The incident I saw on a newscast recently was not that nighttime
motorcade in the rain. It was Daytime and Ford was waving to the crowds.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2489967/Gerald-Fords-presidential-campaign-video-deemed-shocking-show.html
In what was one of the closest Presidential races in American history,
it was a public relations gamble that may well have tipped the balance -
had it ever been shown.
But this video for Gerald Ford's 1976 election campaign against Jimmy
Carter was shelved because it was deemed to shocking to air to a country
still fragile from JFK's assassination, Vietnam and the Watergate scandal.
In the five-minute clip, Ford, who survived two assassination attempts
himself, is seen giving a speech when a cherry bomb goes off.
Believing it was a gun shot, he flinches - but then calmly continues
with barely a quiver in his voice.
Scroll down for video
All smiles: The U.S. President Gerald Ford seen before giving a speech
at the University of Michigan in a clip from a campaign video for the
1976 election which was shelved because his aides felt it was too
insensitive
All smiles: The U.S. President Gerald Ford seen before giving a speech
at the University of Michigan in a clip from a campaign video for the
1976 election which was shelved because his aides felt it was too
insensitive
Gerald Ford
Gerald Ford
Fear factor: Ford, who survived two assassination attempts during his
tenure, flinches during the speech after a cherry bomb goes - but calmly
continues when he realises it is not a gun shot
Never-aired campaign video for former president Gerald Ford
The video then cuts to him parading through Dallas in an open-top car in
very similar fashion to JFK when he was shot dead in the same city 13
years before.
At that point, a narrator says: 'Neither the cherry bombs of a misguided
prankster nor all the memories of recent years can keep people and their
President apart.
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the shooting
'When a limousine can parade openly through the streets of Dallas,
there's a change that's come over America.'
Ford's media team hoped it would emphasise that the incumbent had indeed
healed an embattled country in the two years since taking office.
'Emotionally powerful': The video then cuts to a scene showing Ford
riding in an open-top car through Dallas, just as JFK had done when he
was shot dead in the city 13 years previously
'Emotionally powerful': The video then cuts to a scene showing Ford
riding in an open-top car through Dallas, just as JFK had done when he
was shot dead in the city 13 years previously
Motorcade: President John F Kennedy and Texas Governor John Connally
ride through Dallas moments before Kennedy was assassinated
Motorcade: President John F Kennedy and Texas Governor John Connally
ride through Dallas moments before Kennedy was assassinated
But when it was shown to a focus group, it became apparent that it had
gone too far.
Recalling the viewing, pollster Bob Teeter later recalled that 'it was
shocking to them'.
'It was just too emotional.... it was just frightening.' he added.
Some in Ford's inner circle feared the subject matter was still too raw
for the American people and that it would particularly harm the campaign
in Texas.
As it turned out, Ford lost to Democrat Jimmy Carter, who secured 50.1
per cent of the vote to his 48 per cent.
Presidential historian Michael Beschloss noted on PBS Newshour, that
with such tight margins, the video had the potential to swing the result
the other way.
He said: 'I found it emotionally powerful. I think it would have been
even more affecting, had it aired as planned, in that national
atmosphere 13 years after President Kennedy's murder and in the
immediate wake of America's traumas over Vietnam, urban riots, campus
demonstrations and Watergate.
Near miss: Gerald Ford is surrounded by his security team immediately
after the first of two assassination attempts made against him during
his president
Near miss: Gerald Ford is surrounded by his security team immediately
after the first of two assassination attempts made against him during
his president
Would-be assassin: Charles Manson disciple Lynette 'Squeaky' Fromme is
arrested after pointing a loaded gun at the president. She was jailed
for life in 1975 for trying to kill the 38th U.S. president with a Colt
45-caliber pistol
Would-be assassin: Charles Manson disciple Lynette 'Squeaky' Fromme is
arrested after pointing a loaded gun at the president. She was jailed
for life in 1975 for trying to kill the 38th U.S. president with a Colt
45-caliber pistol
'Especially since it advertises a President not known for his emotional
appeal, the commercial does an impressive job of presenting, on an
emotional level, the best case for Ford's election - that he had healed
a ravaged country.'
He adds that it 'might conceivably (along with so many other factors)
have changed the result of that year's Presidential race'.
As vice-president, Ford found himself thrust into the Presidential
office in 1974 after the resignation of Richard Nixon over the Watergate
scandal.
He had been charged with restoring trust in the government, which many
feel he succeeded in doing.
At the Ford's funeral in 2007, former president George W Bush said: 'In
President Ford, the world saw the best of America and America found a
man whose character and leadership would bring calm and healing to one
of the most divisive moments in our nation's history.'
But six months after taking office, Ford pardoned Nixon for his part in
the cover-up of the burglary at Democratic Party HQ in the Watergate
building - a move some believe ultimately cost him the 1976 election.
Ford died on Boxing Day in 2006 at the age of 93.
Read more:
Never Aired 1976 Gerald Ford Ad Too Emotionally Charged for Its Time
Read more:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2489967/Gerald-Fords-presidential-campaign-video-deemed-shocking-show.html#ixzz39UBFdJOa
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Naturally YOU won't post it. Naturally YOU didn't even know about it.
So that you WC defenders can keep repeating your meme that JFK was the
last President to travel in an open car.
Don't even bother showing video of Clinton driving his Chevy at the race
track.
BTW, exactly how many milliseconds did it take for Ford to flinch and
close his eyes?
For extra credit which route did his motorcade take and where did it
stop when he got out of the limo?
Want to try calling me a lying kook, again? Try for Triple Jeopardy?