Gerald Ford

Shortest presidency

When Harrison came to Washington, he wanted to show that he was still the steadfast hero of Tippecanoe. He took the oath of office on March 4, 1841, a cold and wet day. Nevertheless, he faced the weather with neither his overcoat nor hat, and delivered the longest inaugural address in American history. At 8,444 words, it took nearly two hours to read, even after his friend and fellow Whig Daniel Webster had edited it for length. He then rode through the streets in the inaugural parade.[55]

The inaugural address was a detailed statement of the Whig agenda, essentially a repudiation of Jackson and Van Buren's policies. Harrison promised to reestablish the Bank of the United States and extend its capacity for credit by issuing paper currency (Henry Clay's American System); to defer to the judgment of Congress on legislative matters, with sparing use of his veto power; and to reverse Jackson's spoils system of executive patronage, which meant using the power of patronage to create a qualified staff, not to enhance his own standing in government.[56][57]

Clay, as leader of the Whigs and a powerful legislator (as well as a frustrated Presidential candidate in his own right), thus expected to have substantial influence in the Harrison administration, and subsequently ignored his own platform plank of overturning the Spoils system. Clay was a persistent interloper in Harrison's actions before and during his brief presidency, especially in putting forth his own preferences for Cabinet offices and other presidential appointments; Harrison rebuffed his aggression, saying "Mr. Clay, you forget that I am the President."[58] The dispute intensified when Harrison named Daniel Webster, Clay's arch-rival for control of the Whig Party, his Secretary of State, and appeared to give Webster's supporters some highly coveted patronage positions; his sole concession to Clay was to name his protege, John J. Crittenden, to the post of Attorney General. When an unhappy Clay pressed Harrison on the appointments, tensions arose to such a point that Harrison ordered Clay not to visit the White House again, but to address the President only in writing. [59] Despite this, the dispute continued until the president's death.

Clay was not the only one who hoped to benefit from Harrison's election. Hordes of office applicants came to the White House, which was then open to all comers who wanted a meeting with the President. Most of his business during Harrison's month-long presidency involved heavy social obligations-an inevitable part of his high position and arrival in Washington-and receiving these visitors, who awaited him at all hours and filled the Executive Mansion.[55] As he had with Clay, Harrison resisted pressure from other Whigs over patronage; when a group arrived in his office on March 16 to demand the removal of all Democrats from any appointed office, Harrison proclaimed, "So help me God, I will resign my office before I can be guilty of such an iniquity."[60]

Harrison's only official act of consequence was to call Congress into a special session. He and Henry Clay had disagreed over the necessity of such a session, and when in March 11 Harrison's cabinet proved evenly divided, the president vetoed the idea. A few days later, however, Treasury Secretary Thomas Ewing reported to Harrison that federal funds were in such trouble that the government could not continue to operate until Congress' regularly scheduled session in December; Harrison thus relented, and on March 17 proclaimed the special session in the interests of "the condition of the revenue and finance of the country." The session was scheduled to begin on May 31.[61][62]

He inherited the end of the Vietnam War, the refugee crisis after the Vietnam War, the limitations of the War Powers Act and continuing tension with the Soviet Union and China

source: E2020

Executive power

Alternative answer:

Pardon power

"Now, THEREFORE, I, GERALD R. FORD, President of the United States, pursuant to the pardon power conferred upon me by Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution, have granted and by these presents do grant a full, free, and absolute pardon unto Richard Nixon for all offenses against the United States which he, Richard Nixon, has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from January 20, 1969 through August 9,1974."

John Tyler became President when William Henry Harrison died (he got sick during his inauguration ceremony, and died a month later). Harrison was the first President to die in office, so it was unclear exactly what was supposed to happen (the Constitution wasn't clear); Tyler was quickly sworn in as President to prevent any fighting. However, Tyler was able to anger both political parties, ensuring that he could not win the 1844 election.

Millard Fillmore became President after Zachary Taylor died from an unknown illness (there are conspiracy theories that he was poisoned). However, his policies were seen as being too pro-slavery, and his party, which was mostly anti-slavery, did not choose him as their candidate for the 1852 election.

Andrew Johnson succeeded Abraham Lincoln after his assassination. Johnson's presidency was difficult (he was a Democrat and Congress was controlled by Republicans), and due to the lingering effects of the Civil War, he was, like Fillmore, unable to obtain his party's nomination to run for President.

James Garfield was assassinated in 1881, making Chester A. Arthur the new President. Arthur was not terribly popular, and in 1884, he made a token effort to gain the nomination, predictably failed, and quietly retired upon his term's completion.

In 1974, Richard Nixon resigned as President because of the Watergate scandal, and the new President was Gerald Ford. When he ran for election in 1976, Ford came close to winning, but hurt his own chances with some blunders, notably saying in a debate that the Soviet Union didn't control Eastern Europe (which was shockingly untrue).

President Ford also holds the distinction of being the only President to never be elected President or Vice President- Nixon's Vice President was originally Spiro Agnew, but Agnew had resigned in 1973 due to scandal involving bribery and tax evasion. Ford was appointed Vice President, and a few months later became President. Lastly, Ford's presidency was only 895 days, the shortest term of any President who did not die in office.