Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph " Jerry " Ford , Jr . ( born Leslie Lynch King , Jr . ; July 14 , 1913 – December 26 , 2006 ) was the 38th President of the United States , serving from 1974 to 1977 , and prior to this , was the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974 . He was the first person appointed to the Vice Presidency under the terms of the 25th Amendment , after Spiro Agnew had resigned . When he became President upon Richard Nixon ' s resignation on August 9 , 1974 , he became the first and to date only person to have served as both Vice President and President of the United States without being elected by the Electoral College . Before ascending to the Vice Presidency , Ford served nearly 25 years as the Representative from Michigan ' s 5th congressional district , eight of them as the Republican Minority Leader . As President , Ford signed the Helsinki Accords , marking a move toward détente in the Cold War . With the conquest of South Vietnam by North Vietnam nine months into his presidency , U . S . involvement in Vietnam essentially . Domestically , Ford presided over the worst economy in the four decades since the Great Depression , with growing inflation and a recession during his tenure . One of his more controversial acts was to grant a presidential pardon to President Richard Nixon for his role in the Watergate scandal . During Ford ' s incumbency , foreign policy was characterized in procedural terms by the increased role Congress began to play , and by the corresponding curb on the powers of the President . In 1976 , Ford narrowly defeated Ronald Reagan for the Republican nomination , but lost the presidential election to Democrat Jimmy Carter . Following his years as president , Ford remained active in the Republican Party . After experiencing health problems , Ford died in his home on December 26 , 2006 . Ford lived longer than any other U . S . president , living 93 years and 165 days , while his 895 - day presidency remains the shortest of all Presidents who did not die in office . Early Life . Ford was born Leslie Lynch King , Jr . , on July 14 , 1913 , at 3202 Woolworth Avenue in Omaha , Nebraska , where his parents lived with his paternal grandparents . His mother was Dorothy Ayer Gardner , and his father was Leslie Lynch King , Sr . , a wool trader and son of prominent banker Charles Henry King and Martha Alicia King ( née Porter ) . Dorothy separated from King just sixteen days after her son ' s birth . She took her son with her to the Oak Park , Illinois home of her sister Tannisse and brother - in - law , Clarence Haskins James . From there , she moved to the home of her parents , Levi Addison Gardner and Adele Augusta Ayer in Grand Rapids , Michigan . Dorothy and King divorced in December 1913 ; she gained full custody of her son . Ford ' s paternal grandfather Charles Henry King paid child support until shortly before his death in 1930 . Ford later said his biological father had a history of hitting his mother . James M . Cannon , a member of the Ford administration , wrote in a Ford biography that the Kings ' separation and divorce were sparked when , a few days after Ford ' s birth , Leslie King threatened Dorothy with a butcher knife and threatened to kill her , Ford , and Ford ' s nursemaid . Ford later told confidantes that his father had first hit his mother on their honeymoon for smiling at another man . After two and a half years with her parents , on February 1 , 1916 , Dorothy married Gerald Rudolff Ford , a salesman in a family - owned paint and varnish company . They then called her son " Gerald Rudolff Ford , Jr . " The future president was never formally adopted , however , and he did not legally change his name until December 3 , 1935 ; he also used a more conventional spelling of his middle name . He was raised in Grand Rapids with his three half brothers from his mother ' s second marriage : Thomas Gardner Ford ( 1918 – 1995 ) , Richard Addison Ford ( born 1924 ) , and James Francis Ford ( 1927 – 2001 ) . Ford also had three half - siblings from his father ' s second marriage : Marjorie King ( 1921 – 1993 ) , Leslie Henry King ( 1923 – 1976 ) , and Patricia Jane King ( born 1925 ) . They never saw one another as children and he did not know them at all . Ford was not aware of his biological father until he was 17 , when his parents told him about the circumstances of his birth . That year his father Leslie King , whom Ford described as a " carefree , well - to - do man who didn ' t really give a damn about the hopes and dreams of his firstborn son " , approached Ford while he was waiting tables in a Grand Rapids restaurant . The two " maintained a sporadic contact " until Leslie King , Sr . ' s death . Ford maintained his distance emotionally , saying , " My stepfather was a magnificent person and my mother equally wonderful . So I couldn ' t have written a better prescription for a superb family upbringing . " Scouting and athletics . Ford was involved in The Boy Scouts of America , and earned that program ' s highest rank , Eagle Scout . In later years , Ford received the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award in May 1970 and Silver Buffalo Award from the Boy Scouts of America . He is the only U . S . president who is an Eagle Scout . Scouting was so important to Ford that his family asked that Scouts participate in his funeral . About 400 Eagle Scouts were part of the funeral procession , where they formed an honor guard as the casket went by in front of the museum . A few selected scouts served as ushers inside the National Cathedral . Ford attended Grand Rapids South High School and was a star athlete and captain of his football team . In 1930 , he was selected to the All - City team of the Grand Rapids City League . He also attracted the attention of college recruiters . Attending the University of Michigan as an undergraduate , Ford played center and linebacker for the school ' s football team and helped the Wolverines to undefeated seasons and national titles in 1932 and 1933 . The team suffered a steep decline in his 1934 senior year , however , winning only one game . Ford was the team ' s star nonetheless , and after a game during which Michigan held heavily favored Minnesota ( the eventual national champion ) to a scoreless tie in the first half , assistant coach Bennie Oosterbaan later said , " When I walked into the dressing room at half time , I had tears in my eyes I was so proud of them . Ford and [ Cedric ] Sweet played their hearts out . They were everywhere on defense . " Ford later recalled , " During 25 years in the rough - and - tumble world of politics , I often thought of the experiences before , during , and after that game in 1934 . Remembering them has helped me many times to face a tough situation , take action , and make every effort possible despite adverse odds . " His teammates later voted Ford their most valuable player , with one assistant coach noting , " They felt Jerry was one guy who would stay and fight in a losing cause . " During Ford ' s senior year a controversy developed when the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets refused to play a scheduled game if a black player named Willis Ward took the field . Even after protests from students , players and alumni , university officials opted to keep Ward out of the game . Ford was Ward ' s best friend on the team and they roomed together while on road trips . Ford reportedly threatened to quit the team in response to the university ’ s decision , but eventually agreed to play against Georgia Tech when Ward personally asked him to play . During the same season , in a game against the University of Chicago , Ford " became the only future U . S . president to tackle a future Heisman Trophy winner when he brought down running back Jay Berwanger , who would win the first Heisman the following year " . In 1934 , Ford was selected for the Eastern Team on the Shriner ' s East West Crippled Children game at San Francisco ( a benefit for crippled children ) , played on January 1 , 1935 . As part of the 1935 Collegiate All - Star football team , Ford played against the Chicago Bears in an exhibition game at Soldier Field . In honor of his athletic accomplishments and his later political career , the University of Michigan retired Ford ' s No . 