Emperor or President??

No Mail To Honor Gerald Ford--Really?

I firmly believe that George Washington would roll over in his grave if he saw the spectacle of the Gerald Ford State Funeral. Those founding Presidents were so concerned that they did not want the appearance of anything regal or any sign of royalty associated with their presidency. Washington stepped down after two terms to show that in a functioning democracy there could be a smooth transition of government. He founded the Executive Branch of government on the principle of being first among equals with humility and without all the ceremony of England. He resigned his miliary credentials so as not to appear to be a dictator, and scolded his modest staff over the appearance of any sigsn of an imperial leadership. We have gone very far away from those humble beginnings.

I can understand a state funeral for a President killed in office, but Ford was not even elected. He was appointed to the position in the grand tradition of assuming the throne of a Monarchy. He pardoned a criminal before Nixon was even charged. I do not understand why Ford or any President deserves all this ceremony. Why shut down the government when the first among equals dies? The President is so distant from the rest of us that they have become royalty without the crown. We would all benefit greatly if humility was brought back to government. Can a humble person who would reject a state funeral ever be elected President of the United States again?

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.