GERALD R. FORD
Politics
Born: July 14, 1913
Omaha, Nebraska

"The American wage earner and the American housewife are a lot better economists than most economists care to admit."

Gerald Ford was sworn in as the 38th President of the United States after Richard Nixon's resignation in August 1974 following the Watergate affair. A member of the U.S. Congress for 25 years, Ford had been appointed Vice President just a year before, after Spiro Agnew resigned in the midst of bribery and tax violation allegations. Ford spent most of his life in Michigan and was an excellent football player. He was the star center for the University of Michigan football team and later coached football and boxing at Yale University. Ford earned his law degree at Yale and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. After the war he returned to Michigan and in 1948 was elected into the House of Representatives. He was re-elected every two years thereafter until his appointment to the Vice Presidency in 1973.