48 jersey in 1994 . With the blessing of the Ford family , it was placed back into circulation in 2012 as part of the Michigan Football Legends program and issued to sophomore linebacker Desmond Morgan before a home game against Illinois on October 13 . Ford remained interested in football and his school throughout life , occasionally attending games . Ford also visited with players and coaches during practices , at one point asking to join the players in the huddle . Ford often had the Naval band play the University of Michigan fight song , " The Victors " , before state events instead of " Hail to the Chief " . He also selected the song to be played during his funeral procession at the U . S . Capitol . On his death in December 2006 , the University of Michigan Marching Band played the fight song for him one final time , for his last ride from the Gerald R . Ford Airport in Grand Rapids , Michigan . Ford was also an avid golfer . In 1977 , he shot a hole in one during a Pro - am held in conjunction with the Danny Thomas Memphis Classic at Colonial Country Club in Memphis , Tennessee . He received the 1985 Old Tom Morris Award from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America , GCSAA ' s highest honor . Education . At Michigan , Ford became a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity ( Omicron chapter ) and washed dishes at his fraternity house to earn money for college expenses . Following his graduation in 1935 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics , he turned down contract offers from the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers of the National Football League to take a coaching position at Yale and apply to its law school . Ford continued to contribute to football and boxing , accepting an assistant coaching job for both at Yale in September 1935 . Ford hoped to attend Yale ' s law school beginning in 1935 while serving as boxing coach and assistant varsity football coach . Yale officials at first denied his admission to the law school , because of his full - time coaching responsibilities . He spent the summer of 1937 as a student at the University of Michigan Law School and was eventually admitted in spring 1938 to Yale Law School . Ford earned his LL . B . degree in 1941 ( later amended to Juris Doctor ) , graduating in the top 25 percent of his class . His introduction to politics came in the summer of 1940 when he worked in Wendell Willkie ' s presidential campaign . While attending Yale Law School , he joined a group of students led by R . Douglas Stuart , Jr . , and signed a petition to enforce the 1939 Neutrality Act . The petition was circulated nationally and was the inspiration for the America First Committee , a group determined to keep the U . S . out of World War II . Ford graduated from law school in 1941 , and was admitted to the Michigan bar shortly thereafter . In May 1941 , he opened a Grand Rapids law practice with a friend , Philip W . Buchen , who would later serve as Ford ' s White House counsel . But overseas developments caused a change in plans , and Ford responded to the attack on Pearl Harbor by enlisting in the Navy . Naval service in World War II . Ford received a commission as ensign in the U . S . Naval Reserve on April 13 , 1942 . On April 20 , he reported for active duty to the V - 5 instructor school at Annapolis , Maryland . After one month of training , he went to Navy Preflight School in Chapel Hill , North Carolina , where he was one of 83 instructors and taught elementary navigation skills , ordnance , gunnery , first aid and military drill . In addition , he coached in all nine sports that were offered , but mostly in swimming , boxing and football . During the one year he was at the Preflight School , he was promoted to Lieutenant Junior Grade on June 2 , 1942 , and to Lieutenant in March 1943 . Applying for sea duty , Ford was sent in May 1943 to the pre - commissioning detachment for the new aircraft carrier , at New York Shipbuilding Corporation , Camden , New Jersey . From the ship ' s commissioning on June 17 , 1943 , until the end of December 1944 , Ford served as the assistant navigator , Athletic Officer , and antiaircraft battery officer on board the " Monterey " . While he was on board , the carrier participated in many actions in the Pacific Theater with the Third and Fifth Fleets in late 1943 and 1944 . In 1943 , the carrier helped secure Makin Island in the Gilberts , and participated in carrier strikes against Kavieng , New Ireland in 1943 . During the spring of 1944 , the " Monterey " supported landings at Kwajalein and Eniwetok and participated in carrier strikes in the Marianas , Western Carolines , and northern New Guinea , as well as in the Battle of the Philippine Sea . After overhaul , from September to November 1944 , aircraft from the " Monterey " launched strikes against Wake Island , participated in strikes in the Philippines and Ryukyus , and supported the landings at Leyte and Mindoro . Although the ship was not damaged by Japanese forces , the " Monterey " was one of several ships damaged by the typhoon that hit Admiral William Halsey ' s Third Fleet on December 18 – 19 , 1944 . The Third Fleet lost three destroyer s and over 800 men during the typhoon . The " Monterey " was damaged by a fire , which was started by several of the ship ' s aircraft tearing loose from their cables and colliding on the hangar deck . During the storm , Ford narrowly avoided becoming a casualty himself . As he was going to his battle station on the bridge of the ship in the early morning of December 18 , the ship rolled twenty - five degrees , which caused Ford to lose his footing and slide toward the edge of the deck . The two - inch steel ridge around the edge of the carrier slowed him enough so he could roll , and he twisted into the catwalk below the deck . As he later stated , " I was lucky ; I could have easily gone overboard . " Ford , serving as General Quarters Officer of the Deck , was ordered to go below to assess the raging fire . He did so safely , and reported his findings back to the ship ’ s commanding officer , Captain Stuart Ingersoll . The ship ’ s crew was able to contain the fire , and the ship got underway again . After the fire the " Monterey " was declared unfit for service , and the crippled carrier reached Ulithi on December 21 before continuing across the Pacific to Bremerton , Washington where it underwent repairs . On December 24 , 1944 , at Ulithi , Ford was detached from the ship and sent to the Navy Pre - Flight School at Saint Mary ' s College of California , where he was assigned to the Athletic Department until April 1945 . One of his duties was to coach football . From the end of April 1945 to January 1946 , he was on the staff of the Naval Reserve Training Command , Naval Air Station , Glenview , Illinois as the Staff Physical and Military Training Officer . On October 3 , 1945 , he was promoted to Lieutenant Commander . In January 1946 , he was sent to the Separation Center , Great Lakes to be processed out . He was released from active duty under honorable conditions on February 23 , 1946 . On June 28 , 1946 , the Secretary of the Navy accepted Ford ' s resignation from the Naval Reserve . For his naval service , Gerald Ford earned the Asiatic - Pacific Campaign Medal with nine engagement stars for operations in the Gilbert Islands , Bismarck Archipelago , Marshall Islands , Asiatic and Pacific carrier raids , Hollandia , Marianas , Western Carolines , Western New Guinea , and the Leyte Operation . He also received the Philippine Liberation Medal with two bronze stars for Leyte and Mindoro , as well as the American Campaign and World War II Victory Medal s . Ford was a member of several civic organizations , including the Junior Chamber of Commerce ( Jaycees ) , American Legion , AMVETS , Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks , Sons of the Revolution , and Veterans of Foreign Wars . In 1992 the U . S . Navy Memorial Foundation awarded Ford its Lone Sailor Award for his naval service and his subsequent government service . Gerald R . Ford was initiated into Freemasonry on September 30 , 1949 . He later said in 1975 , " When I took my obligation as a master mason — incidentally , with my three younger brothers — I recalled the value my own father attached to that order . But I had no idea that I would ever be added to the company of the Father of our Country and 12 other members of the order who also served as Presidents of the United States . " Marriage and children . On October 15 , 1948 , at Grace Episcopal Church in Grand Rapids , Ford married Elizabeth Bloomer Warren ( 1918 – 2011 ) , a department store fashion consultant . Warren had been a John Robert Powers fashion model and a dancer in the auxiliary troupe of the Martha Graham Dance Company . She had previously been married to and divorced from William G . Warren . At the time of his engagement , Ford was campaigning for what would be his first of thirteen terms as a member of the United States House of Representatives . The wedding was delayed until shortly before the elections because , as " The New York Times " reported in a 1974 profile of Betty Ford , " Jerry was running for Congress and wasn ' t sure how voters