That I have not mentioned the passing of Gerald Ford until is more a mark of intellectual laziness than anything else. Ford's time in the White House may not seem that sexy to some, myself included, but it is impossible to ignore how much he was forced to confront in his three years running the show. It should also be noted that during this period Henry Kissinger was at the apex of his run, serving for most of the time as both Secretary of State and as the head of the National Security Council.
CFR recalls a number of things that happend but fails to point out others. Yes there was the end of the Vietnam War, the Mayaguez incident the OPEC embargo, the trip to China and the Helsinki Accords but there was also the fall of Cambodia, the Panama Canal negotiations, the invasion of East Timor and helping end white rule in Rhodesia. It is impossible however for me not to mention two of Ford's more spectacular foreign policy gaffes. First there was his absurd statement during his debate with Jimmy Carter that called into question Soviet domination of Eastern Europe - this allowed Peanut Boy to come across like hawk. Then there was the absolutely shameful snub of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn during his trip to the US. The book to read on all this is stuff is the obviously biased but brilliantly penned Years of Renewal by Henry Kissinger. Sure it is over 1100 pages but it really is good.
CFR recalls a number of things that happend but fails to point out others. Yes there was the end of the Vietnam War, the Mayaguez incident the OPEC embargo, the trip to China and the Helsinki Accords but there was also the fall of Cambodia, the Panama Canal negotiations, the invasion of East Timor and helping end white rule in Rhodesia. It is impossible however for me not to mention two of Ford's more spectacular foreign policy gaffes. First there was his absurd statement during his debate with Jimmy Carter that called into question Soviet domination of Eastern Europe - this allowed Peanut Boy to come across like hawk. Then there was the absolutely shameful snub of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn during his trip to the US. The book to read on all this is stuff is the obviously biased but brilliantly penned Years of Renewal by Henry Kissinger. Sure it is over 1100 pages but it really is good.
