so in 1976 gerald ford faced off against democrat jimmy carter in the general election. nt to know as their parties' nominees how much money ford and carter raised to run against each other? they raised nothing. zero dollars. their general election campaign was funded instead by money from that little check-off on your tax returns about whether you want your one or two or three bucks to publicly finance campaigns. in the next election, too, in 1980, when then president jimmy carter ran against the man who had taken so much skin off ford's hide the last time around, when he ran against ronald reagan, in that epic battle, with the presidency having just righted itself after the watergate nightmare, how much money did jimmy carter and ronald reagan raise for their campaigns against each other that year? they raised zero. they did not raise campaign donations for that general election. it seems impossible now, but it is not that long since we did it that way. today i came here to atlanta to interview former president jimmy carter on the occasion of the paperback release of hi

in 1976 the president was gerald ford. which itself is a little hard to believe. gerald ford got to be president because president nixon's vice president who he ran with, spiro agnew, he had to resign after being charged with bribery. and nixon himself had to resign because of watergate. so the president ended up being a man who had never run for president or vice president. gerald ford got appointed in scandal to be vice in 1973 and then got elevated from vice in scandal to be president in 1974. and he never had to run for those offices. never had to run for president certainly until two years later, in 1976. and when he ran to keep that office, he had bizarrely found himself in in 1976, his own party almost didn't let him keep that job. gerald ford faced a ferocious primary in the republican party from ronald reagan. rimary that year, but the primary was brutal enough that he essentially stumbled into the general election, as best demonstrated here by the chevy chase impersonation of a very, very stumbly gerald ford on "saturday night live." so in 1976 gerald fo

what sport did gerald ford play in college? ford was a what kind of a sport guy?r is football. now, what position did he play? >> center. >> bill: that's right. levee, hot. >> i got some kind of extra credit for that. >> only if you need it. >> bill: question number 4, everyone knows ronald reagan was a movie star before he was elected president. >> some day when the team is up against us, break something in the voice, ask him to go in there with all they've got, win just one for the gipper. >> bill: even on his death bed, the hair was perfect. what major league baseball team did ronald reagan call games for on the radio? what team? chicago cubs, st. louis cardinals, st. louis browns, milwaukee brewers? what team? very good. chicago cubs. excellent. illinois guy. that's correct. st. louis is fairly close by. >> it is fairly close. >> bill: across the mississippi river. >> i think he went right from illinois to l.a. >> bill: okay. we have four or four on both candidates. now the tie breaker. president bush and vice president dan quayle were critical of two sitcoms

. >>> on this day in 1974 president gerald ford issued a full, free, and absolute pardon to former president richard nixon effectively squelching the possibility of any criminal prosecution. faced with near certain impeachment during the water gate scandal, nixon announced his resignation a month earlier. sid ceasar turns 89. >> all day long you can stop on top of those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." and here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. live from green bay, wisconsin, a preview of tonight's nfl kickoff game between the packers and the new orleans saints. >>> and actor hugh laurie as you have never seen him before. "the house" stars debuts his new jazz album. >>> keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry. thank you for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. have a good one. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

. >> reporter: stevens, who was appointed by gerald ford but voted more over the years with the court'suldn't single out a favorite opinion. but he's proud of choosing justice kennedy to write the ruling that prohibited discrimination against gays and lesbians. do you think the court is moving towards approving that? >> certainly, the country is. which is -- there's been a dramatic change in public understanding and public acceptance. >> reporter: in his book, stevens doesn't just reflect on controversial decisions. he also weighs in on the chemistry of the court, and the chiefs he's known. when you write about justice roberts, you obviously believe he's a man of great talent. >> absolutely. >> reporter: yet he takes on roberts recent ruling that annoyed the westboro baptist church to continue protesting at military funerals. you write that you would not given him a passing grade in the first amendment. >> i thought the case involving the intentional inflection of emotional harm on a veteran at a funeral service, i thought the court got it wrong on that. >> reporter: there was also the

