[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 4 (Tuesday, January 9, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S279-S280]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     HONORING PRESIDENT GERALD FORD

  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, even as we usher in a new Congress, 
Americans have said farewell to one of our Chief Executives, President 
Gerald R. Ford. President Ford was a man of character and integrity, a 
leader of hope and purpose. I hope and pray that the outpouring of 
support for President Ford in recent days will be a source of comfort 
and strength for his family and especially for his beloved wife, First 
Lady Betty Ford.
  The people of Michigan's Fifth District loved their Congressman Jerry 
Ford. They sent him to the House of Representatives 13 times, by large 
margins. In fact, Congressman Ford's reelection percentages over nearly 
a quarter century did not vary by more than a few points. His 
constituents supported him as he served them, consistently and solidly.
  It is easy to see why his constituents felt such a connection with 
him. Jerry Ford grew up in Grand Rapids, MI. He achieved the rank of 
Eagle Scout and, in high school, joined the honor society and was named 
to all-city and all-State football teams. At the University of 
Michigan, he played center on two national championship football teams 
and was named most valuable player in 1934.
  Early in life, Jerry Ford's values and basic good sense helped him 
see past the excitement of the moment. He passed up opportunities to 
use his athletic prowess for the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers 
and instead decided to coach boxing and football at Yale University, 
where he realized his goal of attending law school. He returned to 
Grand Rapids to begin practicing law and, after serving in the Navy 
during World War II, returned again to practice law and seek election 
to Congress in 1948. Somehow in all that activity, he found time to 
court Elizabeth Bloomer. She must have been a very understanding woman 
because he even campaigned on their wedding day. President Ford would 
later say that his most valued advice was that which came from his 
wife. They spent 58 years together and had four wonderful children.
  The qualities that endeared Congressman Ford to his constituents also 
inspired trust in his colleagues in the House, who elected him 
Republican Conference chairman in 1963 and then Republican leader in 
1965. In fact, Congressman Ford was so well regarded that President 
Lyndon Johnson named him to the Warren Commission which investigated 
the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, and President Richard 
Nixon tapped him to replace the resigned Vice President Spiro Agnew.
  Gerald Ford loved the House of Representatives, and his personal 
political goal was to become Speaker of the House. He declined 
invitations to run for the Senate and for Governor. Ironically, while 
the Republicans' minority status kept him from leading that Chamber, 
his appointment as Vice President allowed him to become President of 
the Senate.
  The Ford Presidency was brief, just 29 months long, but broke 
significant new political ground. He was the only occupant of the Oval 
Office who was never elected either President or Vice President. Former 
New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller's appointment as Vice President 
meant that, for the first time in American history, neither of the 
Nation's two top officers had been elected to either office. The Ford 
and Rockefeller appointments were the first handled under the 
procedures established by the 25th amendment to the Constitution, 
ratified less than a decade earlier. And, of course, President Ford 
presided over our Nation's bicentennial in 1976.
  The passage of even a few years, let alone a few decades, can easily 
change memories and perspectives. In recent years, the majority party 
has held either House of Congress by a modest margin. In this body 
today, the balance of power could rest on one Senator. At one point 
during Gerald Ford's service in the House, however, Democrats 
outnumbered Republicans by more than 2-to-1. Even under those difficult 
circumstances, Congressman Ford found ways of reaching across the 
aisle, working productively with the other party to find solutions to 
the Nation's problems.
  When Gerald Ford took up residence at the other end of Pennsylvania 
Avenue, there were times when he had to stand up to Congress. He issued 
an astounding 66 vetoes in fewer than 3 years, and Congress was able to 
override just a few.
  President Ford served during one of the most trying times in American 
history, facing troubles at home and abroad. At home, there was the 
Watergate scandal that had resulted in the Ford Presidency. In 1975, 
unemployment reached a level nearly twice what it is today. Inflation 
was in double digits. Fears of energy shortages persisted. Elsewhere in 
the world, President Ford faced the war in Vietnam and crises in the 
Middle East and the continued threat posed by the former Soviet Union. 
And on top of all of that, he shouldered the burden of restoring 
Americans' faith in their leaders and in democracy itself. Last week in 
his eulogy, Dr. Henry Kissinger, President Ford's Secretary of State, 
put it this way: ``Unassuming and without guile, Gerald Ford undertook 
to restore the confidence of Americans in their political institutions 
and purposes.''
  He made decisions, some of which were unpopular at the time, that he