might feel about his marrying a divorced ex - dancer . " The couple had four children : House of Representatives . After returning to Grand Rapids , Ford became active in local Republican politics , and supporters urged him to take on Bartel J . Jonkman , the incumbent Republican congressman . Military service had changed his view of the world . " I came back a converted internationalist " , Ford wrote , " and of course our congressman at that time was an avowed , dedicated isolationist . And I thought he ought to be replaced . Nobody thought I could win . I ended up winning two to one . " During his first campaign in 1948 , Ford visited voters at their doorsteps and as they left the factories where they worked . Ford also visited local farms where in one instance , a wager resulted in Ford spending two weeks milking cows following his election victory . Ford was known to his colleagues in the House as a " Congressman ' s Congressman " . Ford was a member of the House of Representatives for 25 years , holding the Grand Rapids congressional district seat from 1949 to 1973 . It was a tenure largely notable for its modesty . As an editorial in " The New York Times " described him , Ford " saw himself as a negotiator and a reconciler , and the record shows it : he did not write a single piece of major legislation in his entire career . " Appointed to the House Appropriations Committee two years after being elected , he was a prominent member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee . Ford described his philosophy as " a moderate in domestic affairs , an internationalist in foreign affairs , and a conservative in fiscal policy . " In the early 1950s , Ford declined offers to run for both the Senate and the Michigan governorship . Rather , his ambition was to become Speaker of the House . Warren Commission . In November 1963 , President Lyndon B . Johnson appointed Ford to the Warren Commission , a special task force set up to investigate the assassination of President John F . Kennedy . Ford was assigned to prepare a biography of Lee Harvey Oswald , the accused assassin . The Commission ' s work continues to be debated in the public arena . In the preface to his book , " A Presidential Legacy and The Warren Commission " , Ford said the CIA destroyed or kept from investigators critical secrets connected to the 1963 assassination of President John F . Kennedy . He said the commission ' s probe put " certain classified and potentially damaging operations in danger of being exposed " . The CIA ' s reaction , he added , " was to hide or destroy some information , which can easily be misinterpreted as collusion in JFK ' s assassination " . According to a 1963 FBI memo released in 2008 , Ford secretly provided the FBI with information about two of his fellow commission members , both of whom were unsure about the FBI ' s conclusions about the assassination . The FBI position was that President Kennedy was shot by a single gunman firing from the Texas Book Depository . Another 1963 memo released in 1978 stated that Representative Ford volunteered to advise the FBI regarding the content of the commission ' s deliberations if his involvement with the bureau was kept confidential , a condition which the bureau approved . Ford was an outspoken proponent of the single - assassin theory . According to the same reports , Ford had strong ties to the FBI and J . Edgar Hoover . House Minority Leader . In 1964 , Democratic President Lyndon Johnson led a landslide victory for his party , securing another term as president and taking 36 seats from Republicans in the House of Representatives . Following the election , members of the Republican caucus looked to select a new Minority Leader . Three members approached Ford to see if he would be willing to serve ; after consulting with his family , he agreed . After a closely contested election , Ford was chosen to replace Charles Halleck of Indiana as Minority Leader . The Republicans had 140 seats in the House compared with the 295 seats held by the Democrats . Consequently , the Johnson Administration proposed and passed a series of programs that was called by Johnson the " Great Society . " During the first session of the Eighty - ninth Congress alone , the Johnson Administration submitted 87 bills to Congress , and Johnson signed 84 , or 96 % , arguably the most successful legislative agenda in Congressional history . Criticism over the Johnson Administration ' s handling of the Vietnam War began to grow in 1966 , with Ford and Congressional Republicans expressing concern that the United States was not doing what was necessary to win the war . Public sentiment also began to move against Johnson , and the 1966 midterm elections saw a 47 - seat swing in favor of the Republicans . This was not enough to give Republicans a majority in the House , but the victory gave Ford the opportunity to prevent the passage of further Great Society programs . Ford ' s private criticism of the Vietnam War became public following a speech from the floor of the House , in which he questioned whether the White House had a clear plan to bring the war to a successful conclusion . The speech angered President Johnson , who accused Ford of playing " too much football without a helmet " . As Minority Leader in the House , Ford appeared in a popular series of televised press conferences with famed Illinois Senator Everett Dirksen , in which they proposed Republican alternatives to Johnson ' s policies . Many in the press jokingly called this " The Ev and Jerry Show . " Johnson said at the time , " Jerry Ford is so dumb he can ' t fart and chew gum at the same time . " The press , used to sanitizing LBJ ' s salty language , reported this as " Gerald Ford can ' t walk and chew gum at the same time . " Ford ' s role shifted under President Nixon to being an advocate for the White House agenda . Congress passed several of Nixon ' s proposals , including the National Environmental Policy Act and the Tax Reform Act of 1969 . Another high - profile victory for the Republican minority was the State and Local Fiscal Assistance act . Passed in 1972 , the act established a Revenue Sharing program for state and local governments . Ford ' s leadership was instrumental in shepherding revenue sharing through Congress , and resulted in a bipartisan coalition that supported the bill with 223 votes in favor ( compared with 185 against ) . During the 8 years ( 1965 – 1973 ) he served as Minority Leader , Ford won many friends in the House because of his fair leadership and inoffensive personality . An office building in the U . S . Capitol Complex , House Annex 2 , was renamed for Gerald Ford as the Ford House Office Building . Vice Presidency , 1973 – 74 . On October 10 , 1973 , Vice President Agnew resigned and then pleaded no contest to criminal charges of tax evasion and money laundering , part of a negotiated resolution to a scheme in which he accepted $ 29 , 500 in bribes while governor of Maryland . According to " The New York Times " , " Nixon sought advice from senior Congressional leaders about a replacement . The advice was unanimous . ' We gave Nixon no choice but Ford , ' House Speaker Carl Albert recalled later " . Ford was nominated to take Agnew ' s position on October 12 , the first time the vice - presidential vacancy provision of the 25th Amendment had been implemented . The United States Senate voted 92 to 3 to confirm Ford on November 27 . Only three Senators , all Democrats , voted against Ford ' s confirmation : Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin , Thomas Eagleton of Missouri and William Hathaway of Maine . On December 6 , the House confirmed Ford by a vote of 387 to 35 . One hour after the confirmation vote in the House , Ford took the oath of office as Vice President of the United States . Ford ' s brief tenure as Vice - President was little noted by the media as reporters were preoccupied by the continuing revelations about the Watergate scandal — a political scandal resulting from the discovery of a series of crimes committed during the 1972 presidential election and allegations of cover - ups by the White House . Following Ford ' s appointment , the Watergate investigation continued until Chief of Staff Alexander Haig contacted Ford on August 1 , 1974 , and told him that " smoking gun " evidence had been found . The evidence left little doubt that President Nixon had been a part of the Watergate cover - up . At the time , Ford and his wife , Betty , were living in suburban Virginia , waiting for their expected move into the newly - designated vice president ' s residence in Washington , D . C . However , " Al Haig [ asked ] to come over and see me , " Ford later related , " to tell me that there would be a new tape released on a Monday , and he said