dates in which things went horribly wrong, you know, 27 men met -- minute with jimmy carter and gerald ford where they just stood on the stage for 27 minutes and said nothing to each other which is kind of remarkable when you think about it. was there any time in your debate where you were sort of panic inside and fought zero my god, this isn't going to come off? >> guest: even in the content? >> host: or come or -- yet, the content, or the logistics -- or something, something was sort of got out of control or -- i know there were other debates that kind of got out of control, but -- >> guest: no, there wasn't any time i felt things were going to be out of control. there were many times when i was disappointed that i was unable to use the rules in such a way to ask the follow-ups i thought should be asked, and i always work very hard to make very sure that i stay within the rules but they also work very hard to use the rules in ways so there can be a flow to it. >> host: do you have input into the rules or just hand it -- >> guest: they give you the rules and say are you -- we hereby invite

jimmy carter and gerald ford, where they just stood on the stage for 27 minutes and said nothing. which is kind of remarkable when you think about it. was there any time in your debate where you thought this isn't going to come off? >> guest: you mean the content or -- >> host: the content or the logistics or something. something sort of got out of control. i know there were other debates that got out of control. >> guest: know, the one time i thought things were going to be out of control there were many times i was disappointed that i was unable to use the rules in such a way to ask the follow-ups i thought should be asked and i always work very hard to make sure that i stay within the rules but i also work very hard to use the rules in ways that there can be a flow to the host could you have an input to the rules were just negotiating -- >> guest: they give you the rules and say we hereby invite you to moderate the debate on so and so. will you do this and agree to enforce these rules? host what's the best format if you think about it? >> guest: the best format is a news format

gerald ford, jimmy carter, bush 41 all lost campaigns for a second term, weighed down by unemployment. we asked the matthews meter, 12 of our regulars including howard here, can barack obama buck history and win even if the unemployment rate is, say, up around 8 1/2? 11 say yes, he can. one says no he can't. howard, i think you're with the 11 yes, he can. >> i'm with the 11. >> even up around 8 1/2. >> just because it's a matter of context. you can't make absolutes in politics. it's a game of context, depends on the context. sadly but necessarily, the obama administration is going to say there's a new normal and he's trying to work us out of that new normal but he's going to point backwards and blail george bush and that's still going to work with some people t depends who he's running against. you can't say it's impossible. chris: back to what jamie said, as an australian, will the american people accept the reset, a guy that says this is as good as it gets? >> again, context. we have to know, is it trend down? is there a light at the end of the tunnel? also, who is he running agains

publisher of the trends journal and director of trends research institute the always outspoken and gerald ford. lawrence and hey there gerald let's talk about goldman sachs and what's going on there should we be concerned that this mega powerhouse of a company is now starting to layoff its employees. yes in some ways you know we could make fun of course you know the course cutting edge is there a joke but the whole financial system is under attack and as we saw recently with the released information from the federal reserve we heard from the j.p. morgan chase's of the j.p. morgans and the as the as the other banks saying that they didn't need money while they did and while they were getting so we saw that they're hiding a lot of what they're saying in public and things aren't as good as they claim to be you know there's been a lot of bed that's made out there we saw volatility in the market this summer like no one's ever seen before and now we're going into the volatile season so yeah i think we should be worried about goldman sachs we should be worried about morgan stanley that was the one i

gerald ford, jimmy carter, bush 41 all lost campaigns for a second term, weighed down by unemployment. we asked the matthews meter, 12 of our regulars including howard here, can barack obama buck history and win even if the unemployment rate is, say, up around 8 1/2? 11 say yes, he can. one says no he can't. howard, i think you're with the 11 yes, he can. >> i'm with the 11. >> even up around 8 1/2. >> just because it's a matter of context. you can't make absolutes in politics. it's a game of context, depends on the context. sadly but necessarily, the obama administration is going to say there's a new normal and he's trying to work us out of that new normal but he's going to point backwards and blail george bush and that's still going to work with some people t depends who he's running against. you can't say it's impossible. chris: back to what jamie said, as an australian, will the american people accept the reset, a guy that says this is as good as it gets? >> again, context. we have to know, is it trend down? is there a light at the end of the tunnel? also, who is he running agains

