Ford's Grades For Carter, Reagan, Nixon
In 25 years of interviews with his hometown paper that could only be released upon his death, former President Ford once called Jimmy Carter a "disaster" who ranked alongside Warren Harding, and said Ronald Reagan received far too much credit for ending the Cold War.
"It makes me very irritated when Reagan's people pound their chests and say that because we had this big military buildup, the Kremlin collapsed," Ford told The Grand Rapids Press.
The best president of his lifetime, Ford said, was a more moderate Republican: Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Harry Truman "would get very high marks from me" for his handling of foreign crises, Ford said. He also praised Richard Nixon as a foreign policy master, despite the Watergate scandal that drove him from office.
Ford considered John F. Kennedy overrated and Bill Clinton average, admired George H.W. Bush's handling of the Persian Gulf War and had mixed opinions of Carter, who defeated Ford in 1976.
In 1981, Ford said: "I think Jimmy Carter would be very close to Warren G. Harding. I feel very strongly that Jimmy Carter was a disaster, particularly domestically and economically. I have said more than once that he was certainly the poorest president in my lifetime."
But two years later, he praised Carter's performance on the Panama Canal treaty, China and the Middle East. And in 1998, he said Carter "will be looked on as a better president than some comments we hear today."
"He was a very decent, fine individual," Ford told the paper. "There were no major mistakes. There just weren't a lot of exciting results."
Ford died Dec. 26 at the age of 93. During a Jan. 3 funeral service in East Grand Rapids, Carter said he and Ford had developed a close personal friendship over the years.
Ford commented on fellow presidents of the second half of the 20th century during a series of interviews with the Grand Rapids paper over more than 25 years, on condition that his remarks be withheld until after his death. Maury DeJonge, then a Press reporter, began the interviews in 1979. Mike Lloyd, editor of The Press, took over the interviews in 1981.
The Press reported on the interviews in a recent story and said it would publish another Sunday with Ford's reflections on his pardon of Nixon. The paper said Ford declined to rate George W. Bush, saying he didn't know the current president well enough.
Ford said Reagan, who challenged him unsuccessfully for the GOP nomination in 1976, was "a great spokesman for attractive political objectives" such as a balanced budget and defeating communism, "but when it came to implementation, his record never matched his words."
Reagan was "probably the least well informed on the details of running the government of any president I knew," Ford said. In a separate interview he said, "He was just a poor manager, and you can't be president and do a good job unless you manage."
Ford contended his negotiation of the Helsinki Accord on human rights did more to win the Cold War than Reagan's Pentagon buildup. Other key factors were the Marshall Plan and establishment of NATO, Ford said.
"When you put peace, prosperity and human rights against poverty, a massive unsuccessful military program and a lack of human rights, communism was bound to collapse," he said. "No president, no Democrat or Republican, can claim credit for those programs. I'll tell you who deserves the credit — the American people."
Ford hailed Truman for decisiveness in using nuclear weapons against Japan, meeting the communist challenge in Korea, supporting the Marshall Plan and aiding Greece and Turkey. But he said Eisenhower was even better, describing him as "the father of NATO" who prevented the Soviets from overrunning Western Europe and presided over a mostly prosperous economy.
"He was not a person who did a lot of evident things, but he ran the country in a very responsible way," Ford said.
Clinton rivaled Reagan for communication savvy, Ford said: "You have to be careful of what he (Clinton) says because it's so skillfully said."
Three years ago, Ford said, "On substance, I would rate Clinton about a 5. To hear him talk about it, he should have gotten a 10. I never felt that, when the chips were down, in a tough crisis, he would make the right decision. ... You could never give Clinton a high mark on integrity."
© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. "It makes me very irritated when Reagan's people pound their chests and say that because we had this big military buildup, the Kremlin collapsed," Ford told The Grand Rapids Press.
The best president of his lifetime, Ford said, was a more moderate Republican: Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Harry Truman "would get very high marks from me" for his handling of foreign crises, Ford said. He also praised Richard Nixon as a foreign policy master, despite the Watergate scandal that drove him from office.
Ford considered John F. Kennedy overrated and Bill Clinton average, admired George H.W. Bush's handling of the Persian Gulf War and had mixed opinions of Carter, who defeated Ford in 1976.
