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Former First Lady Betty Ford has died


Just Jack

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Betty Ford was such a grand First Lady - a modest woman of mainstream, middle class, Midwest roots who was thrust into the limelight simply by virtue of being married to Gerry Ford, who was himself thrust into the limelight by virtue of the events surrounding first VP Spiro Agnew, and then President Nixon. (President Ford used to lament that the only position he truly coveted was Speaker of the House - which he never attained because, when Ford finally had the seniority to attain the Speaker-ship, the Democrats held the majority.)

 

She was certainly our most outspoken first lady, at that time, since Eleanor Roosevelt - openly opposing her husband's position on the Equal Rights Amendment, abortion rights, and other issues, and also lobbying for Gerry to appoint the first woman to the Supreme Court. (That would have to wait until Ronald Reagan.)

 

Mrs. Ford was also so open in her own personal battles against breast cancer and substance abuse that you might say she paved the way for the current wave of celebrities airing their eating disorders, drug addictions, sexual proclivities, and other personal foibles all in the public eye. Whether that's a good or bad result is certainly debatable, but Betty Ford's courage certainly is not.

 

Perhaps my favorite Betty Ford moment was one I read in a news story at the time of her husband's funeral. Her son, Jack Ford, was starting to get emotional - weepy, even - during to ride to the memorial service when a well-composed Mrs. Ford, herself 88 years old at the time, admonished, "Oh suck it up, Jack, it's gonna be a long day!" Or something to that effect.

 

She led a beautiful and exemplary life. RIP, Betty Ford.

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