the evidence in there was devastating and there would probably be either an impeachment or a resignation . And he said , ' I ' m just warning you that you ' ve got to be prepared , that things might change dramatically and you could become President . ' And I said , ' Betty , I don ' t think we ' re ever going to live in the vice president ' s house . Presidency , 1974 – 77 . Swearing - in . When Nixon resigned on August 9 , 1974 , Ford assumed the presidency , making him the only person to assume the presidency without having been previously voted into either the presidential or vice presidential office . Immediately after taking the oath of office in the East Room of the White House , he spoke to the assembled audience in a speech broadcast live to the nation . Ford noted the peculiarity of his position : " I am acutely aware that you have not elected me as your president by your ballots , and so I ask you to confirm me as your president with your prayers . " He went on to state : He also stated : A portion of the speech would later be memorialized with a plaque at the entrance to his presidential museum . On August 20 , Ford nominated former New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller to fill the vice presidency he had vacated . Rockefeller ' s top competitor had been George H . W . Bush . Rockefeller underwent extended hearings before Congress , which caused embarrassment when it was revealed he made large gifts to senior aides , such as Henry Kissinger . Although conservative Republicans were not pleased that Rockefeller was picked , most of them voted for his confirmation , and his nomination passed both the House and Senate . Some , including Barry Goldwater , voted against him . Pardon of Nixon . On September 8 , 1974 , Ford issued , which gave Nixon a full and unconditional pardon for any crimes he might have committed against the United States while President . In a televised broadcast to the nation , Ford explained that he felt the pardon was in the best interests of the country , and that the Nixon family ' s situation " is a tragedy in which we all have played a part . It could go on and on and on , or someone must write the end to it . I have concluded that only I can do that , and if I can , I must . " When he announced the Nixon pardon , Ford also introduced a conditional amnesty program for Vietnam War draft dodger s who had fled to countries such as Canada . Full pardon for the draft dodgers , however , did not come about until the Carter Administration . The Nixon pardon was highly controversial . Critics derided the move and claimed a " corrupt bargain " had been struck between the men . They claimed Ford ' s pardon was granted in exchange for Nixon ' s resignation that elevated Ford to the Presidency . Ford ' s first press secretary and close friend Jerald Franklin terHorst resigned his post in protest after President Nixon ' s full pardon . According to Bob Woodward , Nixon Chief of Staff Alexander Haig proposed a pardon deal to Ford . He later decided to pardon Nixon for other reasons , primarily the friendship he and Nixon shared . Regardless , historians believe the controversy was one of the major reasons Ford lost the election in 1976 , an observation with which Ford agreed . In an editorial at the time , " The New York Times " stated that the Nixon pardon was " a profoundly unwise , divisive and unjust act " that in a stroke had destroyed the new president ' s " credibility as a man of judgment , candor and competence " . On October 17 , 1974 , Ford testified before Congress on the pardon . He was the first sitting President to testify before Congress since Abraham Lincoln . After Ford left the White House in 1977 , the former President privately justified his pardon of Nixon by carrying in his wallet a portion of the text of " Burdick v . United States " , a 1915 U . S . Supreme Court decision which stated that a pardon indicated a presumption of guilt , and that acceptance of a pardon was tantamount to a confession of that guilt . In 2001 , the John F . Kennedy Library Foundation awarded the John F . Kennedy Profile in Courage Award to Ford for his pardon of Nixon . In presenting the award to Ford , Senator Ted Kennedy said that he had initially been opposed to the pardon of Nixon , but later stated that history had proved Ford to have made the correct decision . Presidential Proclamation 4313 . On September 16 , 1974 President Ford announced a program for the Return of Vietnam Era Draft Evaders and Military Deserters . This proved to be controversial , as it provided a means for those who were against the Vietnam War to erase any remaining criminal charges and for those who were given punitive discharges as a result of being against the war to have them converted to Clemency Discharges . The Proclamation established a Clemency Board to review the records and make recommendations for receiving a Presidential Pardon and a change in Military discharge status . Administration and cabinet . Upon assuming office , Ford inherited Nixon ' s cabinet . During Ford ' s brief administration , only Secretary of State Kissinger and Secretary of the Treasury William E . Simon remained . Ford appointed William Coleman as Secretary of Transportation , the second black man to serve in a presidential cabinet ( after Robert Clifton Weaver ) and the first appointed in a Republican administration . Other cabinet - level posts : Other important posts : Ford selected George H . W . Bush as Chief of the US Liaison Office to the People ' s Republic of China in 1974 , and then Director of the Central Intelligence Agency in late 1975 . Ford ' s transition chairman and first Chief of Staff was former congressman and ambassador Donald Rumsfeld . In 1975 , Rumsfeld was named by Ford as the youngest - ever Secretary of Defense . Ford chose a young Wyoming politician , Richard Cheney , to replace Rumsfeld as his new Chief of Staff and later campaign manager for Ford ' s 1976 presidential campaign . Ford ' s dramatic reorganization of his Cabinet in the fall of 1975 has been referred to by political commentators as the " Halloween Massacre " . Midterm elections . The 1974 Congressional midterm elections took place fewer than three months after Ford assumed office and in the wake of the Watergate scandal . The Democratic Party turned voter dissatisfaction into large gains in the House elections , taking 49 seats from the Republican Party , and increasing their majority to 291 of the 435 seats . This was one more than the number needed ( 290 ) for a two - thirds majority , necessary to override a Presidential veto ( or to propose a constitutional amendment ) . Perhaps due in part to this fact , the 94th Congress overrode the highest percentage of vetoes since Andrew Johnson was President of the United States ( 1865 – 1869 ) . Even Ford ' s old , reliably Republican seat was taken by Democrat Richard Vander Veen , defeating Republican Robert VanderLaan . In the Senate elections , the Democratic majority became 61 in the 100 - seat body . Domestic policy . The economy was a great concern during the Ford administration . One of the first acts the new president took to deal with the economy was to create the Economic Policy Board by Executive Order on September 30 , 1974 . In response to rising inflation , Ford went before the American public in October 1974 and asked them to " Whip Inflation Now " . As part of this program , he urged people to wear " WIN " buttons . At the time , inflation was believed to be the primary threat to the economy , more so than growing unemployment . They felt as though controlling inflation would work to fix unemployment . To rein in inflation , it was necessary to control the public ' s spending . To try to mesh service and sacrifice , " WIN " called for Americans to reduce their spending and consumption . On October 4 , 1974 , Ford gave a speech in front of a joint session of Congress and as a part of this speech kicked off the " WIN " campaign . Over the next nine days 101 , 240 Americans mailed in " WIN " pledges . In hindsight , this was viewed as simply a public relations gimmick without offering any means of solving the underlying problems . The main point of that speech was to introduce to Congress a one - year , five - percent income tax increase on corporations and wealthy individuals . This plan would also take $ 4 . 