Nelson Rockefeller - Vice Presidency 1974–1977

Vice Presidency 1974–1977

Following President Nixon's resignation on August 9, 1974, President Gerald Ford nominated Rockefeller on August 20 to serve as Vice President of the United States. Rockefeller's top competitor had been George H.W. Bush.

This was not the first time that Rockefeller was under consideration to fill the vice presidential vacancy. He was on President Nixon's short list to replace Spiro T Agnew in 1973 but the vice presidency ultimately went to Ford. If Rockefeller had been confirmed as Vice President as Nixon's nominee Rockefeller would have become President upon Nixon's resignation. The possibility of Rockefeller being Nixon's Vice President had existed before when Rockefeller declined to be Nixon's running mate at the 1960 presidential election.

While acknowledging that many conservatives opposed Rockefeller, Ford believed that he would bring executive expertise to the administration and would broaden the ticket's appeal if they ran in 1976. Ford also felt he could demonstrate his own self-confidence by selecting a strong personality like Rockefeller for the number two spot.

Although he had said he was "just not built for standby equipment," Rockefeller accepted the President's request to serve as Vice President:

"It was entirely a question of there being a Constitutional crisis and a crisis of confidence on the part of the American people.... I felt there was a duty incumbent on any American who could do anything that would contribute to a restoration of confidence in the democratic process and in the integrity of government."

Rockefeller was also persuaded by Ford's promise to make him "a full partner" in his presidency, especially in domestic policy.

Rockefeller underwent extended hearings before Congress, which caused embarrassment when it was revealed he made massive gifts to senior aides, such as Henry Kissinger and used his personal fortune to finance a scurrilous biography of political opponent Arthur Goldberg (See Peter Carroll It Seemed Like Nothing Happened, p. 162). He had not paid all his taxes, owing nearly one million dollars in federal income taxes, but no illegalities were uncovered, and he was confirmed. Although conservative Republicans were not pleased that Rockefeller was picked, most of them voted for his confirmation. However, some, including Barry Goldwater, Jesse Helms, Trent Lott, and others voted against him. Many conservative groups campaigned against Rockefeller's nomination, including the National Right to Life Committee, the American Conservative Union, and others. The New York Conservative Party also opposed his confirmation. On the left, Americans for Democratic Action opposed Rockefeller's confirmation because it said his wealth posed too much of a conflict of interest.

Beginning his service upon taking the oath of office on Thursday, December 19, 1974, at 10:11 pm EST, Rockefeller was the second person appointed vice president under the 25th Amendment – the first being Ford himself. Rockefeller often seemed concerned that Ford gave him little or no power, and few tasks, while he was Vice President. Ford initially said he wanted Rockefeller to chair the Domestic Council. But Ford's new White House staff had no intention of sharing power with the vice president and his staff.

Rockefeller's attempt to take charge of domestic policy was thwarted by White House Chief of Staff Donald Rumsfeld, who objected to policy makers reporting to the president through the vice president. When Rockefeller had one of his former aides, James Cannon, appointed executive director the Domestic Council, Rumsfeld cut its budget. Rockefeller was excluded from the decision making process on many important issues. When he learned that Ford had proposed cuts in federal taxes and spending he responded: "This is the most important move the president has made, and I wasn't even consulted." Nevertheless, Ford appointed him to the Commission on the Organization of Government for the Conduct of Foreign Policy, and appointed him Chairman of the Commission on CIA Activities within the United States, the National Commission on Productivity, the Federal Compensation Committee, and the Committee on the Right to Privacy. Ford also put Rockefeller in charge of his "Whip Inflation Now" initiative.

While Rockefeller was vice president, the official vice presidential residence was established at Number One Observatory Circle on the grounds of the United States Naval Observatory. This residence had previously been the home of the Chief of Naval Operations; prior vice presidents had been responsible for maintaining their own homes at their own expense, but the necessity of massive full-time Secret Service security had made this custom impractical to continue. Rockefeller already had a well-secured Washington residence and never lived in the home as a principal residence, although he did host several official functions there. His wealth enabled him to donate millions of dollars of furnishings to the house.

Rockefeller donated the salary he received as vice president to two causes. Half was given to the creation of federal programs to educate inner-city, low income children and to fund youth and family centers in the urban cities. The other half was donated to the preservation and promotion of programs teaching the arts in low income public school systems.

Rockefeller was slow to embrace the use of the government aircraft that were provided for vice presidential transportation. Rockefeller continued to use his own Gulfstream for the first part of his time in office. Initially Rockefeller felt he was doing the taxpayer a favor saving money by not using government funded transportation. Finally the Secret Service was able to convince him they were spending more money flying agents around to meet the needs of his protective detail and he began to fly on the DC-9 that was serving as Air Force Two at the time.

In November 1975, Rockefeller told Ford that he would not run for election in 1976, saying that he "didn't come down (to Washington) to get caught up in party squabbles which only make it more difficult for the President in a very difficult time..." At the 1976 Republican National Convention, Ford, a moderate, under pressure from the conservative wing of the party and in response to Ronald Reagan's challenge for the presidential nomination, had decided to choose the more conservative Senator Robert Dole from Kansas as his running mate, instead of Rockefeller. Reagan had indicated that he could not support Ford if Rockefeller were on the ticket, and Goldwater also said he did not want Rockefeller on the ticket. So Rockefeller was not nominated for the ticket because of his positions on key Republican issues. As of 2012, Ford is the last president to not have his vice president as his running mate. Ford later said not choosing Rockefeller was one of the biggest mistakes he ever made. With Dole as his running mate, Ford narrowly lost to Jimmy Carter in the presidential race. What difference Rockefeller's presence on the ticket would have made remains a matter of speculation. Rockefeller campaigned actively for the Republican ticket. In what would become an iconic photo of the 1976 campaign, Rockefeller famously responded to hecklers at a rally in Binghamton, New York with a raised middle finger. "At the time, Rockefeller's finger flashing was scandalous. Writing about the moment 20 years later, Michael Oricchio of the San Jose Mercury News said the action became known euphemistically as 'the Rockefeller gesture.'"

On January 10, 1977, Ford presented Rockefeller with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.