guest: i met him when he was first the deputy white house chief of staff under gerald ford in 1974. i knew him when he was a member of congress and secretary of defense, and certainly when he was vice president, and i would say he is someone that i know quite well. i generally agree with his views. he is a conservative. i am a conservative. friend? all you what he wrote in the book. he says for fred barnes, a man with firsthand knowledge of many of the events in this book. it does not say fred barnes, one of my closest and dearest friends, because that would not be the case. host: july joins us from california. good morning. caller: i do agree with mr. barnes said dick cheney was in the driver's seat when it came to foreign policy. i am not one to sugarcoat things here. i think dick cheney is a war criminal, and a mass murderer. i am 52 years old. i have lived through some presidencies. i just very much dislike dick cheney. i think it costs a lot of havoc. host: we have heard that argument. guest: i did not think he was in the driver's seat. there have been stories written, and i th

he was once mentioned as a possible presidential candidate but decided to gerald ford for the republican nomination in 18976. >> pomg using his weekly address to sell jobs plan. the president appealing for public support for 447 billion-dollar bill. is he asking americans to contact their come. >> cut taxes small business in the country and not add to the deficit. it will be paid for. on monday i will lay out my plan for how we will do that how we will pay for this plan and pay down our debt by following basic principles. making sure we live in our means and asking everyone to pay their fair share. but right now we have got to get congress to pass this jobs bill. and republicans are firing back and the g.o.p. address. congressman peter rostrum of illinois calling on the president to reduce regulations on businesses saying that government rules are choking hiring. take a listen. washington has become a red tape factory with more than 4,000 rules in the pipeline hundreds of which would cost our country $100 million each annually. the disappointing reality is that what may be a faceless reg

brent scowcroft served as the serity advor under gerald ford and george hw brush, zbigniew brzezinski was national curity advisor for president jimmy carter, stephen hadley was the national security advisor for president george w. bush, lawrence summers was treasury secretary under president bill clinton and economi advisor for barack obama. here is the conversation at the museum about the 20th an disrers i are of the fall of the soviet union. and i begin with the question that i raised in this introduction, what, in fact, caused the clams of the soviet union? was ate yearning on the part of the people or somehow an economic and systemic clams of a system that could not go on? >> if in place of gorbachev who came in in 1985 with a sort of a mandate to get things going again, because you had a series of either senile or sick, three heads of the soviet union. >> rose: general secretary of the communist pa. >arty. >> general secretary of the comist party. and gorbachev had a mission. >> rose: and he was young and vibrant and -- >> that's right. but if insad of gorbachev there had been an

we have to build that movement and take it up, say to republicans as late as presidency of gerald ford he signed extension of collective bargaining rights in this country, and majority of the republicans in that congress voted for it. this extended bargaining rights to healthcare workers. what's happened to them, where did they get lost along the way? why is a private sector function like bargaining rights bm a four letter word for almost every republican in congress. >> the president says he is now with you on collective bargaining. but on the key issue of trade agreements, it sounds like he wants them passed. and the word infrastructure pointed out by a number of media people on this network, chuck todd said the word infrastructure wasn't in the speech, but a lot of references to jobs and projects and what not. another word not in there was outsourcing, and i almost felt if there was one criticism of this speech tonight, it would be the president didn't take outsourcing head on and say damn it, keep these jobs in america. he talked american made and american products but didn't take

c, gerald ford, d, harry truman. the answer is richard nixon. awww! all right. now you win again.e smug, mcdowell there. >> i'm smug? i'm sitting in doocy's seat, what do you expect? i have cooties. >> bill: you win. we'll send her nice stuff as well. a pleasure, ladies. back with pinheads and patriots ahead. a medal of honor winner. we hope you stick around for this incredible story. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] unlike some car companies, nissan is running at 100%, which means the most innovative cars are also the most available cars. nissan. innovation for today. innovation for all. ♪ if something is simply the color of gold, is it really worth more? we don't think so. chase sapphire preferred is a card of a different color. unlike others, you get twice the points on travel, and twice the points on dining, and no foreign transaction fees. call now or apply at chasesapphire.com/preferred. it's the master of all machines. so powerful, anything you download on your computer is available on your droid bionic, instantly, wirelessly, at verizon 4g lte speed. never sync with a cord again. th