In 1981, Ford said: "I think Jimmy Carter would be very close to Warren G. Harding. I feel very strongly that Jimmy Carter was a disaster, particularly domestically and economically. I have said more than once that he was certainly the poorest president in my lifetime."
But two years later, he praised Carter's performance on the Panama Canal treaty, China and the Middle East. And in 1998, he said Carter "will be looked on as a better president than some comments we hear today."
"He was a very decent, fine individual," Ford told the paper. "There were no major mistakes. There just weren't a lot of exciting results."
Ford died Dec. 26 at the age of 93. During a Jan. 3 funeral service in East Grand Rapids, Carter said he and Ford had developed a close personal friendship over the years.
Ford commented on fellow presidents of the second half of the 20th century during a series of interviews with the Grand Rapids paper over more than 25 years, on condition that his remarks be withheld until after his death. Maury DeJonge, then a Press reporter, began the interviews in 1979. Mike Lloyd, editor of The Press, took over the interviews in 1981.
The Press reported on the interviews in a recent story and said it would publish another Sunday with Ford's reflections on his pardon of Nixon. The paper said Ford declined to rate George W. Bush, saying he didn't know the current president well enough.
Ford said Reagan, who challenged him unsuccessfully for the GOP nomination in 1976, was "a great spokesman for attractive political objectives" such as a balanced budget and defeating communism, "but when it came to implementation, his record never matched his words."
Reagan was "probably the least well informed on the details of running the government of any president I knew," Ford said. In a separate interview he said, "He was just a poor manager, and you can't be president and do a good job unless you manage."
Ford contended his negotiation of the Helsinki Accord on human rights did more to win the Cold War than Reagan's Pentagon buildup. Other key factors were the Marshall Plan and establishment of NATO, Ford said.
"When you put peace, prosperity and human rights against poverty, a massive unsuccessful military program and a lack of human rights, communism was bound to collapse," he said. "No president, no Democrat or Republican, can claim credit for those programs. I'll tell you who deserves the credit — the American people."
Ford hailed Truman for decisiveness in using nuclear weapons against Japan, meeting the communist challenge in Korea, supporting the Marshall Plan and aiding Greece and Turkey. But he said Eisenhower was even better, describing him as "the father of NATO" who prevented the Soviets from overrunning Western Europe and presided over a mostly prosperous economy.
"He was not a person who did a lot of evident things, but he ran the country in a very responsible way," Ford said.
Clinton rivaled Reagan for communication savvy, Ford said: "You have to be careful of what he (Clinton) says because it's so skillfully said."
Three years ago, Ford said, "On substance, I would rate Clinton about a 5. To hear him talk about it, he should have gotten a 10. I never felt that, when the chips were down, in a tough crisis, he would make the right decision. ... You could never give Clinton a high mark on integrity."
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Clinton was and is an average boob. He did no real harm though. He actually helped Republicans take contol in the '90s. I don't understand why Democrats still like him.
Reagan did help tip the "EVIL EMPIRE" towards collapse. I think Ford is a little jealous here.
I like Truman. He seemed to have old fashioned common sense.
JFK was a forceful leader even though he was a tomcatting playboy. Clinton wanted to be like that but failed.
Ford's comments seem fairly accurate and honest. That's probably why they could not be revealed until after his death.
BG
Oh and I haven't hit the bong in years.
All I have to say is that your a bleeding heart liberal and stoned as well.Kennedy, Johnson ?!?! They destroyed the pubic educational system, it was the envy of the world and now it is a joke.Reagan was a pivotal figure in winning the cold war.What the hell did Kennedy or Johnson do ??? Clinton was a man that lacked ANY integrity and would lie to his mother for a vote.PUT the bong down !!!
1st... no assumption you ARE a Carter Democrat, no one else would make such a comment.2nd... you need to get your history straight because the Soviets that have been interviewed since the "Fall" have ALL said that the U.S. Build up was the start of the end for them.They had no hope economically or in a technological sense to stay even with us.It does appear to me that you are not a Patriot but part of a blame America and first, root for America to loose crowd.I do think this is very sad for the current state of our country and the future because the enemies of our great country will one day be knocking or should I say breaking down your (Mine as well) door some day and we will loose all the blessings that we enjoy today.Question to everyone on this blog... Has anybody seen a country in this world have citizens root for and relish our enemies success against us like ours ??? What the hell have we become !!!If we as a country taken this attitude during WW-2 then my friend we would have lost badly.I`m done.......
