Congress tries Ford's way

The coincidence of Gerald Ford's state funeral and the start of a new Congress is shining a bright light on the qualities embodied by America's 38th president: decency, compromise, and especially a hearty respect for difference.

Best known for telling Watergate-era Americans that their "long national nightmare is over," he is also remembered on Capitol Hill for a 2001 speech he delivered in the Old Senate Chamber. Former Senate colleagues, who invited him to speak on leadership, still talk about it.

"We might question the other side's ideas, but never its motives or its patriotism," Mr. Ford told the senators, then gridlocked in a 50-50 split. "A few mistake the clash of ideas for a holy war."

In that spirit, the Senate's incoming majority and minority leaders planned to meet with their colleagues Thursday to talk about how to bury partisan hatchets and rebuild a spirit of civility and bipartisanship. The meeting, scheduled right before the formal convening of the 110th Congress, was billed as an opportunity for senators to talk among themselves – away from staff, reporters, and TV cameras.

"The American people have made it clear that they are tired of political gridlock in Washington. Democrats and Republicans are ready to work together in the 110th Congress," says Jim Manley, a spokesman for Sen. Harry Reid (D) of Nevada, the incoming Senate majority leader. "We'll try to work together when we can and oppose them when we must."

Minority leader Mitch McConnell (R) of Kentucky quickly signed on to the idea, says his spokesman, Don Stewart.

On the House side, incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi and top Democrats promise a return to respect for minority rights and bipartisanship. Democrats will offer a rules package that promises a return "to regular order in committees, a fair and open process for amendments, and sharing of information with the minority," according to Democratic aides.

"We had a lot of animosity when Gerry Ford was there, and he brought us together," said Rep. John Dingell (D) of Michigan, the incoming chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and an honorary pallbearer at Ford's state funeral, in an interview with Fox News.

Of course, promises of bipartisanship are easier to make than to keep. After the 9/11 attacks, senators linked arms with House colleagues on the steps of the Capitol and vowed a return to civility and cooperation. That spirit didn't last long.

Nevertheless, in using the language of conciliation, elected officials were capturing one of the key themes of Ford's presidency.

"He respected people who disagreed with him, and he saw political opponents just as that – political opponents, not as enemies," says former House historian Ray Smock, now of the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies at Shepherd University in West Virginia. "That makes a huge difference in how you conduct business with people. It also means you're able to compromise."

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