Campaign Trail Results: Game #696190
Play The Campaign Trail
This Game:
- Year: 1976
- Player Candidate: Gerald Ford
- Running Mate: Bob Dole
- Difficulty Level: Normal
- Winner Take All Mode?: Yes
- Game Played:
View overall results, or a specific state:
| Candidate | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes | Pop. Vote % |
|---|---|---|---|
| ---- Jimmy Carter | 311 | 40,707,708 | 49.81 |
| ---- Gerald Ford | 227 | 39,340,943 | 48.14 |
| ---- Other Candidates | 0 | 897,884 | 1.10 |
| ---- Eugene McCarthy | 0 | 779,585 | 0.95 |
Visits:
- California:2
- Florida:2
- Texas:2
- Alabama:1
- Illinois:1
- New York:1
- Ohio:1
- Utah:1
- Virginia:1
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've taken our country and led it past the nightmares of Watergate and Vietnam. Anyone can see that I've led an open, honest Administration.
- 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?I agree. We can't have this kind of thing on the Ford Administration. He should leave immediately.
- There is talk of a Presidential Debate for the first time since 1960. Is this something that you're interested in doing?I think this is a good idea, and we need something to shake this campaign up.
- 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?This is great. We need any good news we can get at this point.
- You have selected Bob Dole as your running mate. Can you speak a little more about that?Bob Dole is the type of Republican that the entire party can get behind, and he has served his home state of Kansas well.
- Your running mate, Bob Dole, has made a comment that indicates he blames World War II and every other war of this century on Democratic Presidents. What are your thoughts?I am a World War II veteran myself, as are many other Republicans and Democrats. We love Bob Dole, but I think in this case he got a little carried away.
- 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.I couldn't really comment until I saw what the specifics of the case would be.
- 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 support the passage of this Amendment, and think it is a good thing for America.
- 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?I can see both sides of this. It is a hugely disruptive practice, yet we need to fight for integration somehow.
- Do you believe that the United States can afford a reduction in defense spending?I don't support cuts, to be sure, but neither do we need increases. We have made great strides in reducing tension with the Soviet Union.
- What is your opinion on abortion, and specifically the recent Roe v. Wade decision?I will uphold the law as President, but I think it should be left to each state to decide. I would support an Amendment on this issue.
- Do you think that the tax cuts in early 1975 were the right economic policy for this country?This was a good policy. Our economy has rebounded considerably since early 1975, and millions of new jobs have been created.
- 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?This isn't an issue that I have strong feelings about, one way or the other. I think it is the kind of thing that each state can figure out for themselves.
- Should there be a ban on nuclear weapons testing?I believe we should implement an immediate moratorium on the testing of nuclear devices.
- 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.
- In 1972, George McGovern proposed replacing the income tax exemption with a $1,000 guaranteed minimum income, for every American citizen. Are you interested in this type of proposal?This kind of idea is way off the mark. We need to focus on reducing the size of government and lowering taxes.
- Could we have done more to save South Vietnam in 1975, such as air strikes or a limited engagement?We did our best in Vietnam, but unfortunately things didn't turn out the way we wanted.
- Do you support the Humphrey-Hawkins Full Employment Act?I'm all for some programs to provide jobs, but this Act has too many mandates and goals that are inconsistent with each other. We can't have a balanced budget, full employment, and low inflation at the same time.
- Would you support a law for universal health care in this country?I think it is a noble goal, but it would add too much of a financial burden to the federal budget, which is already running a deficit.
- Where will you focus your efforts on the last day before the election?The Midwest is critical. We'll hit as many states as we can between Iowa and Ohio.