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This file includes comments on Donald Rumsfeld, Henry Kissinger, Nelson Rockefeller, the Reagan challenge for the Republican nomination, and Robert Dole.
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1510061
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Ford, Gerald - Interview, 3/8/78
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1510061
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Ford, Gerald - Interview, 3/8/78
description
This file includes comments on Donald Rumsfeld, Henry Kissinger, Nelson Rockefeller, the Reagan challenge for the Republican nomination, and Robert Dole.
citationUrl
collections
A. James Reichley Interview Transcripts
Ford Administration White House Staff Interviews
subjects
National security
United States-Soviet relations
Presidential campaign, 1976
Cabinet
Economics
Federal budget
Energy policy
International relations
Busing for school integration
Inflation (Finance)
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1510061
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1977-01-31
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1
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1977
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1974-08-01
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8
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1974
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The original documents are located in Box 1, folder "Ford, Gerald - Interview, 3/8/78" of
the A. James Reichley Interview Transcripts at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. A. James Reichley donated to the
United States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives
collections. Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in
the public domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are
presumed to remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject
to a valid copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
FORD & 028410 LIBRARY
Interview with former President Gerald Ford, March 8, 1978.
Phlsphy
Ford said that there very definitely had been an underlying philosophy to
kias his administration's program. This philosophy was embodied in the economic
plan that he recommended be put into effect in January of 1975, calling for
tax reductions and a fifty percent cut in the rate of growth of federal spending.
Througout his administration, Ford said, he had attempted to fight the developing
problem of inflation which in the long run I would lead to unemployment. The
Inflrn, fight against inflation, Ford said, provided the basic theme for his administration.
Tied to this was his energy program introduced in 1975 in which he placed emphasis
on stimulating production of domestic oil and gas through increased price levels,
which also, he said, hopefully would bring some conservation. His domestic program
was related to foreign policy, Ford said, through the recognition of the inter-
Wsren
dependence of the economic world. He had dealt bilateralMwith West Germany, France
Amc.
and Britain to achieve improvements in the economic situation of the industrial
countries, followed
by the two western-world summit meetings at
(Ramboviller) and Puerto
Rico. Through these meetings, an integration of economic policy was achieved.
that
first with the three countries/he dealt with bilaterally, and then joined to them
Italy and Japan and also Canada at the Puerto Rico meeting. Ford said that when he
came into office he had found other members of the western alliance to be viewing
the United States with apprehension, with concern of the functioning of the American
government. He had set out to reassure the other industrial democracies through
his economic plan, and through improving relationships with the other democracies<
He aimed To show
by showing that the United States was prepared to be a good partner in the complex
economic situation facing the industrial democracies. K I asked Ford if he had backed
Dernr.
away from the detente policy with the Soviet Union and communist China?
H
said
That he had never fundmentally backed W away from detente, but because of the
situation that developed in connection with the presidential primaries and the
convention fight fight, it became necessary for him to deemphasize detante
He
had never backed off efforts to achieve more peaceful with relations with our
- 2 -
FORD & GERALD LIBRARY
communist adversary but because of the domestic political situation he had
not been able to give as much emphasis to this effort in the final year of his
administration. The campaign for reelection had made it necessary for him to
make his efforts of detente less visible than had formerly been the case.
R
I asked if Don R Rumsfeld had been cooler toward detente than Henry Kissinger?
Rmstlt.
Ford said, "not in any fundmental way. He did not think that Rumsefeld had been
cooler but that particularly after he XXX became secretary of defense his position
in the government had, of course, required that he support an increased level
of defense spending, and weapon development of our weaponssystem. Ford said that
Rumsfeld had not really taken at harder line toward the Soviet Union, but that
our
his job rquired him to make certain that military capabilities were sufficient to
meet any challenge. He said that Rumsfeld did ** have some feeling that detente was
not x paying off as well as it might (been)2) which was slowing progress
toward SALT In Ford said that there was a mistaken impression in some parts
Ksnzri
of the public that Kissinger was a soft-liner toward the Soviet Union. Ford said that
in fact on some occasions Kissinger had taken a harder line, had been tougher toward
the Soviet Union than anyone else in the administration. Ford said that really no
one in the adminstration had been a soft liner to ward the Soviet Union,
Brent Scowcroft was not an aggressive hard liner, but certainly not E what Ford
would call a "soft-liner." He said that everyone in the administration concerned with
foreign and defense policy had seen that the benefits of the detente must be :
reciprocal.