c, gerald ford, d, harry truman. the answer is richard nixon. awww! all right. now you win again.ittle smug, mcdowell there. >> i'm smug? i'm sitting in doocy's seat, what do you expect? i have cooties. >> bill: you win. we'll send her nice stuff as well. a pleasure, ladies. back with pinheads and patriots ahead. a medal of honor winner. we hope you stick around for this incredible story. >> bill: starring medal of honor winner in a moment. >> if you sign up or renew you will get one of these three spends, you maybe the call. great deal but it ends monday. and the mail: >> bill: i appreciate that frank. signed copy of pinheads and patriots the paperback on its way for your loyalty. >> bill: herman cain wants a bigger tax that i do it is called fair tax. congress regulates spending not mr. obama. >> bill: they know the american workers are bleeding in congress some don't care. >> bill: again congress regulates the tax rate i support a small national sales tax only if the rates come down. it is a collection issue. >> bill: i can't win on this. >> bill: of all ages jerome. miller ton

c, gerald ford, d, harry truman. the answer is richard nixon. awww! all right. now you win again.ug, mcdowell there. >> i'm smug? i'm sitting in doocy's seat, what do you expect? i have cooties. >> bill: you win. we'll send her nice stuff as well. a pleasure, ladies. back with pinheads and patriots ahead. a medal of honor winner. we hope you stick around for this incredible story. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] unlike some car companies, nissan is running at 100%, which means the most innovative cars are also the most available cars. nissan. innovation for today. innovation for all. ♪ with aerizon mobile hotspot, you can connect up to 5 wifi devices to the internet with lightning-fast verizon 4g lte speed. a gaming deve. ereader. mp3 player. connect any 5 for wifi on the go. get the 4g lte mobile hotspot now for only $49.99. verizon is the place with the largest selection of 4g lte devices. on america's fastest, most advanced 4g network. should i bundle all my policies with nationwide insurance ? watch this. on one hand, you have your home insurance with one company. and on another hand,

we have to build that movement and take it up, say to republicans as late as presidency of gerald fordd extension of collective bargaining rights in this country, and majority of the republicans in that congress voted for it. this extended bargaining rights to healthcare workers. what's happened to them, where did they get lost along the way? why is a private sector function like bargaining rights bm a four letter word for almost every republican in congress. >> the president says he is now with you on collective bargaining. but on the key issue of trade agreements, it sounds like he wants them passed. and the word infrastructure pointed out by a number of media people on this network, chuck todd said the word infrastructure wasn't in the speech, but a lot of references to jobs and projects and what not. another word not in there was outsourcing, and i almost felt if there was one criticism of this speech tonight, it would be the president didn't take outsourcing head on and say damn it, keep these jobs in america. he talked american made and american products but didn't take it to the

. >> there you go, the daily flashback, back to 1974, when gerald ford decided he did not want to win president -- excuse me he pardoned president nixon for all federal crimes that he quote committed or may have committed or taken part in while in office. many a ford strategist will say the 1% that they fell short in beating jimmy carter had everything to do with that nixon pardon. >>> in the most combative debate, rick perry and mitt romney placed dualing bets on where the social security would be next year. >> our seniors have the need of social security. i will make sure we keep the program and make it financially secure. >> you cannot keep the status quo in place and not call it anything other than a ponzi scheme. regardless of what anybody says oh, it's not, it's provocative language, maybe it's time to have provocative language in this country. >> caron finny is here and kevin is here, remains a supporter not on the payroll, susan page is the washington bureau chief for america's newspaper, especially when you're traveling the "usa today." susan, i can't get a "usa today" at 2:3