[[Page S280]]

felt were necessary for the good of the Nation. Some say that these 
contributed to his narrow loss to Jimmy Carter. At the same time, from 
opinion polls after the political conventions showing the incumbent 
trailing by nearly 30 points, President Ford closed the gap to make the 
1976 election one of the closest in American history.
  We are all thankful President Ford did not simply retire from public 
life when he left the White House. For nearly three decades, he 
remained active as a statesman and involved in important issues. He 
founded, and for many years chaired, the World Forum conducted by the 
American Enterprise Institute, and he continued writing about some of 
the political and social challenges of our day. In 2001, he authored a 
poignant column which appeared in the Washington Post and endorsed 
legislation to promote regenerative therapies that can give hope to 
Americans suffering from chronic diseases. As a cosponsor of that 
legislation, I was moved and grateful for President Ford's wisdom and 
support.
  For these and so many other activities and contributions, President 
Ford received the Medal of Freedom, America's highest civilian award, 
in 1999 and the Profiles in Courage Award from the Kennedy Foundation 
in 2001. In 1999, he and Mrs. Ford received the Congressional Gold 
Medal for their dedicated public service and humanitarian 
contributions.
  As great as President Ford was, he was always the first to 
acknowledge his wonderful spouse, and I would be remiss, if I did not 
say a few words about Betty Ford. She was such a model of grace and 
dignity, inspiring us with her love and devotion to her family. Betty 
Ford was a bold First Lady, candidly sharing with the Nation her 
struggles with cancer and chemical dependency. She did not, however, 
stop there but turned those struggles into a crusade to help others. 
She served as cochairman of the Susan G. Komen Foundation when it was 
founded in 1982. Each year, she presents the Betty Ford Award from that 
foundation to a champion in the fight against breast cancer. The Betty 
Ford Center, which she founded in 1982, is today one of the leading 
treatment facilities in America, perhaps the world, and Mrs. Ford 
continues to serve as its board chairman.
  As recently as last week, Betty and her four children, Steve, Mike, 
Jack, and Susan, showed us their tremendous devotion and kindness as 
they stood in the Capitol Rotunda for hours on end greeting every 
visitor who came to pay their respects to President Ford. Even in the 
face of tragedy, Betty and her children are gracious.
  President Ford believed that most people were mostly good most of the 
time. That optimistic attitude led him once to say that while he had 
many adversaries in his political life, he could not remember having a 
single enemy. When he took the oath of office on August 9, 1974, he 
offered not an inaugural address but what he called just a little 
straight talk among friends. He made a commitment, a compact, with his 
fellow Americans, in which he said:

       You have not elected me as your President by your ballots, 
     he said, and so I ask you to confirm me as your President 
     with your prayers . . . I have not sought this enormous 
     responsibility, but I will not shirk it . . . Our 
     Constitution works; our great republic is a government of 
     laws and not of men. Here the people rule . . . God helping 
     me, I will not let you down.

  Those words so reflected the character and vision of President Ford 
that they were printed in the opening pages of the commemorative 
program distributed when the Gerald R. Ford Museum was dedicated in 
September 1981 in Grand Rapids. It is there, along the Grand River, 
that thousands of Americans, many waiting for hours in the cold, paid a 
final tribute to our 38th President. And it is nearby, in the city he 
loved and that loved him, that President Ford was laid to rest.
  Gerald Ford did not let us down. It is fitting that on the gravestone 
of this remarkable man, this distinguished public servant, this healer 
of our Nation, are the simple words: Lives Committed to God, Country, 
and Love.
  Mr. HAGEL. Mr. President, President Gerald Ford had a distinguished 
career of public service marked by his exceptional personal qualities, 
and his passing is a sad moment for all Americans.
  President Ford was born in Omaha, NE in 1913 and grew up in Grand 
Rapids, MI. As a student at the University of Michigan, Ford was an 
allstar football player and became an assistant football coach at Yale 
University while he earned his law degree. During his service in World 
War II, he attained the rank of lieutenant commander in the Navy.
  President Ford was first elected to Congress in 1948 and served for 
25 years, eight as the minority leader. He was selected to serve as 
Vice President and became President because he was a man who could 
restore integrity to the Presidency, hope in America, and bridge 
partisan divides in Congress.
  I first met Gerald Ford when he was the House minority leader and I 
was chief of staff for Congressman John Y. McCollister from Omaha. I 
have never met a person in politics who was a more decent and more 
complete individual than President Ford. He earned the trust and 
confidence of the American people through his character, competency and 
common decency.
  I had the honor of attending his Capitol memorial service in the 
Rotunda last week with my daughter, Allyn, and son, Ziller. I am 
grateful and proud that they had the opportunity to hear President Ford 
remembered and eulogized with eloquence, grace, and honesty. America is 
a better place because of President Gerald Ford. He will be greatly 
missed.

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