Gerald Ford, the Worst President of Modern Times. The Person Responsible for
the Rise of Cheney, Rumsfeld, Bush and Unelected Presidents
Now that Gerald Ford is dead and buried, it is obvious from his life and death that the power of the presidency comes, not from the Constitution, but from the ballots of the voters. Ford was president for over two years; yet, in his obituaries, the only accomplishment that anyone could think of was his pardoning of Nixon and "healing the Nation" after Watergate.
There are two reasons for this: the first is that Ford was not an elected president, but rather an appointed one. The second is that Ford himself was largely responsible for the crisis. According to veteran political correspondent Richard Reeve's book, A Ford, Not a Lincoln, Ford started researching the law and pushing for Nixon's resignation from the moment he became Vice-President.
According to Reeves' book, there may even have been a quid pro quo deal between Nixon and Ford, negotiated by Alexander Haig, Nixon's last Chief of Staff, agreeing that Nixon would resign in exchange for a pardon from Ford. It is important to remember that the Republicans like George Bush I, Ford, Kissinger, Rumsfeld and Cheney, who undermined Nixon during Watergate, were working with the Democratic opposition. Similarly, when George Bush II stole the 2000 election, the Democrats agreed to let him steal it.
So, it is no surprise that the United States was attacked from abroad, finds itself embroiled in massive debt and a quagmire in Iraq; because when the loser is put into office the American people are disenfranchised and prevented from defending themselves. Until Bush II and Gore, presidential candidates supported the sovereignty of the American people. Bush and Gore changed the rules to empower the lawyers. Given both the Democrats and Republicans contempt for the voters and the law, there should be no surprise should it be revealed in the future that unprecedented illegal and covert actions like renditions and overseas torture prisons were the precipitating events and proximate causes of the September 11 attacks on the United States. It is well to remember that Bush ran on a war platform in 2000 by saying he believed in peace in the Middle East but on "their" timetable, not ours; meaning, he was happy to see the Palestinians continue under illegal occupation. It is also important to remember that Bush welcomed the coup in Pakistan in 1999 that brought General Pervez Musharaff to power, claiming it would be a force for "stabilizing the area." Less than two years later, the September 11 terrorist attacks, which were hatched in that area, materialized. Yet, John Kerry was unable to point to this obvious error and stupidity, that jeopardized American security, in his campaign against George Bush.
Politics has now become nothing but a power game. It is easy to predict the outcome of Supreme Court decisions and legislative battles, not on the basis of right and left, or right or wrong, but on the basis of power. The Supreme Court will always decide decisions on the basis of whatever increases the court's power. That's why Bush is president. Only a decision for Bush in 2000 would have increased the power of the Supreme Court. Of course, Gore signaled his support for such an outcome by announcing, three days after the election, that he would not "accept any of George Bush's electors." The electoral college was created specifically to keep the selection of the president in the hands of the states and out of the hands of the federal government. It is one of the fundamental checks and balances of the Constitution.
Gerald Ford was an ambitious, amiable, unethical dolt. He did more to remove democratic power from the hands of the voters than anyone since Congress in the Hayes-Tilden election of 1876. And that's why the party politicians and media were uncharacteristically speechless when Ford died. Ford was appointed to the presidency first by Congress; and then acceded to the Oval Office on the basis of a backroom deal worthy of the worst excesses of the 19th century. At least Bush won his party's nomination and ran for the office before stealing it. Ford's major accomplishment was the destruction of American democracy to the benefit of the Democratic and Republican Parties and the mainstream media. That's why the Democrats supported Ford and Bush II, because increasing the power of the two party system was more important than either defending the nation or supporting the voters. The people, who were conspicuously absent from Ford's sham State Funeral (compare to Reagan's) both as mourners and as viewers (ask the networks for ratings of Ford's funeral) memorialized Ford with their feet.
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