Throughout the years, we have had a total of forty-five presidents. Those of all which have all had both numerous successes and failures. An interesting president to evaluate, however, is Gerald Ford. He was not in office for very long but left still managed to leave a clear impact on the United States.
The most unique thing about Gerald Ford is how he got into the presidency to begin with. In 1972, there was a break in into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, DC. Many of Nixon’s administration officials knew about the break in and the president himself took part in trying to cover up those illegal activities. As all of this became public knowledge, Nixon’s Vice President, Spiro T. Agnew, resigned
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from office in October 1973. Following this, Ford became the first person to ever be elected as Vice President under the twenty-fifth amendment; which states that whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon conformation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress. The majority vote definitely favored Ford, for the Senate voted 92-3 and the House voted 387-35. Not even a full year later, though, President Richard Nixon resigned and Gerald Ford assumed immediate presidency. After taking the oath in the White House, Ford spoke publicly to the nation approaching that, “You have not elected me as your president by your ballots, and I ask you to confirm me as your president through your prayers.” Unfortunate for Ford, he was walking into a huge mess. As the new president of the United States, Ford was confronted with a failing economy and the likely collapse of South Vietnam. Not to mention that there was also a public suspicious of its political leaders because of the Watergate Scandal. With this in mind, Ford’s first important task was to move the nation past the despair and distrust. It really helped that he was well known for being a honest politician and for being well liked but this public view of him changed on September 8, 1974. On this day, Ford felt it to be necessary for him to pardon Nixon. This pardon meant that Nixon would never have to face criminal charges over his involvement in the Watergate Scandal. People all across the nation was disgusted by this because they felt Nixon should have been prosecuted to the full extent. Some critics even say that Ford issued the pardon as part of a pre-arranged deal to reach the Oval Office. Moving on, President Gerald Ford inherited Richard Nixon’s foreign policy and his foreign policy advisors when he took over.
He made some changes but kept some things the same. For instance, Ford asked Nixon’s chief foreign policy adviser to stay on in his administration. Anyways, the new foreign policy also had both successes and failures. Ford basically had to watch as the country fell to North Vietnamese forces in 1975 due to being unable to convince Congress to approve further military aid to the South. Later that year, though, he was able to reduce US tensions with the Soviet Union by signing the Helsinki Accords. The Helsinki Accords addressed many prominent global issues but all in all it was an attempt to improves the relationships between the Western countries and the Communist …show more content…
countries. Since Gerald Ford was only in office from August of 1974 to January of 1977, he didn’t have too much time to do as much as an average president. He did run for another term, though, but lost in a close election to Jimmy Carter. Many think that the Nixon pardon is the reason Ford lost. Before presidency however, Gerald Ford had many successes in Congress.
He initially ran for Congress in 1948 and remained a member of the House until becoming the Vice President in 1973. He served on the House Appropriations Committee, which decides how much money is going to be spent for what, after only his 2nd year of being a member. With this, he learned all of the ins and outs of the government: how it works and what works and what doesn’t work. Ford was also a supporter of the Marshall Plan and several other anti-communist initiatives. More importantly, he was a member of the Warren Commission as well, which investigated the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Not to forget, he also became the House Minority leader in 1965.
One of Ford’s most important acts as president was probably when he appointed John Paul Stevens to the Supreme Court. Stevens is well known for supporting the rights of individuals in his decisions. For instance, he made it publicly known that he believed the choice to have an abortion should be in the hands of the woman, not judges. Stevens also became a strong opponent of the death penalty, believing that it was unconstitutional. Overall, he had a strong influence in the Supreme Court until he finally retired in
2010. While that was very significant, Ford’s speech given on April 23rd, 1975 was even more so. This speech announced the end of US involvement in Vietnam finally. This was an extremely exciting thing for the American people to hear but they were still left with the worries of how they were going to evacuate the remaining Americans. All in all, this was a humiliating loss for the US but it had to be done. In brief, Gerald Ford had quite an impact on the US although he was in the office for a limited time. He had many bumps in the road but on the whole he was a pretty well-rounded President. If given full trust and confidence, he could have done so much more good for this county. Given the small amount of time he did have though, he still managed to turn things around for the better.
