what was the context of Ford's line about no Soviet Domination?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Many blame this for costing him the election, but what was he trying to say and in response to what?

[Nym90]

What he meant was that the US did not officially recognize the Communist government of Poland as legitimate; thus, official US policy was that there was no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe, and he meant that never under a Ford administration would the US change its policy and officially recognize Communist Poland as the true legitimate Polish government.

In much the same way, the US does not officially recognize Taiwan as an independent country; official US policy is that it is part of China. Of course, it is not, and we know this in reality, but we have to keep our official policy as it is to avoid offending China.

Of course, Poland was actually under Soviet domination as well, so since Ford slightly messed up the wording and didn't explain himself very well, it sounded ridiculous. He was just trying to say that it would be a bad idea in his opinion to officially recognize the illegitimate Russian puppet government.

[J-Mann]

I had heard that Ford was over-briefed and over-prepared, so he tangled his words up when answering this question and couldn't pull himself out of the tailspin he caused by saying that there was no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe. 

As for what he was trying to say...that made a lot more sense.

[qwerty]

If you watch the tape, the moderator gave him the opportunity to clarify his remarks - and he said the same thing again! I like the guy, and I think he is very wise, but what a goofball!

[dazzleman]

The backdrop to the whole thing is that by 1976, the Nixon-Kissinger detente policy of easing relations with the Soviets was coming under severe criticism since it appeared at that time that the Soviets were taking advantage of western conciliation while giving nothing in return in the form of moderation of their own military and geopolitical offensive.

Ford had been severely criticized by conservative Republicans (and some formerly Democratic neo-conservatives) for attending the Helsinki Conference on European Security in 1975.  Conservatives alleged that the Helsinki Conference effectively recognized the illegitimate Soviet domination of Eastern Europe by agreeing not to try to change the political situation in Europe by force.  (It was actually the Helsinki Agreements that helped plant the seeds that destroyed Soviet domination of Eastern Europe because the Soviets, in return for a western guarantee against force that appeared to legitimize their rule, agreed to provide for certain basic human rights, a pledge that they of course had no intention of honoring, but which stoked internal opposition within the captive nations).

In April 1976, Helmut Sonnenfeldt, a top aide to Sec. of State Henry Kissinger, issued a memo that advocated a more "organic" relationship between the Soviets and their captive states in Eastern Europe.  Conservatives took this to mean that the US was going further down the path of accepting Soviet domination of Eastern Europe.

Ronald Reagan severely criticized Ford and Kissinger for their Soviet policies during his challenge to Ford for the Republican nomination in 1976.  In response to all this, Ford announced that his policy was no longer "detente" but "the pursuit of peace through strength."

Ford's advisors had all this on their minds when they prepped him for the debate, and cautioned him against acknowledging the legitimacy of any Soviet domination of Eastern Europe.  Ford apparently misread the question as concerning US policy (which was to reject Soviet domination of Eastern Europe) rather than basic reality (which was the Soviet domination of Eastern Europe was a fact, whether recognized by the US or not).  He was probably overbriefed and nervous, and of course, inexperienced with the level of exposure, having never gone through a national campaign before despite his two years of incumbency as president.

Ford was a goofball in this respect, but surely he knew that the Soviets dominated Eastern Europe.  He simply spoke out of context, something presidents and presidential candidates do all the time, and didn't have the agility to correct himself before it became a major issue.

[SPC]

I believe Gerald Ford suffered from a mild degree of Tourette's Syndrome, as does John Kerry

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Do you enjoy being an offensive idiot?

[Kevin]

Do you enjoy being an offensive idiot?

Who are you talking too?

He is talking to South Park Conservative,So don't worry.

[SPC]

Do you enjoy being an offensive idiot?

Do you enjoy taking everything I say seriously, even when I intend for it to be sarcasm?

I apologize for that, but I was only trying to make a joke.

[Gustaf]

I believe Ford added something about him having visited Poland and they certainly didn't think themselves dominated by the Soviets. He also repeated the remark a week or so later after having retracted it.

[lidaker]

Both candidates made a clumsy impression in that debate. It was the first one on a presidential level in sixteen years and they had probably been told over and over again not to say anything that could harm them. I think the lights in the studio went off for an hour or so. The candidates just stood there, waiting, like statues, too nervous to move.

[gorkay]

You're right about there being a technical problem in the studio during the first debate, but I think it was the sound that went out, not the lights. Also, I think it was the second debate in which Ford made the Poland remark. If I remember right, the first debate was on domestic issues, the second on foreign policy, and the third was open to questions on any subject.

[lidaker]

You're right about there being a technical problem in the studio during the first debate, but I think it was the sound that went out, not the lights. Also, I think it was the second debate in which Ford made the Poland remark. If I remember right, the first debate was on domestic issues, the second on foreign policy, and the third was open to questions on any subject.

OK. Thanks for the clarifications.

[Gustaf]

You're right about there being a technical problem in the studio during the first debate, but I think it was the sound that went out, not the lights. Also, I think it was the second debate in which Ford made the Poland remark. If I remember right, the first debate was on domestic issues, the second on foreign policy, and the third was open to questions on any subject.

I believe it was the lights.