Ronald Reagan fought sitting president Gerald Ford for the GOP nomination, and came within an ace of beating him. At the convention, Reagan was forced to face a narrow defeat. He came out for a major press conference, flash bulbs bursting all around, cocked his head and threw out a trademark Reagan grin and said: "Well, it was a good fight, ma, but he won!" The press and the room broke in laughs and applause. Reagan not only had principles, he had class.
Reagan was a class act all the way.