See also Cabinet of President Gerald Ford.). Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. The irony is that distrust of Nixon played a role in Ford's rise to both offices. Professional Writer, Professional Researcher, B.A. With the approval of both the House and Senate, Ford replaced Agnew. Jack Marsh served with Gerald R. Ford in the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia from 1963 until 1971. Ford was born and baptized Leslie King, Jr. His father was a drunk who began beating his mother almost immediately after they were married, and they were quickly divorced. What were Ford's main achievements in foreign policy? From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King, Jr.; July 14, 1913 — December 26, 2006) was the 38th President of the United States from 1974 to 1977. Omissions? Gerald Rudolph Ford, the 38th United States President, was the first Vice-President to gain office who was neither elected to become Vice-President nor President. Vice presidential nominee Gerald R. Ford, right, listens as President Richard Nixon speaks in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Saturday, Oct. 13, 1973. Vice President Gerald Ford acceded to the Presidency before he could use the home, and his Vice President, Nelson Rockefeller, only used it for entertaining. Ford became the first, and so far the only, person to become President without winning a general election for President or Vice President. Ford recalled in his memoirs that he learned about his biological father at the age of 12 and only met the man a couple of times. In 1974, when it became clear that Nixon would face criminal charges for his role in the Watergate scandal and three articles of impeachment had been passed by the House Judiciary Committee, Nixon resigned, effective August 9. While Gerald Ford was still an infant, his parents were divorced, and his mother moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she married Gerald R. Ford, Sr., who adopted the boy and gave him his name. Gerald Ford died December 26, 2006. 40 years ago, Gerald Ford became Vice President of the US following the resignation of VP Agnew. At left is Gerald Ford, the Republican leader of the House of Representatives. He was considered to be a man of principle, but willing to make a compromise. Source: Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. Who are the experts?Our certified Educators are real professors, teachers, and scholars who use their academic expertise to tackle your toughest questions. After graduating from the University of Michigan (1935), where he was a star gridiron-football player, Ford worked as an assistant coach while he earned a law degree from Yale University (1941). His mother, Dorothy, divorced King when her son was a baby and moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ford was serving as the Vice President of the U.S. when President Richard M. Nixon resigned from office, placing Ford in the unique position of being the first Vice President and President never elected. The irony, of course, is that Gerald Ford rose to become President of the United States under the additions to the amendment which Nixon had argued against. With the approval of both the House and Senate, Ford replaced Agnew. Nelson Rockefeller was his Vice President. President Richard Nixon offers Gerald Ford the nomination for vice president. Gerald Ford, Ellen Rometsch, and JFK. Henry A. Kissinger (left) with U.S. Pres. In the first instance, Secret Service agents intervened before shots were fired; in the second, the would-be assassin fired one shot at Ford but missed by several feet. In 1948, the year he won his first elective office, as Republican congressman from Michigan, he married Elizabeth Anne Bloomer (Betty Ford), with whom he had four children—three sons (Michael, John, and Steven) and one daughter (Susan). Legislative gridlock set in. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. As Gerald Ford was getting used to the idea of being vice president, a spellbound nation was watching the Watergate scandal unfold. The amendment passed after the assassination of President Kennedy. Kennedy defeated Nixon in the 1960 presidential election. To become House Speaker, Ford worked to help Republicans across the country get a majority in the chamber, often traveling on the rubber chicken circuit. In October he initially refused to consider loans to the city of New York, then on the brink of fiscal collapse, and thereby prompted the newspaper headline “Ford to City: Drop Dead.” As the larger implications became clear, he retreated from his earlier position. In the early years of the American Republic, the job of the Vice President of the United States was considered so insignificant that several potential candidates turned the job down when nominated: eighteen American presidents served without a vice president. On October 10, 1973, Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned and then pleaded no contestto criminal charges of tax evasion and money laundering, part of a negotiated resolution to a scheme in which he accepted $29,500 ($228,847 in 2020 dollars) in bribes wh… Americaâs 38th president, Gerald Ford (1913-2006) took office on August 9, 1974, following the resignation of President Richard Nixon (1913-1994), who left the Nixon's resignation a year later (also a first) unexpectedly made Ford the 38th president. On that day, Ford took the oath of office and became president, stating, “Our long national nightmare is over.” He retained the foreign and domestic policy staffs of the Nixon administration, including Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Remarks at a News Conference for Vice President-designate Rockefeller. Gerald Ford became Vice President indirectly as the result of the assassination of John Kennedy and the United States Senate amending the Constitution to formalize a process for choosing a Vice President in the event one was needed. Please select which sections you would like to print: Corrections? Vice presidential nominee Gerald R. Ford, right, listens as President Richard Nixon speaks in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Saturday, Oct. 13, 1973. During the 1972 presidential campaign, five men employed by Nixon's Committee to re-elect the president allegedly broke into the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington, D.C.'s Watergate hotel. Madeleine Brand speaks … In 1973, Spiro Agnew resigned as Richard Nixon's vice president amid accusations of bribery, extortion, and tax evasion. His decisions in office had often seemed to be those of Kissinger and the others left over from the Nixon administration; sometimes, as those made during the Mayaguez incident, they seemed simply ill-considered. The answer to your question is that Gerald Ford was well liked by his colleagues in the House. Afterward Ford voluntarily appeared before a subcommittee of the House of Representatives on October 17 to explain his reasoning—the first time a standing president had formally testified before a committee of Congress. Gradually, Ford selected a cabinet of his own. Gerald Ford in the first of three televised debates during the 1976 presidential campaign. The result was a very severe recession in 1974–75, which succeeded in lowering inflation but at the cost of an unemployment rate that rose to nearly 9 percent. Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. was born in Omaha, Nebraska, on July 14, 1913. Defending the pardon of Richard Nixon ’ s economic problems being elected to either.. 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