. >> rose: gerald ford said poland wasn't under the domination of the soviet union. >> absolutely and those kinds of things can literally change not only who conquers in the debate but who wins the elections. so everybody knows that. >> rose: also there is a perception of you, you can change in the a debate. you can be more relaxed, you can be more... especially if you're the lesser known candidate. ronald reagan versus jimmy carter. >> exactly. this was true in 2008, charlie. the first... i moderated it, it was betwn obama and mccain the perception of those two candidates... obama still wasn't that well known nationally. and mccain was known but they each had... they had kind of their... >> rose: mccain had run before. >> but the expectations for mccain was that he was kind of fidget gee, nervous, got angry and that kind of thing. and the thing about obama w he was cool but nobody really knew that, they hadn't seen him. so what happened in that first debate because i was there as the moderator trying to get them talk to each other, that was new rule, they were allowed to speak to eac

on the ashes of better deal gerald ford's grandest of america's legal careers as the champion of personal liberty and defender of the underdog and he became said lincoln's death and the attorney for the. he had no choice. broke and disgraced darrow returned to chicago and took the cases others would not touch. there was isaac banda black man accused of the brutal rape and murder of a young white nurse. communist and anarchist snared in in the reactionary fervor world war i and the red scare. frank lloyd wright and the cause of sexual freedom and the architect was pursued by federal prosecutors for violating the man act, which made it a crime for unmarried couples to cross-state lines. today we recall darrow's plead against the death penalty for the liza nathan leopold and richard loeb, the killers who murdered a chicago boy to demonstrate their intellectual superiority by committing the perfect crime. it was an especially despicable killing but darrow's call for mercy saves and of course we remember darrell for the scopes monkey trial. in tennessee a year he fought for scientific freedom

gerald ford, bob dole, ronald reagan, even george w. bush, it was not about george w.ush, it was about george h.w bush losing in '92. >> dan quayle could argue that was his time. that shows you. >> i think all that is completely right. but having said that, looking around the republican field, apart from romney, who is there that is a credible candidate that would have a chance of winning? >> that's what i'm saying. >> still have to ask that question. >> jon huntsman at 2%, and he's going to stay at 2%, but he could make a good run at a general election, but that's not going to happen. >> on a superficial note, i was talking to republicans, and a lot of this has to do with -- >> where were you? >> it was a telephone call. >> i was going to say. >> but they said -- partly because of rick perry's performance that mitt romney "looks presidential." it sounds silly, but he looks like the adult on the stage. and they also said -- it wasn't just him saying this, they said perry was "palin-esque," that seemed to be word salad. >> if rick perry ends up with a debt, romney shoul

during his career as report has covered every president since gerald ford.mark came to cbs news in 1988 after 13 years as a correspondent with "the associated press" were you network. please join me in welcoming mark knoller. [applause] >> i have never been in the newseum before. i like it. is this part of the newseum or just the conference center? you know, if you live in washington you never get to go to the museums and libraries, except when you take a relatives to come here. and i'm able to talk my relatives into staying away. anyway, it was about two and a half years ago in april of '09 a cbs interactive phone at the white house and asked if i could start filing some reports on twitter. on what, i remember asking. twitter he said. i really didn't know what he was talking about. i knew, i thought it was for making dates with people. i really didn't know what twitter was all about. occasionally i would write stories for cbs news.com, which i enjoy doing, but that was the extent of my online experience. the executives point to me what twitter was. i said i

fdr before the war and gerald ford after he became president.tioned to get things done and, at the same time, draw a line in the sand. it is a political speech so it's a very fine line to walk. >> you know, the era of decisiveness we have in and ask both of you to finish this off. ron, carol's question of the day. how do we overcome this? i mean, can this legislation, this speech, this moment tonight overcome which is a poisoned atmosphere? >> we are dealing with the party line voting. we have enormous gaps the way presidents are viewed and more primary challenges and more overtly partisan media that attacks anybody who is seen as collaborating with the other side. all of these are big forces. the only real force on the other side of the weight is the voters themselves. most politicians, as i've said before, right now, believe they have nor to fear from compromising too much from compromising too little. i think even at a moment like this we are not in the moral equivalent of war but facing a true national challenge i think it calls on both part