The best presidents that the United states has ever seen have to have been Abe Lincoln or George Washington. They were both loyal and cared about their country. George Washington founded the base for our beautiful country that we live in to this day. Abe Lincoln put a stop to slavery during his presidency before he was shot in the back of the head and murdered in the Ford Theater. They both put a lot of time and effort into building our country up. George Washington was an Army general and fought in many hard battles in the cold and across rivers and lakes. We have a lot to thank these men for and lots to learn from their noble actions. Living in their legacy is the whole United States that thanks them for their service. Another great president
Ford’s political life began in 1917 when he announced his intention to seek election as a senator for the state of Michigan. Once his campaign began, the state’s majority appeared to favor Ford. This voter popularity was gained largely after Ford revealed his life story - the son of a simple farmer; he overcame many obstacles rising to the status of a multimillionaire business person and potential Michigan senator. Many voters also admired Ford for his engineering feats, his notably low costing automobiles, and the high salaries that he paid his employees. Running as a peace candidate and not claiming affiliation to a political party, Ford placed his name on both republican and democratic primary ballots. All of the democratic candidates withdrew from the primary race, securing the nomination for Henry Ford, while Truman H. Newberry would eventually win the republican nomination.
Henry Ford was a captain of industry. He owned Ford Motors, which was an automobile company. Ford was a man who always wanted his own way and he got it most of the time. The creation he is most famous for is the FORD MODEL T, the car for the commoners. His car became an instant hit amongst the people- the local people and the working class of people because it was very affordable and was not just for the rich. Ford was a very successful businessman but not particularly a nice guy. He expected a lot from his workers but thing is that he also cared for his workers, because he knew that not only were they dependent on him but also that he depended upon them, they were the ones due to which he was gaining popularity and success throughout America. Ford’s great strength was the manufacturing process for his cars. Instead of having people put together the entire car he created organized teams that added parts to the Model T as it moved down the assembly line, this lowered the production prices and also the time and energy required to put together the cars.
James K. Polk was the most successful president in American history. Polk fulfilled all his campaign promises. During his administration Polk acquired California from Mexico, settled the Oregon dispute, lowered tariffs, established a sub-treasury, and retired from office after one term.
He was totally obscure on the national stage. In the consequence of Nixon's Watergate outrage, be that as it may, this turned into preference. It additionally helped Carter that the disrespected Nixon and Vice President Spiro Agnew were supplanted on the republican ticket by Gerald Ford, a political insider with no moxy and an uncanny talent for tumbling down stairs on camera. In spite of a less than ideal meeting in Playboy magazine, which dove his rating in the surveys, Carter squeaked out a tight
Nixon although considered one of the most controversial politicians used his political experience, his background and the communist scare of the late forties and early fifties to become President. It took Nixon about four years but eventually he put an end to the Vietnam War. He promised the American people that when he took office his highest priority would be putting an end to the horrible war. He did what he promised and deserves credit for that. Although things did not always work out for him he came back from the events a smarter man. He used his knowledge to win the election. It takes a smart man to learn from his mistakes and Nixon did that. That is why he deserved to be President of the United States.
The 1970's was a difficult time period in American history filled with chaos, domestic and international crises, and very poor presidential leadership. Richard Nixon was president during the early years of the seventies and he was far from popular in the eyes of the American people. With inflation rapidly rising, Nixon soon became unfavorable, and with the controversy surrounding his actions concerning the Watergate Crisis, he was impeached and forced to resign. His Vice President, Gerald R. Ford, soon took his place in the White House. However, Ford was unable to handle the crippling events taking place in the United States; his approval dropped drastically within months, and like Nixon he lost support of the American people. When the 1976 presidential election came around, the American people needed a new hero whom they could trust and who could pull the nation out of its current state of misery. To fill this position, American chose to elect James Earl Carter, Jr., Governor from Georgia. Jimmy Carter began his presidency in the bright glow of public support built on his promise of bringing honesty and morality back to politics; but unable to successfully deal with conflicts beyond his control concerning domestic and foreign affairs, his term as President ended behind a dark cloud of public disapproval.
