AeroTheZealousOne
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I'm hooked. Ford messing up worse than telling NYC to drop dead (although that was the New York Times, and not him)? This is going to be fun.
Ford The River Carter : A Timeline By President Lincoln and Meyer London
- Thread starter Meyer London
- Start date
August 4th, 1975
August 4th, 1975 - Belgrade, Yugoslavia
“No Helen, what the President understands is that his comment in Helsinki was taken out of context and caused by a long, tiring day made worse by lack of sleep.” Chief of Staff Dick Cheney ran his hand through his dark blond hair and struggled to remain civil with the reporter who had broken the now infamous gaffe three days before. He didn’t much like interacting with the press at all, but seeing as it had been him who had forced the President’s hand into taking questions that night, Cheney was in the doghouse and striving with all he had to make up for it. “The President is, like the rest of us human. He made a mistake. Now if we could please get ba-”
“That’s all well and good.” Helen Thomas followed up. “But what does the President have to say to claims that he is in over his head on foreign policy? Does this comment reflect in any way, that the President is overwhelmed by his job?”
Cheney took a deep breath and thought for a moment before answering. He silently thanked the his lucky stars that this conference was being held in Belgrade, not Washington. Back in the states, he would be facing twice as many cameras, three times the reporters. They would see every second, each moment of hesitation as a sign of weakness. With talk of Reagan’s incoming announcement stirring to their right and a crowded field of talented Democrats to their left, the administration would already need a miracle to remain in office. Cheney liked his job, and if he wanted to keep it, he would need to be careful.
“No it doesn’t, Helen, and let me tell you why.” The Nebraskan raised his hand and gestured to the city square around them. “This is Yugoslavia. For decades, our country had a policy of complete radio silence with this part of the world. We wouldn’t talk to them, and they wouldn't’t talk to us. Rumors swirled about the dreaded American imperialists, and how all we wanted was to destroy them. President Ford is here to dispel these beliefs, once and for all. He has come to Eastern Europe to build bridges, and show the world that east and west can come together and talk through important issues. He is bold, and daring in his vision for relations between us and our rivals across the sea. And if that isn’t a sign of strength on foreign policy, I don’t know what is.” Helen looked ready to speak again, but Cheney seemed to read her mind. “President Ford may have spent much of his career on domestic policy in the House, but trust me, Helen, he is an able, strong leader on foreign affairs as well.”
Satisfied, Helen allowed Cheney to wipe the sweat from his forehead. “Thank you, that will be all for now.” He stepped down from the podium and off toward a government sedan, which would take him back to the hotel.
Waiting for him inside were several staffers and a near resounding chorus of congratulations. He granted himself a short smile before waving it away. “You’re all kind, but trust me, that was the bare minimum in terms of damage control. If we really want to seal the deal, we’ll need to make sure the Egyptian-Israeli deal goes off without a hitch.” To that end he tapped his personal aide on the shoulder. “When we get back, get Kissinger on the phone, Don Rumsfeld too. Tell them I need to speak with them right away.”
Above: President Ford and Chief of Staff Cheney review the President’s next official campaign speech. Focusing on combating inflation and the administration’s other economic initiatives, both men thought it best to let Ford’s foreign policy actions speak for themselves, for the time being.
August 8th, 1975
August 8th, 1975 - Washington D.C.
Jody Powell, brushing his blonde hair off of his forehead, sauntered into a bar in the nation's capital, confident as ever. He had been working for too long and had not slept nearly enough in the last few days, but that was no matter to a man with a mission.
He had finally taken a break from the exhaustive work he had been doing laying groundwork for Jimmy Carter's campaign. When he had first picked up the phone and started scribbling notes in the third notebook labeled "The Campaign", the clock on the wall read 8:00 AM. When he looked up next it said 6:00 PM.
Finally relenting to the human need for a rest, he had decided to visit the bar at The Monocle restaurant, where he was bound to run into some of his fellow operatives that had begun to scurry about with the changing winds of the election year that stood in front of them.
