Gerald
R. Ford
Quotes
“He [Gerald R. Ford, Sr.] and Mother had three rules: tell the truth, work hard, and come to dinner on time—and woe unto any of us who violated those rules.”
From President Ford's memoir, A Time to Heal
1979
“I
am not a saint, and
I am sure I have done
things I might have
done better or differently,
or not at all. I
have also left undone
things that I should
have done. But
I believe and hope
that I have been honest
with myself and with
others, that I have
been faithful to my
friends and fair to
my opponents, and that
I have tried my very
best to make this great
Government work for
the good of all Americans.”
Statement
before the Senate
Committee
on Rules and Administration
[Vice
Presidential
Confirmation Hearings]
November 1, 1973
“I
am a Ford, not a Lincoln.”
Remarks
after being sworn in
as
Vice President
of the United States
December 6, 1973
“I
promise my fellow citizens
only this: To uphold
the Constitution, to
do what is right as
God gives me to see
the right, and…to
do the very best that
I can for America.”
Remarks
after being sworn in
as Vice President of
the United States
December
6, 1973
"I
have not sought this
enormous responsibility,
but I will not shirk
it . . . I
believe that truth
is the glue that holds
government together,
not only our Government,
but civilization itself. That
bond, though strained,
is unbroken at home
and abroad. In
all my public and private
acts as your President,
I expect to follow my
instincts of openness
and candor with full
confidence that honesty
is always the best policy
in the end. My
fellow Americans, our
long national nightmare
is over. Our
Constitution works;
our great Republic
is a Government
of laws and not of
men. Here
the people rule.”
Remarks
upon being sworn
in as President
of the United States
August
9, 1974
“A
government big enough
to give you everything
you want is a government
big enough to take
from you everything
you have.”
Address
to a Joint Session of
Congress
August 12, 1974
“This
Congress, unless it has
changed, I am confident,
will be my working partner
as well as my most constructive
critic. I
am not asking for conformity. I
am dedicated to the two-party
system, and you know which
party I belong to. I
do not want a honeymoon
with you. I
want a good marriage.”
Address
to a Joint Session of
Congress
August 12, 1974
“As
we are a nation under
God, so I am sworn to
uphold our laws with the
help of God. And
I have sought such guidance
and searched my own conscience
with special diligence
to determine the right
thing for me to do with
respect to my predecessor
in this place, Richard
Nixon, and his loyal wife
and family. Theirs
is an American 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.”
Remarks
upon granting a pardon
to former President Richard
Nixon
September 8, 1974
“Desertion
in time of war is a major,
serious offense; failure
to respond to the country’s
call for duty is also
a serious offense. Reconciliation
among our people does
not require that these
acts be condoned. Yet,
reconciliation calls
for an act of mercy to
bind the Nation’s
wounds and to heal the
scars of divisiveness.”
Remarks
upon
announcing a clemency
program for Vietnam
era draft evaders
September
16, 1974
“We
are bound together by
the most powerful of
all ties, our fervent
love for freedom and
independence, which
knows no homeland but
the human heart.”
Address
before the Conference
on Security and Cooperation
in Europe
August 1,
1975
“History
will judge this Conference
not by what we say
here today, but by
what we do tomorrow
- not by the promises
we make, but by the
promises we keep.”
Address
before the Conference
on Security and Cooperation
in Europe
August 1,
1975
“As
we continue our American
adventure…all
our heroes and heroines
of war and peace send
us this single, urgent
message: though prosperity
is a good thing, though
compassionate charity
is a good thing, though
institutional reform
is a good thing, a
nation survives only
so long as the spirit
of sacrifice and self-discipline
is strong within its
people. Independence
has to be defended
as well as declared;
freedom is always worth
fighting for; and liberty
ultimately belongs
only to those willing
to suffer for it.”
Bicentennial
Remarks at Valley
Forge, Pennsylvania
July 4, 1976
“The
world is ever conscious
of what Americans are
doing, for better or
for worse, because
the United States today
remains that most successful
realization of humanity’s
universal hope. The
world may or may not
follow, but we lead
because our whole history
says we must. Liberty
is for all men and
women as a matter of
equal and unalienable
right. The
establishment of justice
and peace abroad will
in large measure depend
upon the peace and
justice we create here
in our own country,
for we still show the
way.”
Bicentennial
Remarks at Independence
Hall Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania
July
4, 1976
“Remember
that none of us are
more than caretakers
of this great country. Remember
that the more freedom
you give to others,
the more you will
have for yourself. Remember
that without law there
can be no liberty. And
remember, as well,
the rich treasures
you brought from whence
you came, and let
us share your pride
in them.”
Remarks
during Naturalization
Ceremonies at Monticello,
Virginia
July 5,
1976
“To
me, the Presidency
and the Vice-Presidency
were not prizes to
be won, but a duty
to be done.”
Remarks
upon accepting the
Republican Presidential
Nomination,
Kansas City, Missouri
August
19, 1976
I
am a loyal Wolverine.
When they lose
in football, basketball,
or anything I still
get darn disappointed."
Remarks
from a phone
interview to
the Ann Arbor
News before the
University of
Michigan retired
his football
number
October
8, 1994.
"Some
people equate
civility with
weakness and compromise
with surrender.
I strongly disagree.
I come by my political
pragmatism the
hard way, for
my generation
paid a very heavy
price in resistance
to the century
we had of some
extremists --
to the dictators,
the utopians,
the social engineers
who are forever
condemning the
human race for
being all too
human."
Remarks
upon receiving the
Congressional Gold
Medal
October 27,
1999.
“I
have always believed
that most people are
mostly good, most of
the time. I
have never mistaken
moderation for weakness,
nor civility for surrender. As
far as I'm concerned,
there are no enemies
in politics--just temporary
opponents who might
vote with you on the
next Roll Call.”
Remarks
upon receiving the
John F. Kennedy Profile
in Courage Award
May
21, 2001
“.
. . The ultimate test
of leadership is not
the polls you take,
but the risks you take. In
the short run, some
risks prove overwhelming. Political
courage can be self-defeating. But
the greatest defeat
of all would be to
live without courage,
for that would hardly
be living at all.”
Remarks
upon receiving the
John F. Kennedy Profile
in Courage Award
May
21, 2001
Biography
of President Ford
President
Ford's Posthumous
Tributes and Honors
Timeline
of President Ford's
Life and Career
Last Updated: February 12, 2007