Post-presidency of Gerald Ford lasting negative impact of Ford's participation with business boards: "He sold what they were buying, which was the prestige of the presidency. As a result, it has less and less." Post-presidency of Gerald Ford Gerald Ford was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. After his tenure's end, Ford was active in the public sphere, traveling, writing a memoir, and voicing his opinion about contemporary issues within the United States and abroad. The Nixon pardon controversy eventually subsided. Ford's successor, Jimmy Carter, opened his 1977 inaugural address by praising the outgoing President, saying, "For myself
Gerald Ford can't fart and chew gum at the same time." The press, used to sanitizing Johnson's salty language, reported this as "Gerald Ford can't walk and chew gum at the same time." After Nixon was elected President in November 1968, Ford's role shifted to being an advocate for the White House agenda. Congress passed several of Nixon's proposals, including the National Environmental Policy Act and the Tax Reform Act of 1969. Another high-profile victory for the Republican minority was the State and Local Fiscal Assistance act. Passed in 1972, the act established a Revenue Sharing program for state and local governments.