Yep, that's about right.
Further more President Ford, I think pardoning Nixon was a cataclysmic mistake!
I'm a Republican, and even a bit of a closet Nixon fan! But President Ford, you hold much responsibility for the trouble we've had in America since 1974 with no one willing to take responsibility for their own behavior.
Your pardoning Nixon said, that at least Presidents, or some Presidents are above the law! Plus, you robbed Nixon and our country of getting the whole truth about watergate to come out. If all Nixon did is lie about the coverup and he really had nothing to do with the break in, the country had a right to know. Would it be so bad for Mr. Nixon to spend a couple years in the slammer to "pay his debt to society"? Or maybe who would have beat the rap, who knows?
But all these people saying Ford had the courage to pardon Nixon? Excuse me? Am I missing something here? How imperial is that?
No, courage would have been to trust our judicial system, yes, even for, and maybe especially for Presidents too!
Does anyone out there agree with me on this?
N.Nordine
Clearwater, FL
That said, I've got a bit of a problem with President Ford taking pot-shots from the grave.
Plus I'd like to see a little humility from a guy critisizing other Presidents all who were elected, something Ford never accomplished, not even once.
Great and honorable guy? Absolutely.
Stepped up to the plate, during our biggest executive crisis? Without a doubt.
But as honorable as Ford was during his short time of service, he will never be more that a temporary President, provided by the Constitution. The Rodney Dangerfield of Presidents.
Maybe that's why old Jerry felt the need to throw some *** he'd been hangin onto for so *** many years. That he didn't have the balls to speak his mind when he was alive kind of shows why he lost to Carter, doesn't it? I agree with Ford that Carter was a disaster. I disagree with old Jimmy at least 100% of the time, he's a communist for heaven's sake! But at least he has the kahonas to speak his mind.
I think the reason Ford's harsh critiquing rubs me so wrong is this. Don't try to be the nice guy for 93 years and then pre-arrange almost vitriolic interviews/press releases to hit immmediately following your death! Give me a break! If you were a harsh mean, judgemental, unforgiving SOB, why couldn't you have been honest about it when you were alive Jerry? Wasn't the
whole problem with Nixon a lack of honesty???!!!
N.Nordine
Clearwater, FL
That said, I've got a bit of a problem with President Ford taking pot-shots from the grave.
Plus I'd like to see a little humility from a guy critisizing other Presidents all who were elected, something Ford never accomplished, not even once.
Great and honorable guy? Absolutely.
Stepped up to the plate, during our biggest executive crisis? Without a doubt.
But as honorable as Ford was during his short time of service, he will never be more that a temporary President, provided by the Constitution. The Rodney Dangerfield of Presidents.
Maybe that's why old Jerry felt the need to throw some *** he'd been hangin onto for so *** many years. That he didn't have the balls to speak his mind when he was alive kind of shows why he lost to Carter, doesn't it? I agree with Ford that Carter was a disaster. I disagree with old Jimmy at least 100% of the time, he's a communist for heaven's sake! But at least he has the kahonas to speak his mind.
I think the reason Ford's harsh critiquing rubs me so wrong is this. Don't try to be the nice guy for 93 years and then pre-arrange almost vitriolic interviews/press releases to hit immmediately following your death! Give me a break! If you were a harsh mean, judgemental, unforgiving SOB, why couldn't you have been honest about it when you were alive Jerry? Wasn't the
whole problem with Nixon a lack of honesty???!!!
N.Nordine
Clearwater, FL
"I'll give you the best reason I've ever heard - if not THE reason - for the final/ultimate collapse of USSR.
Jimmy Carter stopping the USA from participating in the Olympics in 1980.
BC Kelly
I just want to know what you base this on ??? They lost maybe a few billion dollars.The arms race the stupid Soviets tried to math us in cost TRILLIONS !!! The Olympics ?!?! Put down the bong because you are a Carter Democrat.The United States isolated the Soviets during the cold war and spent them into the ash heap of history.The Olympics ?!?! NOW I HEARD IT ALL !!!