A Time to Heal: on Civil Rights


Gerald Ford: Would choose woman V.P. if he could do it over

Was the country ready for a woman as Vice President? There was no doubt in my mind that Anne Armstrong was capable. A Texas business executive and rancher, she had risen to become vice chairman of the Republican National Committee. She had served as Nixon's White House counselor, never once being tainted by Watergate, and later she had been an outstanding ambassador to Great Britain.

But what a gamble it would be! This would be the sort of dramatic announcement that would electrify the country. It might reverse our party's slide in the polls. Surveys indicated that she would gain us votes from people who don't normally back Republicans, but she would also cost us more of our traditional support than any other potential nominee. She came close. Very close. Naming her was something I really wanted to do, but I found myself drawing back every time I thought about it. (In retrospect, if given the opportunity to make that decision again, I might have said, "Damn the torpedoes" and gambled on Anne.)

Source: A Time To Heal, by Gerald Ford, p.402-403 Aug 16, 1976

Gerald Ford: Endorsed the Equal Rights Amendment

Blacks and other minorities felt-with some justification-that Nixon hadn't cared about their problems at all. I telephoned Rep. Charles Rangel (D, NY), who was chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, and invited him to bring his colleagues by. (Our meeting, he said later, was "absolutely, fantastically good.") I held a similar session with 13 Congresswomen who were endorsing the Equal Rights Amendment. When I signed a proclamation backing the measure myself, even Bella Abzug smiled.
Source: A Time To Heal, by Gerald Ford, p.139-140 Aug 13, 1974

  • The above quotations are from A Time to Heal: The Autobiography of Gerald R. Ford.
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  • Click here for more quotes by Gerald Ford on Civil Rights.
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Page last updated: Feb 25, 2019