Gerald Ford was the 38th president of the United States of America. He became president right after Richard Nixon resigned in 1974. This was not an expected time to have a new president. Ford said, “I assume the Presidency under extraordinary circumstances … This is an hour of history that troubles our minds and hurts our hearts (thewhitehouse.gov pg. 1).” While Ford had not planned to be a president, he still did great tasks, served 25 years in Congress, and he did his best.
Who was the greatest president of the United States? There have been many great presidents in the history of the U.S. Many presidents have led our country through very trying times. Some people believe Lincoln was the greatest president. However, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt led our country at times when a great leader was needed. Franklin D. Roosevelt was the greatest president of the United States because of his New Deal, his great leadership skills, and his strong and deep connection to the people of the United States.
The Success of Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt was President of the USA during a period encompassed two of the most significant events of recent history- the American Depression and the Second World War. In this essay we will look at the qualities that made FDR such a notable President. We will. examine some of the circumstances surrounding the Presidency.
In the end it's clear that Henry Ford did our country a very big survase and he did the right thing. Sticking with his ideas and standing by them the whole time and fighting for them. And coming out on top.
Without a doubt, there have been great presidents throughout American history. The subject of the matter is debatable about who has done the best job for the position. When you ask Americans who the greatest president ever to serve is, five names would be repetitive: Andrew Jackson, George Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln is more than likely always at the top of the list. He is commonly known as the best president of the United States and I can't help but agree. President Lincoln has had numerous achievements, such as ending slavery, modernizing the economy, and preserving the Union.
When people think about President Richard Nixon, they immediately associate him with the Watergate scandal, but actually “…his pre-Watergate record is a lot better than most [people] realize…” (DeGregorio 600). Nixon and his administration stepped up and exhibited goodness during his first term and part of his second term. They reduced U.S involvement in Vietnam War and brought home 518,000 soldiers from 1969 to 1972. They even made deals to get the POW’s in North Vietnam out and home (DeGregorio 595). Nixon’s administration formed the Environmental Protection Agency to enforce clean air and water laws. Nixon also signed all the Civil Rights Acts passed by Congress (DeGregorio 597). The Civil Rights Acts desegregated schools and by 1972, 90% of schools were desegregated (The Richard M. Nixon Administrations). This really helped improve the educational opportunities for black children. Nixon also started a revenue sharing program in which the federal government gave billions of dollars of taxes back to the state and local governments (DeGregorio 596). This helped local governments because they could spend the money on the things that their communities needed the most. Nixon’s specialty was foreign affairs and he visited both communist China and Soviet Union. He was the first president to go to China and he helped open up Chinese-American relationships and settle differences with the Chinese (The Richard M. Nixon Administr...
There are many factors to take into account when looking at Ford’s presidency. One of the biggest is how he came into office. After Spiro Agnew, the Vice President to Richard Nixon, resigned because of bribery and tax evasions, Gerald Ford was selected to be the new vice president to Nixon. Richard Nixon was involved in the Watergate Scandal which led to him resigning as well and placing Ford in the position of the Presid...
...representatives. around 1947 Richard Nixon became the vice president of the united states of america for Dwight Eisenhower.president nixon lost his first election to be president against john f kennedy. After a year of turmoil, and two political assassinations. Richard Nixon became the united states thirty seventh president on january 20,1969. later on that year President Richard Nixon delivered a speech called the Silent Majority. the speech was for the vietnam war and it articulated that his belief that the bulk of the people in the united states of america would support his beliefs and his programs and policies. Richard MIlhous Nixon was vindicated on a land sliding re election President Richard Milhouse Nixon was sworn into another term. Richard Nixon Is still on of the Nations most famous president even though there were many conspiracies about him.