P
He said that when he came into office **** he had recognized it was
Pfns.
necessary to reverse the (decline alimb in defense spending. He said that he had increassed
spndur.
the percentage of federal spending going for defense, and had increased the
real
dollars being spent on defense. The increased Soviet effort for in military spending
had made it necessary for the United States to increase its defense budget.
H had project an increase over the next five or six years in defense spending.
SALT
Ford said that the SALT talks had been cut-up in the complications of the
presidential election year. He said that the negotiations over SALT had been
- 3 -
BERALD FORD LIBRARY
affected by the events prior to the convention and also by the post-convention
events of the election year. H Ford said *hat when he came into office he had made
Cbnr, a deliberate effort to make better use of cabinet people. (50uzhr) Particularly after he
got his own cabinet members into place he had thought to give more authority
under
to cabinet members than had been the case in the former adminstration. At the outset
of his administration, he had determined to have a strong cabinet. He said that he
sought to give cabinet members more authority over the execution as well as the
planning of policy. I asked if in the latter part of his administration he had felt
the need to draw XXX some authority back into the White House
said,
No
right through the end of his administration he had sought to give greater
authority to the cabinet members. He said that X he would have continued this
policy if he had been elected to a full term. Ford said that he felt he had a
first-class cabinet. He mentioned Carla Hills, Bill Simon, Don Rumsfeld,
Henry Kissinger, and Bill Usury as outstanding members of the cabinet R He saad that
Ch.
he could not recall any major problem having arisen because of X cabinet xxxx members
zurury,
(sotus)
exceeding their authority. I asked if John Dunlop's handling of the sitest picketing
matter had perhaps been an example of a cabinet member exercising too xxx much
authority. Ford said that he would not criticize Dunlop for anything that he had
Sirus
done in connection with the sites picketing matter that this was a volatile issue,
pckrazi
and that he would have to say it was not adq adequately staffed-out by the White House
west wing. He said that it this had occurred in the early part of his administration,
and that this was something in which the White House staff had not done a completely
adequate job. He said that the domestic council had fallen down on this particular
issue and that he would not criticize Dunlop for anything that he had done,
Ford said that the problem was that the Domestic Council ha at that point had not
Dms.
adequately firmed-up the process of staffing out issues Ford said that the
Cnuli
Domestic Council in his administrtion had a different role than it had had in the
Nixon White House. In the Nixon White House the Domestic Council had been very
powerful. Ford said that he had used the domestic council to staff-out issues and
- 4 -
FORD & LIBRARY GERALD
make recommendations to him. The domestic council was now a policy-organizing
body in his administration as it had been under Nixon, Ford said. I mentioned
that some people say that the domestic council was not used for long-range planning
in the Ford administration. And Ford said he felt that this was a just
criticism after all he only had 30 months in office, and he had not been able to
the
fully reorganize the west-wing setup in knoway that he would have liked to have
done. He had not had enough time to direct the administration's attention
(Toward
adequately th long-range problems. Ford said that when he came into office
Nx.
he had felt that it would be wrong to clean-out the X Nixon appointees on a wholesale
aprires.
basis. He felt that everyone should have four or five months to give them a
reasonable chance to find other jobs. P Ford said that he did not feel that he had
Ken
made any serious mistakes in his handling of the ***** economy that the thought that
his administration's policies had been successful in reducing inflation to 6.7
Intir.
percent in 1976, his policies had been continued to be followed that
would
inflation by now be down to four percent or less. The policies that President Carter
and
has followed have resulted in an increase in inflation, Ford said that
there
is no evidence that these policies will be changed. And that this is one of the
basic causes of the current drop inthe value of the dollar, which in the long
lead
run is going to XX to increased unemployment.
Ford said that when he a had submitted the 1977 budget at the beginning
177
of 1976, that he had/substantive hopes that the cuts in spending that he
bdeo,
recommended would be achieved. On the other hand, he said that he had
realistic doubts that Congress would be prepared to bite the bullet, at least not
in all the cases that he recommended. Ford said that he felt nevertheless that it
to
was his responsibility to lay it on the line
point to areas inwhich he
felt that spending could be cut. Ford said that he had not considered in any
major way increasing spending in 1976. For one thing he was not sure that
increase
any great spending phase would result in any significantreduction of unemployment.
Beyond that, he had a concern that any wild increase in spending even if it did
10AD
- 5 -
GERALD
LIBRARY
win the election would have the consequent of regenerating inflation which would
econo
from an economic
not have a very happy outcome for the country
standpoint. Ford said that
it was his conviction that a balanced responsible economic policy would lead
to success in bexe the election as well, said that it had almost worked.
