And they can ask the questions that were put to Ford during the congressional hearing for his vice presidential nomination, and see and hear his videotaped answers. As you walk through the 10 galleries, you will find yourself caught up in not just a display but a dramatic story of a man who was never elected to presidential office yet held the responsibility of trying to reunite a badly divided nation. The sheer theater of Ford's story is heightened with displays of those times when hippies wore fringe and anti-Vietnam protesters stormed college administration buildings. It speaks to America's withdrawal from Vietnam, the oil crisis, the flag-waving bicentennial celebration and the dark, lingering shadow of Watergate. What you won't see at the museum will be the president's public image of clumsiness.
People come with their own preconceptions.
We accept that. But we don't need to reinforce them. He spoke of Ford's growing up in a broken family like many Americans. And that his family was of modest means. And there is inspiration in that.