Sure enough, from across the room he spotted a few friends - John Salter, an aide to Scoop Jackson, Rick Stearns, a former aide to George McGovern, and John Gabusi, a high ranking member of Representative Mo Udall's staff. After raising his hand in a wave, Powell hurried over to the corner of the bar where the three other men had posted up. He had no doubt of what the conversation would be that night.
"Jesus, Jody," Stearns said, "you look like shit. What the hell have you been doing?" Powell laughed, glad the question had been posed.
"Haven't you heard? I'm working for a campaign. Jimmy Carter's, to be exact." Salter glanced at Gabusi, and Stearns nearly spit out his drink as he laughed in a friendly but mocking way.
"What's he running for? Senator? Another term at Governor?" Powell knew that Stearns was only saying saying these things to annoy him, but he took the bait anyway for the sake of the argument.
"No, actually Jimmy is running for President of the United States, if you hadn't heard yet."
"Well, isn't that a coincidence," John Salter started, "because Scoop is running for that very same position, and Rick here thinks he's gonna win." Salter turned to Stearns for agreement.
"Well, that's not exactly what I said," Stearns started, "but I sure as hell think that Scoop, with his profile, has a better shot than your hayseed Governor, Jody. It's not a slight, it's just a simple fact that it's gonna be a hell of a lot easier for Jackson to raise money."
"What even makes you think Jackson is the frontrunner? There are quite a few competitors in this race already, and there promises to be even more. In fact, Mo is very much considering entering the melee... said John Gabusi. Stearns considered this for a minute.
"Well, according to Rick here, they are already making moves befitting of a frontrunner. Apparently they aren't even going to participate in Iowa or New Hampshire. They are that confident in their man..." Stearns kept talking, but Powell had stopped listening.
Not running in Iowa? Or New Hampshire?, Powell thought to himself, that's going to be their downfall.
It wasn't much longer before Powell announced he was leaving, citing the exhaustion he felt from the long day of work. And this wasn't exactly a lie - he was very much spent after all of the calls he had made throughout the day.
Before he could sleep, however, he had one more call to make.
Jody Powell, blowing smoke in his office as an aide looks on
Jody Powell, brushing his blonde hair off of his forehead, sauntered into a bar in the nation's capital, confident as ever. He had been working for too long and had not slept nearly enough in the last few days, but that was no matter to a man with a mission.
He had finally taken a break from the exhaustive work he had been doing laying groundwork for Jimmy Carter's campaign. When he had first picked up the phone and started scribbling notes in the third notebook labeled "The Campaign", the clock on the wall read 8:00 AM. When he looked up next it said 6:00 PM.
Finally relenting to the human need for a rest, he had decided to visit the bar at The Monocle restaurant, where he was bound to run into some of his fellow operatives that had begun to scurry about with the changing winds of the election year that stood in front of them.
Sure enough, from across the room he spotted a few friends - John Salter, an aide to Scoop Jackson, Rick Stearns, a former aide to George McGovern, and John Gabusi, a high ranking member of Representative Mo Udall's staff. After raising his hand in a wave, Powell hurried over to the corner of the bar where the three other men had posted up. He had no doubt of what the conversation would be that night.
"Jesus, Jody," Stearns said, "you look like shit. What the hell have you been doing?" Powell laughed, glad the question had been posed.
"Haven't you heard? I'm working for a campaign. Jimmy Carter's, to be exact." Salter glanced at Gabusi, and Stearns nearly spit out his drink as he laughed in a friendly but mocking way.
"What's he running for? Senator? Another term at Governor?" Powell knew that Stearns was only saying saying these things to annoy him, but he took the bait anyway for the sake of the argument.
"No, actually Jimmy is running for President of the United States, if you hadn't heard yet."
"Well, isn't that a coincidence," John Salter started, "because Scoop is running for that very same position, and Rick here thinks he's gonna win." Salter turned to Stearns for agreement.
