Gerald Ford has perfected the art of ingratiating himself with the liberal establishment that once scorned him for his pardon of Richard Nixon. Last year, Ford put himself at the service of the "let's-find-a-responsible-way-to-save-Clinton" coalition, writing two New York Times op-eds. The first urged Congress to avoid impeachment by bringing Clinton to the well of the House for a "harshly-worded rebuke." Then, after the December impeachment vote, he outdid his previous effort by co-authoring another with Jimmy Carter, arguing for censure instead of conviction.
But the fullest display yet of Ford's "principled leadership" came this year. In August, he penned yet another Times op-ed, defending the (almost certainly unconstitutional) racial-preference admissions policies of his alma mater, the University of Michigan, currently the target of two lawsuits. After meeting with U of M president Lee Bollinger, Ford signed on to the school's defense that its policies are constitutional because race is only "one of many factors" considered in the admissions process (a factor that -- if you have the right skin tone -- just happens to count for more than your SAT scores, personal essay, and past community service combined).
It didn't take long for Ford to start receiving his just deserts. Liberal lion Jack White wrote a column in Time declaring Ford the "Davy Crockett" of "affirmative action's Alamo." And lo and behold, Michigan has now announced plans to name its School of Public Policy after Ford -- apparently it hadn't occurred to them before this year to name it after the only U of M graduate to become president. Still, it's a fitting tribute. Students can now gather at the Ford School to debate whether racial preferences in Michigan admissions are, as Ford describes them, "eminently reasonable."