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I have always wondered that question. In the 1976 Presidential election, Jimmy Carter came out of the convention with a 30 point lead on Gerald Ford. Ford soon started steadily closing the gap. Then, in the second debate, when Gerald Ford said, "There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe," it seemed like it paused Ford's momentum at a critical time. It reinforced the perception of him as a bumbling flake in over his head. Looking at the election results, with a swing of 6,000 votes in Ohio and 15,000 votes in Wisconsin, that was the Presidency. Both rust belt states with large numbers of Eastern European voters. And Ford was actually polling well with those voters until his debate gaffe. Carter's margins in those 2 states were close enough that I wonder if that could have made the difference.
I have always wondered that question. In the 1976 Presidential election, Jimmy Carter came out of the convention with a 30 point lead on Gerald Ford. Ford soon started steadily closing the gap. Then, in the second debate, when Gerald Ford said, "There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe," it seemed like it paused Ford's momentum at a critical time. It reinforced the perception of him as a bumbling flake in over his head. Looking at the election results, with a swing of 6,000 votes in Ohio and 15,000 votes in Wisconsin, that was the Presidency. Both rust belt states with large numbers of Eastern European voters. And Ford was actually polling well with those voters until his debate gaffe. Carter's margins in those 2 states were close enough that I wonder if that could have made the difference.
I doubt that particular flap had much ultimate effect. That's the sort of short-term blip that is a non-factor once the headlines move into another issue. To me, it's like asking: "Wouldn't President Obama have beaten Mitt Romney by more than 4% if he didn't have that terrible first debate?". [note - that debate took place at almost the same time in the 2012 election cycle as Ford's Eastern Europe comment did in 1976] And I don't - I think he'd have still won by about 4%.
Some more interesting possibilities, I think, are:
*What if Ford doesn't pardon Nixon?
On one hand, he would be better situated for the general election. On the other hand, he'd probably never get to it. The pardon was popular with the base, and as it was Ford barely survived Reagan's primary challenge. Absent the pardon, it's probably Reagan-vs-Carter in 1976.
and
*What if Reagan doesn't challenge Ford?
Ford is probably elected to a full term. Ford had to run to his right hard enough to keep Reagan at bay, barely doing so. If he'd been able to focus on November through 1976, he could probably have prevailed (though perhaps while losing the popular vote).
Ford had a klutz persona pinned on him by the media (as well as shows like SNL, which is what made Chevy Chase famous).
Ford's loss to Carter was a combination of factors, not least of which was Nixon fatigue.
As it was, it was a close election. Ford won more states than any other losing candidate (27) and if a couple states (Ohio being one, Hawaii the other) had a swing of 5000 votes he would have won. The final total for popular vote was 50% to 48% with the EC vote 297 to 240.
He also was an active skier throughout his career. He tripped once when his knee went out. How many times did Chevy Chase fall out of his chair on the show playing Ford?
Ford had a klutz persona pinned on him by the media (as well as shows like SNL, which is what made Chevy Chase famous).
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True, but in relation to the OP question, I don't think the SNL audience was composed of Ford voters.
Ford did indeed, fairly or unfairly, radiate the image of a bumbler. It began early in his administration with the military's comic opera fumbling of the Mayaguez rescue attempt. (They wound up attacking the wrong island and taking heavy casualties, all after the hostages had already been released.) It wasn't Ford who fouled up, but he was the Commander in Chief when this tragic little circus unfolded.
Then he was the target of assassination attempts which were themselves bungled, and both intended assassins were women, making Ford the only president that women have tried to kill.
Then there was the fall down the airplane steps, Chevy Chase amplifying that into something much bigger, the debate gaffe...it all added up to Gerald Ford, the Clown President.
As the only non-elected President, Gerry Ford did more for the country and held the office with more integrity than just about all others who held the office. I do think that the gaffe hurt, and I do think that the klutz appellation hurt, but IMO the public mindset of this country has always been about revenge and finding an outlet for hate. Pardoning Nixon to take that sordid chapter away from the small-minded foamers-at-the-mouth simply made HIM the target of their wrath. A famous quote about "public deserving" comes to mind.
I have always wondered that question. In the 1976 Presidential election, Jimmy Carter came out of the convention with a 30 point lead on Gerald Ford. Ford soon started steadily closing the gap. Then, in the second debate, when Gerald Ford said, "There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe," it seemed like it paused Ford's momentum at a critical time. It reinforced the perception of him as a bumbling flake in over his head. Looking at the election results, with a swing of 6,000 votes in Ohio and 15,000 votes in Wisconsin, that was the Presidency. Both rust belt states with large numbers of Eastern European voters. And Ford was actually polling well with those voters until his debate gaffe. Carter's margins in those 2 states were close enough that I wonder if that could have made the difference.
Ford probably should have said "it is not U.S. policy to recognize Soviet domination in Eastern Europe." I doubt that the gaff made that much of a difference.
Ford did the right thing by pardoning Nixon. He probably knew at the time that the pardon would guarantee a Democratic victory in 1976.
Well I was only 14 at the time and even I had a 'WHAT??!!' moment when he said that.I'm still shaking my head all these years later and its about all I remember about that race.......other than the cartoon the day after the election in the Washington Post showing the Carters moving into the Whitehouse from Georgia,putting a car on cinderblocks and placing an outhouse on the whitehouse lawn.
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moment when he said that.I'm still shaking my head all these years later and its about all I remember about that race.......other than the cartoon the day after the election in the Washington Post showing the Carters moving into the Whitehouse from Georgia,putting a car on cinderblocks and placing an outhouse on the whitehouse lawn.