"Well, that's not exactly what I said," Stearns started, "but I sure as hell think that Scoop, with his profile, has a better shot than your hayseed Governor, Jody. It's not a slight, it's just a simple fact that it's gonna be a hell of a lot easier for Jackson to raise money."
"What even makes you think Jackson is the frontrunner? There are quite a few competitors in this race already, and there promises to be even more. In fact, Mo is very much considering entering the melee... said John Gabusi. Stearns considered this for a minute.
"Well, according to Rick here, they are already making moves befitting of a frontrunner. Apparently they aren't even going to participate in Iowa or New Hampshire. They are that confident in their man..." Stearns kept talking, but Powell had stopped listening.
Not running in Iowa? Or New Hampshire?, Powell thought to himself, that's going to be their downfall.
It wasn't much longer before Powell announced he was leaving, citing the exhaustion he felt from the long day of work. And this wasn't exactly a lie - he was very much spent after all of the calls he had made throughout the day.
Before he could sleep, however, he had one more call to make.
Jody Powell, blowing smoke in his office as an aide looks on
I have to imagine that even with the damage control, Ford's cabinet is probably not in the most felicitous state for Ford. I have to imagine that Bill Clements is making some calls to Reagan right about now.
Could Ross Perot get involved in the Jackson campaign? IOTL he worked closely with Mark White, and unless Lloyd Bentsen gets in the race, Jackson's going to be the closest to him politically.
Could Ross Perot get involved in the Jackson campaign? IOTL he worked closely with Mark White, and unless Lloyd Bentsen gets in the race, Jackson's going to be the closest to him politically.
This is going to be fun 
, but I feel if the plan is for Carter to be more successful… well I dunno lol. Though of course Carter winning a second term would drastically alter American politics.
Interesting hits of trivia:
Mo Udall spent the entire year of 1975 deciding whether or not to enter Iowa, he finally spent ten days and a precious eighty thousand dollars to lose badly.
Jackson didn’t plan to enter until flipping New York! He only changed his plans when Massachusetts moved their primary up.
Everyone despised Carter. His having it both ways on issues from abortion to busing (including calling Jackson a racist for being against busing despite Carter also being against busing) doomed his Presidency as the Democratic Party correctly attempted to reassert control against the crazy outsider dude and Carter helped them… by hating having to deal with Congress and the Party establishment.
, but I feel if the plan is for Carter to be more successful… well I dunno lol. Though of course Carter winning a second term would drastically alter American politics. Interesting hits of trivia:
Mo Udall spent the entire year of 1975 deciding whether or not to enter Iowa, he finally spent ten days and a precious eighty thousand dollars to lose badly.
Jackson didn’t plan to enter until flipping New York! He only changed his plans when Massachusetts moved their primary up.
Everyone despised Carter. His having it both ways on issues from abortion to busing (including calling Jackson a racist for being against busing despite Carter also being against busing) doomed his Presidency as the Democratic Party correctly attempted to reassert control against the crazy outsider dude and Carter helped them… by hating having to deal with Congress and the Party establishment.
August 12th, 1975
August 12th, 1975 - Santa Barbara, California
The warm, pleasant Santa Barbara sun never beamed half as bright as Ronald Wilson Reagan did when in front of a camera. Born to visual communication it seemed, the former Hollywood actor and Governor of the Golden State relished every moment he could spend onscreen. It was via television that Reagan had first made waves in politics, speaking on behalf of Barry Goldwater during his quixotic quest for the White House back in ‘64, and it was television now that would beam Reagan’s smiling, optimistic face into the living rooms of millions of Americans across the nation.
For weeks now, the media had been in a frenzy trying to read the Gipper’s intentions. With President Ford floundering in the wake of the “Soviet Domination” comment, and Democrats lining up for a “golden ticket to the Oval Office” as one AP columnist put it, Reagan seemed to many the last potential wildcard in the race. “If President Ford is not defeated in his bid for the nomination,” one pundit predicted. “Then the Republican party can kiss any chance of victory goodbye next November.” Between the deep stain of Watergate and the recent bumbling around, the American people were losing any faith they may have had in their Commander-in-Chief. Sympathy too seemed to be drying up.
