Gerald Ford Dies

Gerald Ford, the 38th President of the United States, died late yesterday at age 93. He was the longest-lived President.

He was the only President I have thus far had the privilege of meeting. I attended a conference at his Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in late 1985, sponsored by the Center for the Study of the Presidency. After a dinner speech to assembled noteworthies, he held a private meeting with about a dozen Center Fellows, and was quite generous with his time and observations.

While not particularly fond of his brand of Republicanism, in retrospect, one cannot help but admire the fact that he was a true statesman, pardoning Richard Nixon to spare the nation the spectacle of a trial when it almost certainly resulted in his defeat in the 1976 presidential election.

A particularly upsetting time of year for his family to suffer such a loss. RIP.