Why all the over-the-top mourning for President Ford?

There's nothing wrong with Ford criticizing the Bush administration, but Bennett's point is a good one.
Ford should have weighed in as part of the public discussion and let Woodward print the interview while Ford was alive. He's a former president who, as Frank pointed out, employed some of the people he is criticizing.
If he was acting out of some sense of loyalty to the office, party or his former employees and didn't want to pour gas on the fire, he should have kept quiet or asked Woodward to hold the interview until the current administration is out of office.
His request seems to be one of self-interest. He seems to have wanted his opinions as part of the public record in a seemingly timely way without having to take responsibility for his comments.

 

I would agree if one of Bennett's options was for Ford to allow it to be printed when he said it. But Bennett thinks the only viable options were for Ford to keep his trap shut, tell the president privately (what good would that do?) or wait for Bush to be out of office.

All of those seem to indicate that the conduct of Shrubbery is above public scrutiny. I disagree.

 

Obviously, Bennett's angle is to defend the administration, but he's not indicating the administration is
above public scrutiny. Ford told Woodward not to publish the interview until after his death. That amounts to lobbing a bomb from beyond the grave. If Ford did not want to interject himself, rather than just his opinions, into the public debate, which seems to be the case, he should have kept mum or asked that the interview be published after the current administration leaves office. It's a logical and reasonable argument that makes Bennett's point.
But I agree with you that Ford's opinions are relevant, and I wish he had wanted to be part of the public discussion.

 

It's not like lobbing a bomb. It's like lighting a bottle rocket on the Fourth of July.

 

In reference to the original topic, yes, it seems like we did this for ol' Ronnie.

The only thing so far I don't recall is declaring a federal holiday, including mail service. Is that par for the course for a presidential funeral?

 

You all realize Reagan died to years ago. We're not trying to conjure details from some distant, hazy past.

 

It was a pretty big deal when Nixon kicked off in 1994.

 

Dead president trivia: Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson died less than a month apart.

 

There are too many things that can't survive until this bunch of thieves and bunglers blows town.

 

But FB, neither hating the administration nor supporting the administration has anything to do with forming an opinion on the way Ford chose to handle the Woodward interview.

 

Ford's passing reminds us of a sadly passed time when presidents, of both parties, were respected at some fundamental level even by their opponents. That train has left the station, though.

 

No, but arguing that Ford should have kept quiet until the administration left office is to appeal for complete dereliction of public duty rather than the partial one that occurred.