Ford said that he had always regarded inflation as the nation's number one issue,
Intirn
and the polls showed that the public also regarded inflation as the number one
problem of the xxxx country. He said he recognized that the public in 1976, a majorit
The Public)
had felt that the Democrats were better ablet to deal with inflation than the
Republicans and he said that this was obvious not true and the results since
Carter has come into office have proven that it was not true. Ford said that he
ecumc,
was somewhat surprised by the pause in economic recovery that occurred in the
pars
early fall of 1976. He said that it could not have come at a more inauspicious
time.
was hard to explain why the pause had come at that time. He said
one XXX cause may have been the surprising slowdown in funds appropriated by the
Dan Defense Depar thenty by the failure of the Defense Department to obligate
funds that were committed to expenditure. Ford said that he felt it would have been
politically as well as economically unwise for him to have gone on any big spending
spree beyond the budget in 1976. He said that Vice-President Rockefeller to some
ROK.
extent urged increases in spending although in most areas he was not for any
sizeable increase over what the budget called for. X Ford recalled one area as
one
the energy independence authority as a place in which Rockefeller wanted a large
spending effort, but the effect of this spending would have not been immediate. It
would not have had a tremendous impact on **** the budget. Ford recalled that he
E.I.A.
for
had approved Rockefeller's recommendation to the energy independence authority
and he had recommended it to Congress. He said that some of the people in the
avor
White House did not ein in his for the energy independence authority.
As far as he knew they had not publicly tried to undercut it. He said they had
tried
been good soldiers, at least they had not undercut it in any serious way.
- 6 -
DERALD FORD LIBRARY
Ford said that he had not recommended a constitutional amendment to deal
(thar dealine with The problem 1 esislarively, as
with the busing problem because he thought the administration approach to
Busnz.
(proposed)
was a sound approachy to about it in a legislative way. He said that he
but
could not red recall that Senator Tower had favored a constitutional amendment,
that
he had thought this was probably so. He said that he had called on the
Deparment of Justice to come up with recommendations for legislation to deal with
busing and also with to pick a case in which the administration could intervene and
Take The
to follow this case to the Supreme Court. He said that it was his aim to give the
court an opportunity to determine what could be done through the courts. He had
given the attorney-general authority, Ford recalled, to pick the case that would
Ford said, )
make this test possible. The basic approach of the administration was to that if
busing were necessary X not to take an entire school system. That if there were
a problem of discrimination. that this should be dealt with on a school by school
not Throug
telt
basis not a basis dealing with an entire system. This, Ford said he felt &
was a sound policy, and one which he would have pursued had he been elected to a full
term. He said he had not given serious consideration to seeking a constitutional
real
amendment because he did not think there was any XXX possibility that such an
and
amendment would get two-third votes in the Senate XK the House. Therefore for him
to recommend **** a constitutional amendment would have been merely a gesture rather
(Subsiantire)
than a subs ti tute proposal. He felt that the country had had enough of gestures. He
felt that his solution was a more practical solution.
Ford conceded that the administration may have been slow gearing up to deal
chailengex
with
the
(?)
Reagon He said that they had always taken the Reagen threat
Rzn.
seriously Certainly they had taken it seriously after the defeat in North Carolina.
They had recognized that they they were going to have a serious problem at the
convention, and the only question was how was the most effective way to deal with it?
He said they had gone about dealing with the Reagon problem in what had seemed tabe
(to
at the time the most effective way. Ford said that he had to admit that he had felt
it to be curious that his conservative credentials could be challenged within the
- 7 -
probably
Republican Party. He said he thought that Reagen/was more conservative than X he
was X and certainly Reagen's supporters were much more conservative than he. When
90'
real f faux Pasil
Reagen's call for a nine billion cut in the federal budget, Ford said, had been
Rockefeller
a
022
I asked if Ford felt that keeping/on th the ticket might have helped
him inthe election? Ford said that this was speculative, but there were some areas
Rukflr.
in which Rockefeller might have helped! New England, New York and Pennsylvania,
for instance. On the other hand, Ford said, that Bob Dole had done a very fine
job as a K candidate for Vice-Presidentx and this was shown by the fact that the
11
ticket had carried every state west of Mississippi except Texas and Hiawai Howare.
This had shown that Dole did have appeal. I mentioned that some people felt that
Ford himself had appeal in this area and that it would have been wiser to get a
running mate who had an appeal elsewhere. and Ford said, No, he did not have the
appeal that Dole did in the agricultural areas.
FORD & LIBRARY GERALD