Posted on 01/12/2007 1:45:53 PM PST by NormsRevenge
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - 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" 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. He 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's gave the interviews on the condition that his remarks be withheld until after his death.
According to the newspaper, Ford declined to rate George W. Bush, saying he did not know him 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 Reagan "was just a poor manager, and you can't be president and do a good job unless you manage."
Ford contended his own negotiation of the Helsinki accords on human rights did more to win the Cold War than Reagan's military buildup. Other key factors were the Marshall Plan that helped rebuild Europe after World War II and the establishment of NATO, he 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."
Remember his big domestic campaign, "Whip Inflation Now?" We were to defeat the economic doldrums by wearing WIN lapel pins. Yeah, Ford was a real mover and shaker.
You mught read some of Reagan's essays before counting on a modest assessment of his intelligence. Ronald Reagan was a highly intelligent and insightful man. His writings are available in book form and most liberals are afraid to read them.
Ford was angry that Reagan didn't select him for Vice-President in 1980. Reagan didn't want him, but was about to agree as a political compromise until Ford insisted that he would have significant powers as Vice-President. I was never that impressed with Ford, and considered him an okay guy. I became a Republican because of Reagan, and I'm trying to figure out why I'm still one now.
Eisenhower as president . . .
I was a child during the Eisenhower years and remember him as a benevolent father-like figure. However, I learned a lot from eavesdropping on the grownup talking politics.
With the Alger Hiss scandal fresh in everybody's minds, one of his big campaign promises was to "clean out the State Department." After he was elected, of course, nothing happened. That really opened my eyes to the cynical way politicians manipulate public emotions during the heat of a campaign. It was a painful disappointment because some people were really looking forward to getting rid of the Communist bastards.
The other disappointment Eisenhower created was in his failure to come to the aid of the Hungarian revolt in 1956. Holy cow, we were the ONLY superpower in those days and there was no way the Soviets could have challenged us if we had sent in a few tanks to help Hungary.
When he was interviewed a few years later about it he said he was sure it would lead to nuclear war. But he was so unconvincing it was obvious he was evading the truth. Don't know why he wouldn't help the Hungarians but he sure felt guilty about it.
More like a Yugo. Or a Chevy Vega, the car that rusted on the showroom floor. Or a Renault LeCar. Or a Suzuki Samurai.
Having a good engineering mind (Carter) does not translate into history-changing leadership (Reagan).
No, I don't buy the leftist slant that Reagan was not bright.
Please, oh please, do tell us about this!
CA....
Now you've said a mouthful!
CA....
I think it was more about complaining about how MCA treated them.
You really should warn us before posting pics of Hillary Clinton.
LOL!
It was April 20th, 1979 and Jimmy Carter was fishing from his boat. President Carter was then "attacked" by a mysterious "killer" rabbit, which our brave president warded off with a paddle. This bizarre story captivated the imagination of the press and the public, becoming a metaphor according to Larry Sabato for carter's hapless, enfeebled presidency. It has been said that this incident convinced Teddy Kennedy that someone had to challenge this national embarrassment in the RAT primary.
I'd forgotten about that incident; what a disgrace it was.
I'm not sure any fully evolved Republican would be giving away the Panama Canal or ignoring dissidents or imposing gun controls.
YourAdHere called Carter a disaster.
So there ya have it! A moderate and a dope! The seventies sucked in America compared to most other decades in the twentieth century!!!
Other than that he was a 'caretaker' president. Noteable for nothing much, didn't commit any great acts or crimes.
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