4 billion out of the budget bringing federal spending below $ 300 billion . At the time , inflation was over twelve percent . Ford was confronted with a potential swine flu pandemic . In the early 1970s , an influenza strain H1N1 shifted from a form of flu that affected primarily pigs and crossed over to humans . On February 5 , 1976 , an army recruit at Fort Dix mysteriously died and four fellow soldiers were hospitalized ; health officials announced that " swine flu " was the cause . Soon after , public health officials in the Ford administration urged that every person in the United States be vaccinated . Although the vaccination program was plagued by delays and public relations problems , some 25 % of the population was vaccinated by the time the program was canceled in December of that year . The vaccine was blamed for twenty - five deaths ; more people died from the shots than from the swine flu . Ford was an outspoken supporter of the Equal Rights Amendment , issuing Presidential Proclamation no . 4383 in 1975 : As president , Ford ' s position on abortion was that he supported " a federal constitutional amendment that would permit each one of the 50 States to make the choice " . This had also been his position as House Minority Leader in response to the 1973 Supreme Court case of " Roe v . Wade " , which he opposed . Ford came under criticism for a " 60 Minutes " interview his wife Betty gave in 1975 , in which she stated that " Roe v . Wade " was a " great , great decision " . During his later life , Ford would identify as pro - choice . Budget . The federal budget ran a deficit every year Ford was President . Despite his reservations about how the program ultimately would be funded in an era of tight public budgeting , Ford signed the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 , which established special education throughout the United States . Ford expressed " strong support for full educational opportunities for our handicapped children " according to the official White House press release for the bill signing . The economic focus began to change as the country sank into the worst recession since the Great Depression four decades earlier . The focus of the Ford administration became fixing the increase in unemployment , which reached nine percent in May 1975 . In January 1975 , Ford proposed a 1 - year tax reduction of $ 16 billion to stimulate economic growth , along with spending cuts to avoid inflation . Ford was criticized greatly for quickly switching from advocating a tax increase to a tax reduction . In Congress , the proposed amount of the tax reduction increased to $ 22 . 8 billion in tax cuts and lacked spending cuts . In March 1975 , Congress passed , and Ford signed into law , these income tax rebates as part of the Tax Reduction Act of 1975 . This resulted in a federal deficit of around $ 53 billion for the 1975 fiscal year and $ 73 . 7 billion for 1976 . When New York City faced bankruptcy in 1975 , Mayor Abraham Beame was unsuccessful in obtaining Ford ' s support for a federal bailout . The incident prompted the New York " Daily News " < nowiki > ' < / nowiki > famous headline " Ford to City : Drop Dead " , referring to a speech in which " Ford declared flatly . . . that he would veto any bill calling for ' a federal bail - out of New York City . The following month , November 1975 , Ford changed his stance and asked Congress to approve federal loans to New York City . Foreign policy . Ford continued the détente policy with both the Soviet Union and China , easing the tensions of the Cold War . Still in place from the Nixon Administration was the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty ( SALT ) . The thawing relationship brought about by Nixon ' s visit to China was reinforced by Ford ' s December 1975 visit to the communist country . In 1975 , the Administration entered into the Helsinki Accords with the Soviet Union , creating the framework of the Helsinki Watch , an independent non - governmental organization created to monitor compliance that later evolved into Human Rights Watch . Ford attended the inaugural meeting of the Group of Seven ( G7 ) industrialized nations ( initially the G5 ) in 1975 and secured membership for Canada . Ford supported international solutions to issues . " We live in an interdependent world and , therefore , must work together to resolve common economic problems , " he said in a 1974 speech . Middle East . In the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean , two ongoing international disputes developed into crises . The Cyprus dispute turned into a crisis with the Turkish invasion of Cyprus , causing extreme strain within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO ) alliance . In mid - August , the government withdrew Greece from the NATO military structure ; in mid - September 1974 , the Senate and House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted to halt military aid to Turkey . Ford , concerned with both the effect of this on Turkish - American relations and the deterioration of security on NATO ' s eastern front , vetoed the bill . A second bill was passed by the house , and vetoed , although a compromise was accepted to continue aid until the end of the year . As Ford expected , Turkish relations were considerably disrupted until 1978 . In the continuing Arab - Israeli conflict , although the initial cease fire had been implemented to end active conflict in the Yom Kippur War , Kissinger ' s continuing shuttle diplomacy was showing little progress . Ford considered it " stalling " and wrote , " Their [ Israeli ] tactics frustrated the Egyptians and made me mad as hell . " During Kissinger ' s shuttle to Israel in early March 1975 , a last minute reversal to consider further withdrawal , prompted a cable from Ford to Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin , which included : On March 24 , Ford received congressional leaders of both parties and informed them of the reassessment of the administration policies in the Middle East . " Reassessment " , in practical terms , meant to cancel or suspend further aid to Israel . For six months between March and September 1975 , the United States refused to conclude any new arms agreements with Israel . Rabin notes it was " an innocent - sounding term that heralded one of the worst periods in American - Israeli relations " . As could be expected , the announced reassessments upset the American Jewish community and Israel ' s well - wishers in Congress . On May 21 , Ford " experienced a real shock " , seventy - six senators wrote him a letter urging him to be " responsive " to Israel ' s request for $ 2 . 59 billion in military and economic aid . Ford felt truly annoyed and thought the chance for peace was jeopardized . It was , since the September 1974 ban on arms to Turkey , the second major congressional intrusion upon the President ' s [ foreign policy ] prerogatives . The following summer months were described by Ford as an American - Israeli " war of nerves " or " test of wills " , and after much bargaining , the Sinai Interim Agreement ( Sinai II ) , was formally signed on September 1 and aid resumed . Vietnam . One of Ford ' s greatest challenges was dealing with the continued Vietnam War . American offensive operations against North Vietnam had ended with the Paris Peace Accords , signed on January 27 , 1973 . The accords declared a cease fire across both North and South Vietnam , and required the release of American prisoners of war . The agreement guaranteed the territorial integrity of Vietnam and , like the Geneva Conference of 1954 , called for national elections in the North and South . The Paris Peace Accords stipulated a sixty - day period for the total withdrawal of U . S . forces . The accords had been negotiated by United States National Security Advisor Kissinger and North Vietnamese politburo member Le Duc Tho . South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu was not involved in the final negotiations , and publicly criticized the proposed agreement . However , anti - war pressures within the United States forced Nixon and Kissinger to pressure Thieu to sign the agreement and enable the withdrawal of American forces . In multiple letters to the South Vietnamese president , Nixon had promised that the United States would defend his government , should the North Vietnamese violate the accords . In December 1974 , months after Ford took office , North Vietnamese forces invaded the province of Phuoc Long . General Trần Văn Trà sought to gauge any South Vietnamese or American response to the invasion , as well as to solve logistical issues before proceeding with the invasion . As North Vietnamese forces advanced , Ford requested aid for South Vietnam in a $ 522 million aid package . The funds had been promised by the Nixon administration , but Congress voted against the proposal by a wide margin . Senator Jacob Javits offered " . . . large sums for evacuation , but not one nickel for military aid " . President Thieu resigned on April 21 , 1975 , publicly blaming the lack of support from the United States for the fall of his country . Two days later , on April 23 , Ford gave a speech at Tulane University . In that speech , he announced that the Vietnam War was over " . . . as far as America is concerned " . The announcement was met with thunderous applause . 