Conservatives in the party were not angered by this development. Indeed, they welcomed it. Never trusting Richard Nixon, and hoping to leverage the party’s current unpopularity against the establishment to demand change, the right wing of the GOP felt that at long last, after nearly forty years, the era of moderation in the Republican party was over. All that was required to complete their takeover of the dying husk of the Party of Lincoln was a leader, a figurehead to rally behind and lend their support to. Who better than the eternally sunny-faced, grandfatherly Reagan? He seemed the perfect combination of charisma, experience, and distance from Washington to project an image of change. For Reagan personally, ‘76 seemed like it might be his last chance to run.
Already 64 by August of 1975, Reagan was old by American political standards. If he somehow got elected against all odds the following November, he would be the second oldest President in American history, save William Henry Harrison, who was 69 at his inauguration. Given Harrison’s swift death from pneumonia after a mere 30 days in office, Reagan hoped to avoid such a comparison at all costs, and refused to make his age an issue in the campaign. To the Gipper, if he didn’t run in ‘76, he’d never get a chance to run again. Presidential greatness lay waiting for him in Washington, Reagan was convinced. He need only reach out and take it. A land of conservatives waited, calling for a check and a balance on the growth of federal power. He could be that check, he could stop the advance of the welfare leviathan.
With his wife Nancy beside him, the news crews informed Reagan that they were live and broadcasting. The former Governor, standing in front of his beloved Rancho del Cielo, began his announcement address. “Good evening, my fellow Americans. For weeks now, I imagine you’ve heard rumors that I may or may not be coming out of retirement to seek political office. I know in this age of mass media that it can sometimes be difficult to tell fact from fiction, but I am here now to clear the air and give you a definitive answer.” He paused to check that his notecards were in order. Silently, he thanked the Good Lord that they were. “First, allow me to speak on several of the issues facing this great nation of ours.”
“Our nation’s capital has become the seat of a buddy system that functions for its own benefits, increasingly insensitive to the needs of the American worker who supports it with his taxes,” Reagan said, settling into his groove. This type of evangelizing against the expansion of government had been a constant theme for him since his Time for Choosing speech. “Today it is difficult to find leaders who are independent of the forces that have brought us our problems: the Congress, the bureaucracy, the lobbyists, big business, and big labor.”
“What’s more,” he added, donning his signature smile. “We have a President who doesn’t seem to own a dictionary. If he did, surely he would be able to tell that at present, Eastern Europe is dominated by the Soviet Union, an evil empire entirely at odds with our way of life. Every day, international communism festers across the globe, quietly encouraged by the Soviet Politburo in Moscow and how does the Leader of the Free World respond? By slinking over to Helsinki and shaking Brezhnev’s hand.”
Reagan shook his head paternally while several in the assembled audience chuckled. “I believe it is time, my fellow citizens, to stand up and say ‘enough is enough’. It is time to reclaim our republic from the forces assembled against it, both at home and abroad. It is time to abandon the drudgery of our current situation and make America great again. It is for these reasons that I am proud to announce my candidacy for the Republican nomination to the Presidency of the United States of America…”
…
The polls which emerged following Reagan’s announcement showed a grim reality to the White House. Reagan was ahead of Ford by 40 percent to 32 percent among Republicans. Among independents, who would prove key to victory in the general election, Reagan enjoyed a narrow lead over the President as well, 27 percent to 25 percent. Chief of Staff Dick Cheney rubbed his eyes and paced around his office. He would have to call Lynne. That night was going to be another late one at the West Wing.
Glad to see Reagan added into the mix! Ingenious with that small jab to Ford. I think the Ford campaign is going to face an uphill battle.
I enjoy writing dialog and speeches from the perspectives of various politicians. Love him or loathe him, Reagan had a specialty for humor and verbal sparring, and it's a lot of fun to try and replicate that
And you're dead on about the Ford campaign. The President needs to do something and quick if he wants to maintain legitimacy.
