Campaign Trail Results: Game #272297
Play The Campaign Trail
This Game:
- Year: 1976
- Player Candidate: Gerald Ford
- Running Mate: John Anderson
- Difficulty Level: Impossible
- Winner Take All Mode?: Yes
- Game Played:
View overall results, or a specific state:
| Candidate | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes | Pop. Vote % |
|---|---|---|---|
| ---- Jimmy Carter | 538 | 50,993,516 | 62.30 |
| ---- Gerald Ford | 0 | 28,766,237 | 35.14 |
| ---- Other Candidates | 0 | 1,124,287 | 1.37 |
| ---- Eugene McCarthy | 0 | 968,070 | 1.18 |
Visits:
- Utah:12
Answers:
- What will your overall campaign strategy be this year?I'm an approachable, open guy with an open Administration. Let's emphasize my mainstream values and positions, and avoid extremist rhetoric or attacks on Jimmy Carter.
- A lot of voters are concerned about honesty and integrity in our government. What can you say about yourself in this aspect, particularly in light of your pardon of Richard Nixon?I will let the cameras into the White House so the people can see for themselves. I'm a normal, approachable, friendly President. I didn't spend my whole life trying to run for the office.
- Your Secretary of Agriculture, Earl Butz, will be quoted in next week's Rolling Stone as making some very crude and racist jokes. Some have suggested you fire him before the article is released. What are your thoughts?A couple of bad jokes shouldn't ruin someone's career. Let's keep him on board.
- There is talk of a Presidential Debate for the first time since 1960. Is this something that you're interested in doing?Not really. I'm the President and Carter is an upstart from Georgia. Let's keep it that way.
- Betty Ford is out there making some pretty bold statements about sexuality, marijuana, and other topics. Conservatives want to know if you can have a quiet chat with her to tone it down a bit.I've tried to explain to her that we have an election coming up, and we don't need all this bad press, but she won't listen.
- You have vetoed a significant number of bills in your two years as President. What was your reasoning?This is an issue that has been blown way out of proportion. In many of these cases, I've proposed my own alternative to a given bill, and Congress has acted on it.
- Some of your operatives want to attack Carter for the way he has equivocated on abortion, gun control, busing, labor issues, and so on. Will you approve a series of ads labeling him as a "flip-flopper"? The problem is, if we go negative against Carter, he's sure to hammer us on the Nixon pardon. We really have a lot to lose here.
- Your campaign has just received a big break in the form of a controversial interview that Carter did with Playboy, where he confessed to "committing adultery in his heart" and used some coarse language. Any thoughts?I will hold a press conference and remind people that we really don't know anything about this guy. What other hidden, perverse notions does he have?
- You have selected John Anderson as your running mate. Can you speak a little more about that?John Anderson always speaks his mind and fights for what he believes in. These are the kind of people we need in my next Administration.
- Ronald Reagan and some of his allies can't hide their disappointment in your running mate, and some of them are even saying Carter is better than a Ford-Anderson Administration. Do you have any comment?I think if Ronald Reagan hopes for a future in this party, he'd better toe the party line when it comes to our election this fall.
- What is your position on the federal government making loans to states or cities in need of financial help? An obvious recent example is the $2.3 billion bailout of New York city.We have to consider each case individually. New York was a one time thing, and they also had to make significant reforms before this loan was approved.
- What is your position on a pardon of Vietnam War draft evaders?Millions of American men accepted their responsibilities and served admirably, but I can see the case for an eventual pardon. Perhaps towards the end of my term.
- Do you support the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, which states "Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex."?I oppose this Amendment, as many labor unions do, because it would jeopardize protections for female workers in areas such as working hours or tasks.
- What is your opinion on the court-ordered busing of students within school districts, in a way designed to achieve racial balance in our schools?This is a necessary step to enforce the Brown decision and uphold the ideals of America.
- Do you believe that the United States can afford a reduction in defense spending?Vietnam is over, and détente with the Soviet Union has reduced the need for massive defense expenditures. I believe that any attempt to reduce our deficit should include defense cuts.
- What is your opinion on abortion, and specifically the recent Roe v. Wade decision?I'm personally opposed to abortion, but I respect this decision and will not try to overturn it.
- How can we best prevent another episode like the 1973 oil crisis, which paralyzed the country?We need to cultivate relationships like the ones we have with Iran and Saudi Arabia, to ensure that we have support from Middle Eastern oil producers.
- Do you have a position on the gun control issue?I'd like to see more widespread licensing and registration of handguns and rifles, but it has been repeatedly defeated in the past.
- What is your position on right-to-work laws? Would you support a national bill to repeal Taft-Hartley and do away with right-to-work?I am a strong supporter of labor unions and I would support this type of measure.
- Should there be a ban on nuclear weapons testing?I don't believe so. Our nation's security depends on being adequately prepared to face Soviet aggression.
- The United States started selling large amounts of grain to the Soviet Union, in 1973. What is your opinion on this policy?This policy helps support an unsustainable Soviet system. I believe that we should never bail out communism from its failures if we're serious about winning the Cold War.
- Do you support the Humphrey-Hawkins Full Employment Act?Absolutely I do. We should not tolerate high unemployment in this country, and this Act provides the tools to prevent it.
- Would you support a law for universal health care in this country?I would absolutely support a law like this as President. It is past time that our nation had health coverage for all.
- What are your feelings in the Gregg v. Georgia case, recently decided, that allows capital punishment in the U.S.?Even if permitted, I would hope that our states would move to abolish the death penalty.
- Where will you focus your efforts on the last day before the election?The East Coast -- from Maryland and Pennsylvania to New York and Connecticut.