1 , 373 U . S . citizens and 5 , 595 Vietnamese and third country nationals were evacuated from the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon during Operation Frequent Wind . Military and Air America helicopters took evacuees to U . S . Navy ships off - shore during an approximately 24 - hour period on April 29 to 30 , 1975 , immediately preceding the fall of Saigon . During the operation , so many South Vietnamese helicopters landed on the vessels taking the evacuees that some were pushed overboard to make room for more people . Other helicopters , having nowhere to land , were deliberately crash landed into the sea , close to the ships , their pilots bailing out at the last moment to be picked up by rescue boats . Many of the Vietnamese evacuees were allowed to enter the United States under the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act . The 1975 Act appropriated $ 455 million toward the costs of assisting the settlement of Indochinese refugees . In all , 130 , 000 Vietnamese refugees came to the United States in 1975 . Thousands more escaped in the years that followed . Mayaguez and Panmunjom . North Vietnam ' s victory over the South led to a considerable shift in the political winds in Asia , and Ford administration officials worried about a consequent loss of U . S . influence there . The administration proved it was willing to respond forcefully to challenges to its interests in the region on two occasions , once when Khmer Rouge forces seized an American ship in international waters and again when American military officers were killed in the demilitarized zone ( DMZ ) between North and South Korea . The first crisis was the Mayaguez Incident . In May 1975 , shortly after the fall of Saigon and the Khmer Rouge conquest of Cambodia , Cambodians seized the American merchant ship " Mayaguez " in international waters . Ford dispatched Marines to rescue the crew , but the Marines landed on the wrong island and met unexpectedly stiff resistance just as , unknown to the U . S . , the " Mayaguez " sailors were being released . In the operation , two military transport helicopters carrying the Marines for the assault operation were shot down , and 41 U . S . servicemen were killed and 50 wounded while approximately 60 Khmer Rouge soldiers were killed . Despite the American losses , the operation was seen as a success in the United States and Ford enjoyed an 11 - point boost in his approval ratings in the aftermath . The Americans killed during the operation became the last to have their names inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall in Washington , D . C . Some historians have argued that the Ford administration felt the need to respond forcefully to the incident because it was construed as a Soviet plot . But recent work by Andrew Gawthorpe , based on an analysis of the administration ' s internal discussions , shows that Ford ' s national security team understood that the seizure of the vessel was a local , and perhaps even accidental , provocation by an immature Khmer government . Nevertheless , they felt the need to respond forcefully to discourage further provocations by other Communist countries in Asia . The second crisis , known as the axe murder incident , occurred at Panmunjom , a village which stands in the DMZ between the two Koreas . At the time , this was the only part of the DMZ where forces from the North and the South came into contact with each other . Encouraged by U . S . difficulties in Vietnam , North Korea had been waging a campaign of diplomatic pressure and minor military harassment to try and convince the U . S . to withdraw from South Korea . Then , in August 1976 , North Korean forces killed two U . S . officers and injured South Korean guards who were engaged in trimming a tree in Panmunjom ' s Joint Security Area . The attack coincided with a meeting of the Conference of Non - Aligned Nations in Colombo , Sri Lanka , at which Kim Jong - il , the son of North Korean leader Kim Il - sung , presented the incident as an example of American aggression , helping secure the passage of a motion calling for a U . S . withdrawal from the South . At administration meetings , Kissinger voiced the concern that the North would see the U . S . as " the paper tigers of Saigon " if they did not respond , and Ford agreed with that assessment . After mulling various options the Ford administration decided that it was necessary to respond with a major show of force . A large number of ground forces went to cut down the tree , while at the same time the air force was deployed , which included B - 52 bomber flights over Panmunjom . The North Korean government backed down and allowed the tree - cutting to go ahead , and later issued an unprecedented official apology . Assassination attempts . Ford faced two assassination attempts during his presidency , occurring within three weeks of each other and in the same state ; while in Sacramento , California , on September 5 , 1975 , Lynette " Squeaky " Fromme , a follower of Charles Manson , pointed a Colt . 45 - caliber handgun at Ford . As Fromme pulled the trigger , Larry Buendorf , a Secret Service agent , grabbed the gun and managed to insert the webbing of his thumb under the hammer , preventing the gun from firing . It was later found that , although the semi - automatic pistol had four cartridges in the magazine , the weapon had not been chambered , making it impossible for the gun to fire . Fromme was taken into custody ; she was later convicted of attempted assassination of the President and was sentenced to life in prison ; she was paroled on August 14 , 2009 . In reaction to this attempt , the Secret Service began keeping Ford at a more secure distance from anonymous crowds , a strategy that may have saved his life seventeen days later ; as he left the St . Francis Hotel in downtown San Francisco , Sara Jane Moore , standing in a crowd of onlookers across the street , pointed her . 38 - caliber revolver at him . Moore fired a single round but missed because the sights were off . Just before she fired a second round , retired Marine Oliver Sipple grabbed at the gun and deflected her shot ; the bullet struck a wall about six inches above and to the right of Ford ' s head , then ricocheted and hit a taxi driver , who was slightly wounded . Moore was later sentenced to life in prison . She was paroled on December 31 , 2007 , having served 32 years . Judicial appointments . Supreme Court . In 1975 , Ford appointed John Paul Stevens as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States to replace retiring Justice William O . Douglas . Stevens had been a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit , appointed by President Nixon . During his tenure as House Republican leader , Ford had led efforts to have Douglas impeached . After being confirmed , Stevens eventually disappointed some conservatives by siding with the Court ' s liberal wing regarding the outcome of many key issues . Nevertheless , President Ford paid tribute to Stevens . " He has served his nation well , " Ford said of Stevens , " with dignity , intellect and without partisan political concerns . " Other judicial appointments . In addition to the Stevens appointment , Ford appointed 11 judges to the United States Courts of Appeals , and 50 judges to the United States district courts . 