixon. However, on August 9th 1974 Nixon resigned from the Presidency because of the national scandal.  

Upon announcing his decision to pardon Richard Nixon:

Gerald R. Ford took the oath of office as President of the United States on August 9, 1974. Responding to the Watergate affair, he focused his inaugural address on integrity.

''To procrastinate, to agonize, and to wait for a more favorable turn of events that may never come or more compelling external pressures that may as well be wrong as right, is itself a decision of sorts and a weak and potentially dangerous course for a President to follow. I have promised to uphold the Constitution, to do what is right as God gives me to see the right, and to do the very best that I can for America. I have asked your help and your prayers, not only when I became President but many times since.''

''"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. And I hope that such prayers will also be the first of many.''

''The Constitution is the supreme law of our land and it governs our actions as citizens. Only the laws of God, which govern our consciences, are superior to it. As we are a Nation under God, so I am sworn to uphold our laws with the help of God. And I have sought such guidance and searched my own conscience with special diligence to determine the right thing for me to do ....''

''If you have not chosen me by secret ballot, neither have I gained office by any secret promises. I have not campaigned either for the Presidency or the Vice Presidency. I have not subscribed to any partisan platform. I am indebted to no man, and only to one woman--my dear wife--as I begin this very difficult job.''

''I do believe, with all my heart and mind and spirit, that I, not as President, but as a humble servant of God, will receive justice without mercy if I fail to show mercy.''

''My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over."''<ref>http://www.ford.utexas.edu/LIBRARY/speeches/740001.htm</ref>

A Christmas message delivered by President Ford:

Ford kept some of the original cabinet members from Nixon's Presidency, such as [[Secretary of State]] [[Henry Kissinger]]. However, the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Commerce and U.S. Attorney General would resign. He announced [[liberal]] [[New York]] [[Governor]] [[Nelson Rockefeller]] as his Vice President. He was confirmed in December 1974, although some - including Senator [[Barry Goldwater]] - voted against him. <ref>http://205.188.238.109/time/magazine/article/0,9171,917422,00.html</ref> Two of Ford's biggest decisions in his first month in office was when he granted a full presidential pardon to Richard Nixon, which prevented any legal action against the former President, and when he gave amnesty to all [[Vietnam]] draft evaders.

''As our Bicentennial Year comes to a close, it is especially appropriate to gather once more around the traditional symbol of family ties and friendly reunions, our Nation's [[Christmas tree]]. In doing so, we combine our year-long celebration of historical events with a personal rededication to timeless values.''

The [[economy]] was a major concern during the Ford administration. When taking office, [[Inflation]] was in the double digits, unemployment was rising and the gross national product was in decline. <ref>[Henry F. Graff, The Presidents, Pg. 538]</ref> Ford proposed a tight lid of $300 billion on the federal budget and asked for a $5 billion surtax on corporations and those in the higher income bracket. These were part of his "whip inflation now" policies. He did not have an easy time on Capital Hill with the Democratic-Congress. Sixty-six times he exercised his veto power. According to Congressional Quarterly, Ford won only 58 percent of congressional votes that he took a position on, the lowest level of support from any President. Therefore, Ford's inflation policies went no were.

''The message of [[Christmas]] has not changed over the course of 20 centuries. Peace on [[Earth]], good will towards men-that message is as inspiring today as it was when it was first proclaimed to the shepherds near [[Bethlehem]]. It was first proclaimed, as we all know, then. In 1976 America has been blessed with peace and a significant restoration of domestic harmony.''

Oil prices were also a major concern. Congress turned down Ford's proposals for phasing out the federal ceilings on the price of most domestic oil. Senate Majority Whip [[Robert Byrd]] (D-[[West Virginia]]) explained the Democrats refusing of Ford's plans, saying, ''"After all, he doesn't have a national constituency, his is an inherited Presidency."'' Ford and Congressional Democrats finally reached a compromise with the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975. ''"Half a loaf was better then none, so I decided to sign it"'' Ford would later write. Under matters of foreign policy, The [[Cold War]] was a significant issue. On November 23, 1974, President Ford and Soviet General Secretary [[Leonid Brezhnev]] reached an agreement by signing the SALT treaty, which froze the number of strategic ballistic missile launchers at existing levels. Being sworn into office just after the Vietnam War, Ford proposed emergency funds for South Vietnam, however, Congress rejected it, and Vietnam fell to [[Communist]] forces. <ref>http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/38_ford/index.html</ref>

''But true peace is more than an absence of battle. It is also the absence of prejudice and the triumph of understanding. Brotherhood among all peoples must be the solid cornerstone of lasting peace. It has been a sustaining force for our Nation, and it remains a guiding light for our future.''

Gerald Ford was the subject of two unsuccessful assassination attempts. One in [[Sacramento]], [[California]] on September 5, 1975. by Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme. Then in [[San Francisco]], Sara Jane Moore pointed a pistol at him, and just before firing a former Marine grabed the gun. Both were sentenced to life in Prison. However, Moore was paroled on December 31, 2007. <ref>http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local&id=4900159</ref>

''The celebration of the birth of [[Jesus]] is observed on every continent. The customs and traditions are not always the same, but feelings that are generated between friends and family members are equally strong and equally warm.''

In terms of the Judiciary, Ford nominated Circuit Judge [[John Paul Stevens]] as an Associate Justice of the [[Supreme Court]] in 1975 to replace Justice [[William O. Douglas]], who had recently retired. He was confirmed in December by a 98-0 vote in the [[Senate]].

''In a few moments I will turn the switch that lights up our national Christmas tree. As beautiful as that tree is, it will be only a symbol if its light is not matched by the glow of love in our hearts. It is my personal prayer on this Christmas of 1976 that the tree which I light tonight is only the beginning, that each of you will also light a flame of love-love that is reflected in the eyes of all our brothers and sisters across the Nation and around the world. Now, Betty joins me in wishing you all a very, very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Thank you, and God bless you.''

''Main article: [[United States presidential election, 1976]]''

==Notes & References==

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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