Last week, the nation paid respects to Gerald R. Ford, the 38^th President of the United States, who passed away at the age of 93. Ford was the oldest living President in the country’s history, serving 25 years in Congress, as Vice President and for 29 months as President of the United States. After the disgrace of Richard Nixon’s resignation and the Watergate scandal, Ford’s tenure served to heal the nation and restore honor and dignity to the White House. As President, Ford pardoned Richard Nixon and brought closure to an ugly chapter in American history.

Ford was a staunch moderate, who did not favor sweeping tax cuts or reducing the size of government. He believed in tinkering around the edges and plodding forward. Ford was neither an inspirational leader nor a good communicator, just a very average speaker who employed very plain rhetoric. In Congress, he was not known for one major piece of legislation in his 25 years in the U.S. House. As President, he failed to persuade the Congress to give any financial or military support to the South Vietnamese and, as a result, the U.S. had to withdraw from our own embassy in Saigon on April 30, 1975 in a humiliating departure from a nation that had been captured by communist aggressors.  The results were catastrophic for our allies that we left behind in South Vietnam and for the people of Laos and Cambodia.

Despite witnessing the evils of communism in Southeast Asia, Ford signed the Helsinki Accords with the U.S.S. R., which recognized Soviet domination of the people of Eastern Europe and the illegal borders which separated countries such as East and West Germany. During his presidency, Ford enthusiastically negotiated to give away control of the Panama Canal, even though the U.S. built the canal and paid for it. 

Ford’s policies led to conservative disenchantment and a strong challenge from Ronald Reagan in the 1976 GOP primaries. Reagan came very close to winning the nomination, a remarkable achievement against a sitting President. Although Ford won the nomination, he eventually lost the 1976 presidential election to Jimmy Carter in a close race. The race was competitive, but produced a record low turnout, as many voters were not excited about either candidate, especially conservatives.

Ford was pro-choice and disliked the influence of evangelicals and social conservatives in the Republican Party. He also clearly detested the direction that Ronald Reagan led the party and the nation. According to Ford, Reagan “was just a poor manager” and “his record never matched his words.”

Of course most conservatives would differ from Ford’s assertion. During his presidency, Reagan succeeded in reviving the economy which created 20 million new jobs, sent the stock market on a record rise, brought down inflation, unemployment and interest rates and left office by reducing budget deficits. Most importantly, he returned pride and a swagger to this country and restored our military might by giving our fighting men and women a well deserved pay raise and the first class weaponry they needed to do their job. Because of Reagan’s toughness with the Soviet Union, which he famously called “an evil empire” the communists eventually were brought to the bargaining table and historic arms control agreements were signed. Eventually, the restoration of American military power and the pressure that Reagan brought to bear on the Soviet empire throughout the world contributed to the falling of the Iron Curtain in 1989. By constantly fighting the Soviet Union both rhetorically and military, Reagan helped destroy the Evil Empire “without firing a shot.”

Reagan’s eight year record towers over Ford’s rather undistinguished 29 months of post-Nixon stewardship. It clearly shows the difference between a conservative and a moderate. Conservatives want to get elected and accomplish great objectives for the American people, return power to voters, limiting the influence of government, increasing personal liberty and allowing Americans to spend and invest more of their own money. Moderates like Ford want to manage government and tinker around the edges, trying to make government work better. Conservatives realize that government is the problem and try to limit its influence as much as possible.

This historical review is instructive as the GOP gets ready to embark on the next presidential journey and searches for a candidate to lead the party in 2008. It is useful to study the difference between the two presidents; Ford led the GOP to defeat, while Reagan led the party toward victory and the nation toward prosperity and security.

The Ford model is a sure fire loser, while the Reagan model is a winner for both the party and the nation. Whenever the GOP nominates a candidate who runs as a moderate, Ford in 1976, G. H. W. Bush in 1992 or Dole in 1996, the party loses. Whenever the GOP nominates a candidate who runs as a conservative, Reagan in 1980 and 84, G.H. W. Bush in 1988 and G.W. Bush in 2000 and 2004, the party wins.

In the current field of candidates, U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani are both moderates on fiscal and social issues. The other major candidate, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, is a conservative across the board. Romney considers Reagan his hero and has pledged to follow a conservative course if he is elected President. Of course, some long shot GOP candidates have strong conservative credentials as well, such as Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) and U.S. Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS). Other conservative candidates may also run for President, such as former Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson and Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. 

Although it is too early to know the entire GOP presidential field, it is not too early to understand that a conservative nominee will have a better chance of winning. Party leaders need to study history before nominating a candidate in 2008. A true conservative can lead the GOP out of the political wilderness and back into control of both Capitol Hill and the White House. A moderate nominee will lead the GOP down another course, toward electoral defeat.  

Jeff Crouere is a native of New Orleans, LA and he is the host of a Louisiana based program, “Ringside Politics,” which airs at 8:30 p.m. Fri. and 10:00 p.m. Sun. on WLAE-TV 32, a PBS station, and Noon till 2 p.m. weekdays on several Louisiana radio stations. For more information, visit his web site at www.ringsidepolitics.com. E-mail him at jeff@ringsidepolitics.com.