1976 presidential election . Ford reluctantly agreed to run for office in 1976 , but first he had to counter a challenge for the Republican party nomination . Former Governor of California Ronald Reagan and the party ' s conservative wing faulted Ford for failing to do more in South Vietnam , for signing the Helsinki Accords and for negotiating to cede the Panama Canal ( negotiations for the canal continued under President Carter , who eventually signed the Torrijos - Carter Treaties ) . Reagan launched his campaign in autumn of 1975 and won several primaries before withdrawing from the race at the Republican Convention in Kansas City , Missouri . The conservative insurgency convinced Ford to drop the more liberal Vice President Nelson Rockefeller in favor of Kansas Senator Bob Dole . In addition to the pardon dispute and lingering anti - Republican sentiment , Ford had to counter a plethora of negative media imagery . Chevy Chase often did pratfall s on " Saturday Night Live " , imitating Ford , who had been seen stumbling on two occasions during his term . As Chase commented , " He even mentioned in his own autobiography it had an effect over a period of time that affected the election to some degree . " President Ford ' s 1976 election campaign had the advantage that he was an incumbent president during several anniversary events held during the period leading up to the United States Bicentennial . The Washington , D . C . fireworks display on the Fourth of July was presided over by the President and televised nationally . On July 7 , 1976 , the President and First Lady served as hosts at a White House state dinner for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip of the United Kingdom , which was televised on the Public Broadcasting Service network . The 200th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts gave Ford the opportunity to deliver a speech to 110 , 000 in Concord acknowledging the need for a strong national defense tempered with a plea for " reconciliation , not recrimination " and " reconstruction , not rancor " between the United States and those who would pose " threats to peace " . Speaking in New Hampshire on the previous day , Ford condemned the growing trend toward big government bureaucracy and argued for a return to " basic American virtues " . Democratic nominee and former Georgia governor Jimmy Carter campaigned as an outsider and reformer , gaining support from voters dismayed by the Watergate scandal and Nixon pardon . After the Democratic National Convention , he held a huge 33 - point lead over Ford in the polls . However , as the campaign continued , the race tightened , and , by election day , the polls showed the race as too close to call . There were three main events in the fall campaign . Most importantly , Carter repeated a promise of a " blanket pardon " for Christian and other religious refugees , and also all Vietnam War draft dodgers ( Ford had only issued a conditional amnesty ) in response to a question on the subject posed by a reporter during the presidential debates , an act which froze Ford ' s poll numbers in Ohio , Wisconsin , Hawaii , and Mississippi . ( Ford had needed only to shift 11 , 000 votes in two of those four states in order to win . ) Americans viewed the pardon as an essential moral act and as the true end to a bitterly hated war . It was the first act signed by Carter , on January 20 , 1977 . Earlier , " Playboy " magazine had published a controversial interview with Carter ; in the interview Carter admitted to having " lusted in my heart " for women other than his wife , which cut into his support among women and evangelical Christians . Also , on September 24 , Ford performed well in what was the first televised presidential debate since 1960 . Polls taken after the debate showed that most viewers felt that Ford was the winner . Carter was also hurt by Ford ' s charges that he lacked the necessary experience to be an effective national leader , and that Carter was vague on many issues . Televised presidential debates were reintroduced for the first time since the 1960 election . As such , Ford became the first incumbent president to participate in one . Carter later attributed his victory in the election to the debates , saying they " gave the viewers reason to think that Jimmy Carter had something to offer " . The turning point came in the second debate when Ford blundered by stating , " There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe and there never will be under a Ford Administration . " Ford also said that he did not " believe that the Poles consider themselves dominated by the Soviet Union " . In an interview years later , Ford said he had intended to imply that the Soviets would never crush the " spirits " of eastern Europeans seeking independence . However , the phrasing was so awkward that questioner Max Frankel was visibly incredulous at the response . As a result of this blunder , and Carter ' s promise of a full presidential pardon for political refugees from the Vietnam era during the presidential debates , Ford ' s surge stalled and Carter was able to maintain a slight lead in the polls . In the end , Carter won the election , receiving 50 . 1 % of the popular vote and 297 electoral votes compared with 48 . 0 % and 240 electoral votes for Ford . The election was close enough that had fewer than 25 , 000 votes shifted in Ohio and Wisconsin – both of which neighbored his home state – Ford would have won the electoral vote with 276 votes to 261 for Carter . Though he lost , in the three months between the Republican National Convention and the election Ford managed to close what was once a 34 - point Carter lead to a 2 - point margin . Despite his defeat , Ford carried 27 states versus 23 carried by Carter . Had Ford won the election , the provisions of the 22nd Amendment would have disqualified him from running in 1980 , because he had served more than two years of Nixon ' s remaining term . Post - presidential years , 1977 – 2006 . Activity . The Nixon pardon controversy eventually subsided . Ford ' s successor , Jimmy Carter , opened his 1977 inaugural address by praising the outgoing President , saying , " For myself and for our Nation , I want to thank my predecessor for all he has done to heal our land . " Ford remained relatively active in the years after his presidency and continued to make appearances at events of historical and ceremonial significance to the nation , such as presidential inaugurals and memorial services . In January 1977 , he became the president of Eisenhower Fellowships in Philadelphia then served as its chairman of the board of trustees from 1980 to 1986 . Later in the year , he reluctantly agreed to be interviewed by James M . Naughton , a " New York Times " journalist who was given the assignment to write the former President ' s advance obituary , an article that would be updated prior to its eventual publication . In 1979 , Ford published his autobiography , " A Time to Heal " ( Harper / Reader ' s Digest , 454 pages ) . A review in " Foreign Affairs " described it as , " Serene , unruffled , unpretentious , like the author . This is the shortest and most honest of recent presidential memoirs , but there are no surprises , no deep probings of motives or events . No more here than meets the eye . " In addition to his autobiography , in 1987 Ford wrote " Humor and the Presidency " , a book of humorous political anecdotes . During the term of office of his successor , Jimmy Carter , Ford received monthly briefs by President Carter ' s senior staff on international and domestic issues , and was always invited to lunch at the White House whenever he was in Washington , D . C . Their close friendship developed after Carter had left office , with the catalyst being their trip together to the funeral of Anwar el - Sadat in 1981 . Until Ford ' s death , Carter and his wife , Rosalynn , visited the Fords ' home frequently . Ford and Carter served as honorary co - chairs of the National Commission on Federal Election Reform in 2001 and of the Continuity of Government Commission in 2002 . Like Presidents Carter , George H . W . Bush , and Clinton , Ford was an honorary co - chair of the Council for Excellence in Government , a group dedicated to excellence in government performance , which provides leadership training to top federal employees . Ford considered a run for the Republican nomination in 1980 , foregoing numerous opportunities to serve on corporate boards to keep his options open for a grudge match with Carter . Ford attacked Carter ' s conduct of the SALT II negotiations and foreign policy in the Middle East and Africa . Many have argued that Ford also wanted to exorcise his image as an " Accidental President " and to win a term in his own right . Ford also believed the more conservative Ronald Reagan would be unable to defeat Carter and would hand the incumbent a second term . Ford was encouraged by his former Secretary of State , Henry Kissinger as well as Jim Rhodes of Ohio and Bill Clements of Texas to make the race . On March 15 , 1980 , Ford announced that he would forgo a run for the Republican nomination , vowing to support the eventual nominee . After securing the Republican nomination in 1980 , Ronald Reagan considered his former rival Ford as a potential vice - presidential running mate , but negotiations between the Reagan and Ford camps at the Republican National Convention were unsuccessful . Ford conditioned his acceptance on Reagan ' s agreement to an unprecedented " co - presidency " , giving Ford the power to control key executive branch appointments ( such as Kissinger as Secretary of State and Alan Greenspan as Treasury Secretary ) . After rejecting these terms , Reagan offered the vice - presidential nomination instead to George H . W . Bush . Ford did appear in a campaign commercial for the Reagan - Bush ticket , in which he declared that the country would be " better served by a Reagan presidency rather than a continuation of the weak and politically expedient policies of Jimmy Carter " . After his presidency , Ford joined