In all the commentary about Gerald Ford, one aspect of his life that has received little notice, but which I suspect is subconsciously behind a lot of the accolades, was his public role after he left the White House. It was understated to the point of disappearance. Two years ago in a piece about the media in Policy Review, I wrote that it may take long "for the realization to seep in that Ford has been our greatest contemporary ex-president. For in an age of mass media, where divinity is dependent upon being noticed by the crowd and being forgotten is the equivalent of excommunication—high character is rightly defined by the willingness to embrace obscurity the moment one relinquishes lofty bureaucratic responsibility."
Indeed, because of the way technology has revolutionized the media, never before in history have all of us been so tempted, and under so much social pressure, to have our opinions in the marketplace. If any former president has been a creature of an age of mass media it has been Jimmy Carter, who for a generation now, cannot seem to go a few weeks without issuing a statement, embarking on a diplomatic initiative, or publishing yet another new book or article. Behind all his undeniable good deeds, this former president seems to have an obsession with being noticed by the crowd. While his diplomatic initiatives have sometimes been well-founded, overall they have complicated rather than helped along the work of sitting presidents, both Democratic and Republican. It is almost as though he has been competing with them, offering an alternative address for foreign dictators who don't much like White House policy. And yet the more high profile stunts he tries—and the more books he publishes—the more devalued he seems to become. Being noticed by the crowd exacts its own law of diminishing returns.
Contrarily, there was Ford. In the 1980s, I remember commentators saying that while Carter was engaged with the world's problems, Ford was merely on the golf course. But that was precisely the point. A former president should, at least in a public sense, fade away to a significant degree, so as to leave his successors as wide a berth as possible for action. Of course, Carter has done much good with his foundation that rarely gets public attention. And, of course, Ford was quite active in good works, even as he spoke out on domestic and global issues on occasion. My point is only that Ford's high character was evinced by his willingness to generally shun publicity rather than to welcome it. The result was an air of dignity that grew over the years, encouraging the current tributes.
Don't you think that Ford had to bite his lip more than once during Carter's hapless administration? Maybe even offer an "I told you so" once or twice? However he might have felt, he had the class and character to stay out of the way. Too bad Carter and Clinton haven't figured that out.
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