The Presidency of Gerald R. Ford (American Presidency Series)

About this book

This is the first comprehensive study of one of our most popular yet most misunderstood presidents. Reaching well beyond the image of Ford as "healer" of a war-torn and scandal-ridden nation John Robert Greene extends and revises our understanding of Fords struggles to restore credibility to the presidency in the wake of Watergate and Vietnam. Few presidents had ever been asked to achieve so much in so little time against such great adversity. Greene shows that Fords efforts to lead the nation were severely hampered by Nixons misdeeds by Americas ignominious disengagement from an unpopular war and by a watchdog Congress eager to put a brake on presidential power. Working from a wealth of recently declassified documents Greene reveals new evidence on Fords roles in Watergate and challenges the prevailing view of the infamous Mayaguez incident. He argues persuasively that Ford made no "deal" with Nixon but that his pardon of Nixon was costly nonetheless for it shadowed his entire presidency thereafter. He also shows that the Mayaguez catastrophe was less a simple "rescue mission" than it was an attempt to revive sagging political fortunes by attacking Cambodia. In addition Greene details Fords rise to prominence within the Republican Party; chronicles the presidents problematic relations with his staff the new Democratic Congress and Ronald Reagan; sheds new light on the selection and performance of Vice-President Nelson Rockefeller; offers new insights into the election of 1976; and provides the first in-depth look at Fords Amnesty Program for Vietnam Era Draft Evaders. Based on interviews with Ford and more than sixty individuals who figured prominently in his presidency and on extensive use of the Ford Library Greenes study illuminates Fords valiant efforts during some of the presidencys most troubled years.