this is a party that is nominated in my lifetime, gerald ford, bob dole, john mccain, george h.w.rvative presidents, ronald reagan and george w. bush who ran as a conservative, didn't govern as one. crazy doesn't win? you don't get through the midwest primaries, you get a big pop in iowa, and then they nail you in the end. >> which doesn't mean that conservatives don't win. >> no! >> i think conservatives who can articulate a case, who can appeal to our intellectual instincts can win. >> no, look, i'm not talking about ideology here. i'm talking about main street conservatives that do believe in smaller government and less taxes can win. you know, they do win at the end of the day. >> you're talking ultimately and the idea of the piece came up on the show two days ago when you were talking about your dad and how they pick candidates. guys like my dad do not gamble on candidates like michele bauchmann or newt gingrich. guys like my dad tune out politicians who compare opponents to joseph stalin. and guys like my dad don't cozy up to texas governors who brag about seceding from the

he has covered every president since gerald ford.o the news in 1988 after 13 years with a correspondent with the associated press radio network. please join me in welcoming mark knoller. [applause] >> i have never been in the newseum before. i like it is a part of the museum,? if you live in washington, you never get to go to the museums and libraries -- except when you take relatives to come here. i am able to talk my relatives into staying away. it was asked me if i could start filing some reports on twitter. on what, i remember asking. i really did not know what he was talking about. i thought it was for making dates with people. i did not know what twitter was all about. occasionally, i would write stories for cbsnews.com. that was the extent of my online experience. i said that i would think about, which is what i always say when i try to get people off of my back. the executive called back in a couple of weeks and said, ask me again if i would start to reporting news on twitter. twitter let's open up a account. i figured that i

guest: i met him when he was first the deputy white house chief of staff under gerald ford in 1974.en he was a member of congress and secretary of defense, and certainly when he was vice president, and i would say he is someone that i know quite well. i generally agree with his views. he is a conservative. i am a conservative. friend? all you what he wrote in the book. he ss for fred barnes, a man with firsthand knowledge of many of the events in this book. it does not say fred barnes, one of my closest and dearest friends, because that would not be the case. host: july joins us from california. good morning. caller: i do agree with mr. barnes said dick cheney was in the driver's seat when it came to foreign policy. i am not one to sugarcoat things here. i think dick cheney is a war criminal, and a mass murderer. i am 52 years old. i have lived through some presidencies. i just very much dislike dick cheney. i think it costs a lot of havoc. host: we have heard that argument. guest: i did not think he was in the driver's seat. there have been stories written, and i think they were ri

guest: it was interesting when he said early in the book would be worked for gerald ford, a cut -- accommodation with the panamanians of the canal and dick cheney said he did not, he agreed with ronald reagan. host: republican line. a mobile, alabama. phonebill, you're on the with fred barnes. his take on dick cheney's new book. if you i'm wondering have read norman schwarzkopf's books, "it does not take a hero?" guest: , i have not. caller: he is not very kind to dick cheney. he seems to y that he wanted colin powell to get him off his back, that he was coming up with hairbrained ideas that we're going to get people killed. this was written at a time when he was no longer defense secretary. he was in private business. i just never heard anyone say anything about that. host: i think i understand the comment. dick cheney was tough on the generals during the iraq war, the second and first war, specifically when he saw something they said publicly that did not sound right. he would take action. he had disagreements early on with colin powell, even though they had been very good friends. so, i can u

your watch or saying one -- the best example editorially was gerald ford, you know, the debate with jimmy carter when he said eastern europe is not dominated by the soviet union, and his head was handed to him because it was -- and i asked him about that, and he said, well, here's what i meant. i didn't say it right, but here, again, he understood why everybody jumped him, and they jumped him badly, and it hurt him terribly. he was already behind in the polls, and this made it even worse, but it's the -- those examples are the ones that every candidate knows about, and they want to make sure that that thing, that doesn't happen to them, and that makes them very cautious and it makes their consultants cautious. .. just like everybody else. i don't handle criticism well. , but i've also realized, if i can't handle criticism then i shouldn't be moderating presidential debates and should maybe be a television. that goes with the territory and public reaction and it's impossible to please everybody. if you start taking about using everybody, then you will please nobody. if i feel i'm so cocky