the American Enterprise Institute as a distinguished fellow . He founded the annual AEI World Forum in 1982 . Ford was awarded an honorary doctorate at Central Connecticut State University on March 23 , 1988 . After leaving the White House , Ford and his wife moved to Denver , Colorado . Ford successfully invested in oil with Marvin Davis , which later provided an income for Ford ' s children . By 1988 Ford was a member of several corporate boards including Commercial Credit , Nova Pharmaceutical , The Pullman Company , Tesoro Petroleum , and Tiger International , Inc . Ford also became an honorary director of Citigroup , a position he held till his death . In 1977 , he established the Gerald R . Ford Institute of Public Policy at Albion College in Albion , Michigan , to give undergraduates training in public policy . In April 1981 , he opened the Gerald R . Ford Library in Ann Arbor , Michigan , on the north campus of his alma mater , the University of Michigan , followed in September by the Gerald R . Ford Museum in Grand Rapids . In 1999 , Ford was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton . In 2001 , he was presented with the John F . Kennedy Profiles in Courage Award for his decision to pardon Richard Nixon to stop the agony America was experiencing over Watergate . In retirement Ford also devoted much time to his love of golf , often playing both privately and in public events with comedian Bob Hope , a longtime friend . A Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars was dedicated to Ford in 1993 . In October 2001 , Ford broke with conservative members of the Republican party by stating that gay and lesbian couples " ought to be treated equally . Period . " He became the highest ranking Republican to embrace full equality for gays and lesbians , stating his belief that there should be a federal amendment outlawing anti - gay job discrimination and expressing his hope that the Republican Party would reach out to gay and lesbian voters . He also was a member of the Republican Unity Coalition , which " The New York Times " described as " a group of prominent Republicans , including former President Gerald R . Ford , dedicated to making sexual orientation a non - issue in the Republican Party " . On November 22 , 2004 , New York Republican Governor George Pataki named Ford and the other living former Presidents ( Carter , George H . W . Bush and Bill Clinton ) as honorary members of the board rebuilding the World Trade Center . In a pre - recorded embargoed interview with Bob Woodward of " The Washington Post " in July 2004 , Ford stated that he disagreed " very strongly " with the Bush administration ' s choice of Iraq ' s alleged weapons of mass destruction as justification for its decision to invade Iraq , calling it a " big mistake " unrelated to the national security of the United States and indicating that he would not have gone to war had he been President . The details of the interview were not released until after Ford ' s death , as he requested . Health problems . As Ford approached his 90th year , he began to experience health problems associated with old age . He suffered two minor strokes at the 2000 Republican National Convention , but made a quick recovery after being admitted to Hahnemann University Hospital . In January 2006 , he spent 11 days at the Eisenhower Medical Center near his residence at Rancho Mirage , California , for treatment of pneumonia . On April 23 , President George W . Bush visited Ford at his home in Rancho Mirage for a little over an hour . This was Ford ' s last public appearance and produced the last known public photos , video footage and voice recording . While vacationing in Vail , Colorado , he was hospitalized for two days in July 2006 for shortness of breath . On August 15 Ford was admitted to St . Mary ' s Hospital of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester , Minnesota , for testing and evaluation . On August 21 , it was reported that he had been fitted with a pacemaker . On August 25 , he underwent an angioplasty procedure at the Mayo Clinic , according to a statement from an assistant to Ford . On August 28 , Ford was released from the hospital and returned with his wife Betty to their California home . On October 13 , he was scheduled to attend the dedication of a building of his namesake , the Gerald R . Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan , but due to poor health and on the advice of his doctors he did not attend . The previous day , Ford entered the Eisenhower Medical Center for undisclosed tests ; he was released on October 16 . By November 2006 , he was confined to a bed in his study . In reality , President Ford had end - stage coronary artery disease and severe aortic stenosis and insufficiency , caused by calcific alteration of one of his heart valves . Death and legacy . Ford died on December 26 , 2006 , at his home in Rancho Mirage , California , of arteriosclerotic cerebrovascular disease and diffuse arteriosclerosis . His age at the time of his death was 93 years and 165 days , making Ford the longest - lived U . S . President . On December 30 , 2006 , Ford became the 11th U . S . President to lie in state . The burial was preceded by a state funeral and memorial services held at the National Cathedral in Washington , D . C . , on January 2 , 2007 . After the service , Ford was interred at his Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids , Michigan . Ford died on the 34th anniversary of President Harry Truman ' s death , thus becoming the second U . S . President to die on Boxing Day . He was the last surviving member of the Warren Commission . His wife , Betty Ford , died on July 8 , 2011 . Like her husband , Betty also died at age 93 . They are the longest lived Presidential couple . The State of Michigan commissioned and submitted a statue of Ford to the National Statuary Hall Collection , replacing Zachariah Chandler . It was unveiled on May 3 , 2011 in the Capitol Rotunda . On the proper right side is inscribed a quotation from a tribute by Thomas P . " Tip " O ' Neill , Speaker of the House during Ford ’ s presidency : " God has been good to America , especially during difficult times . At the time of the Civil War , he gave us Abraham Lincoln . And at the time of Watergate , he gave us Gerald Ford — the right man at the right time who was able to put our nation back together again . " On the proper left side are words from Ford ' s swearing - in address : " Our constitution works . Our great republic is a government of laws and not of men . Here the people rule . " Longevity . Ford was the longest - lived U . S . President , his lifespan being 45 days longer than Ronald Reagan ' s . He was the third - longest - lived Vice President , falling short only of John Nance Garner , 98 , and Levi P . Morton , 96 . Ford had the third - longest post - presidency ( 29 years and 11 months ) after Jimmy Carter ( and counting ) and Herbert Hoover ( 31 years and 7 months ) On November 12 , 2006 , upon surpassing Ronald Reagan ' s lifespan , Ford released his last public statement : Public image . Ford was the only person to hold the presidential office without being elected as president nor vice - president . The choice of Ford to fulfill Agnew ' s vacated role as vice president was based on his reputation for openness and honesty . " In all the years I sat in the House , I never knew Mr Ford to make a dishonest statement nor a statement part - true and part - false . He never attempted to shade a statement , and I never heard him utter an unkind word , " said Martha Griffiths . The trust the American people had in him was severely and rapidly tarnished by his pardon of Nixon . Nonetheless , many grant in hindsight that he had respectably discharged with considerable dignity a great responsibility that he had not sought . His subsequent loss to Carter in 1976 has come to be seen as an honorable sacrifice he made for the nation . In spite of his athletic record and remarkable career accomplishments , Ford acquired a reputation as a clumsy , likable and simple - minded Everyman . An incident in 1975 when he tripped while exiting the presidential jet in Austria , was famously and repetitively parodied by Chevy Chase , cementing Ford ' s image as a klutz . Pieces of Ford ' s common Everyman image have also been attributed to Ford ' s inevitable comparison to Nixon , as well as his perceived Midwestern stodginess and self - deprecation . Ridicule often extended to supposed intellectual limitations , with Lyndon Johnson once joking , " He ' s a nice fellow but he spent too much time playing football without a helmet . " Honors . Ford was honored with a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars in 1999 . And the following facilities were named after him :