Profiles In Courage For Our Time, by Caroline Kennedy: on Principles & Values

Caroline Kennedy: Awards "Profiles in Courage" for acting on principle

The John F. Kennedy Profiles in Courage Award is presented annually to an elected official who carries on this tradition. When we created the award in 1990, some doubted we would be able to find politicians worthy of the honor. They were wrong.

The courage celebrated here comes in many forms. It is the courage to compromise, as well as the courage to stand alone, the courage to cross party lines and build consensus, as well as the courage to stay the course.

Gerald Ford: Pardoned Nixon under almost universally condemnation

• Lowell Weicker, Jr.
• James Florio
• Nickolas C. Murnion
• The Irish Peacemakers
• John McCain and Russell Feingold
• Hilda Solis
• Gerald R. Ford
• John Lewis

John F. Kennedy: Profile in Courage award to honor those with courage

David Beasley: Removed GA Confederate flag knowing it might cost election

Although this debate is often framed in terms of the Civil War, the Confederate battle flag began flying over Southern state capitols only during the Civil Rights era. A symbol of white resistance to integration, it was added to the Georgia flag in 1956 following the Supreme Court's decision outlawing segregation in Brown v. Board o Education, while South Carolina unfurled the flag in 1962 as desegregation efforts intensified across the South. As the modern South has become more diverse and prosperous, the flag has come to be perceived as a retrograde and inflammatory symbol by many

David Beasley: 1994: Promised to keep Confederate flag; 1998: Removed it

Framing the issue in biblical terms, Beasley addressed SC's citizens on statewide television, asking them to help pressure lawmakers to remove the Confederate flag: "I'm asking that we come together as a people, to honor and understand each other, to forge a ministry of reconciliation that extends to every citizen. The Bible tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves. It is time for the races to compromise on the Confederate flag, to show Judeo-Christian love that will bring the races together."

In January 1997, 500 clergymen marched in support of the Governor's initiative. But, the negative reaction was immediate and extreme. Democrat Jim Hodges beat Beasley in 1998.

Gerald Ford: Told 8 days prior to resignation that Nixon would resign

Haig in effect added, Was Ford prepared to assume the presidency within a very short time? Ford was stunned. Haig, according to Ford's testimony, then laid out six options- half of which included a pardon for Nixon. But Ford insisted there was no pre-arrangement with Nixon or Haig.

The newspaper accounts noted that Ford's disclosure about meeting with Haig was new, but no one made much of it. In the meeting, Haig had dropped one of the bombshells of all times--that Ford was about to become president. Why had so much time been spent in the discussion on options dealing with Nixon's future and not the momentous transition problems and issues facing Ford?

Gerald Ford: Cites Supreme Court decision: accepting pardon imputes guilt

Why didn't he press Nixon harder for an admission of guilt? "I still carry it around in my packet, their statement," Ford said. He reached into his pockets. "I've got it in my wallet here because any time anybody challenges me I pull it out." He searched around in his wallet.

He handed me a folded, dog-eared piece of paper. It was a portion of the 1915 Burdick Supreme Court decision that he'd been carrying around for years. I began to read aloud. "Most important, the justices found that a pardon 'carries an imputation of guilt, acceptance, a confession of it,'"

Ford landed on the last phrase, & he repeated it: "'Acceptance, a confession of it.'" See, Nixon confessed, he said. "That was always very reassuring to me.

Gerald Ford: Preserved White House tapes, despite requests from Nixon

To history, the tapes and Nixon records are more important than any possible prosecution or conviction. Ford's decision to pardon Nixon and to preserve the tapes and records for the public and for history reflect what might be called acts of instinctive courage. The last 27 years have proved their wisdom.

Gerald Ford: 1976: I tried to restore shattered confidence in democracy

"Because the specter of Vietnam, on the one hand, and Watergate, on the other, loomed so large, I found myself, in effect, running two campaigns: the first to win a full term. And the second to restore the shattered confidence of the American people in their democratic institutions. I was unsuccessful, as we all know, in the first. But as I left Washington, I could take some consolation in knowing that the national mood was different from what it had been just a few years earlier."

Gerald Ford: 1974: Pardoned Nixon to "end our long national nightmare"

Hilda Solis: 1994: First Latina elected to California Senate

Solis's coalition brought her to office in 1994. She was the first Latina senator in the history of the state; she was also, at 37, the youngest senator in Sacrament

Jim Hodges: 1994: Won election when Beasley reneged on Confederate flag

Framing the issue in biblical terms, Beasley addressed SC's citizens on statewide television, asking them to help pressure lawmakers to remove the Confederate flag: "I'm asking that we come together as a people, to honor and understand each other, to forge a ministry of reconciliation that extends to every citizen. The Bible tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves. It is time for the races to compromise on the Confederate flag, to show Judeo-Christian love that will bring the races together."

In January 1997, 500 clergymen marched in support of the Governor's initiative. But, the negative reaction was immediate and extreme. Democrat Jim Hodges beat Beasley in 1998.

John McCain: Reputation of volcanic temper shared even within GOP

Over lunch a year after South Carolina, John McCain still bridles at the tone of his Republican colleagues. "Lott said some of the most malicious things I've ever heard," he declares.

Richard Nixon: Offered deal to Ford on resignation, but Ford declined

Why had so much time been spent in the discussion on options dealing with Nixon's future and not the momentous transition problems facing Ford? Ford recalled later, "When Al Haig comes with those six terms, I just didn't visualize him as one making a proposition to make a deal. It never went through my mind." Ford stated, "I did not agree to consummate [Haig's deal]. Yes, on paper, it was a deal, but it never became a deal because I never accepted."

And so there it was. He had finally acknowledged, on the record, that he had been offered a deal. It was something many had suspected all along, but it had been a long, roundabout road to finally getting there.

Richard Nixon: Words can't describe my regret at my mistakes over Watergate

Why didn't you make sure that Nixon's statement accepting the pardon went further? Nixon's statement said, "No words can describe the depth of my regret and pain at the anguish my mistakes over Watergate had caused."

Why didn't he press Nixon harder for an admission of guilt? A forthright acknowledgement by Nixon could have ended the historical debate on that question. [Ford cited the] 1915 Burdick Supreme Court decision: "a pardon 'carries an imputation of guilt, acceptance, a confession of it.'"

Richard Nixon: Sought possession of White House tapes after resignation

Significantly, it was Ford who decided that the Nixon tapes had to be preserved. After resigning, Nixon wanted all his papers and tapes shipped to his home in California. Traditionally, a former president owned all his papers. But returning all the tapes and papers to Nixon would make Ford a co-conspirator in concealing the truth of what had gone on in the Nixon White House. A complicated arrangement [resulted], in which Nixon and the government had joint custody of the tapes for 10 years. Congress and the courts eventually saw that the tapes were preserved. A plan for gradual public release is still being carried out today.

Roy Barnes: Removed SC Confederate flag knowing it might cost election

Although this debate is often framed in terms of the Civil War, the Confederate battle flag began flying over Southern state capitols only during the Civil Rights era. A symbol of white resistance to integration, it was added to the Georgia flag in 1956 following the Supreme Court's decision outlawing segregation in Brown v. Board o Education, while South Carolina unfurled the flag in 1962 as desegregation efforts intensified across the South. As the modern South has become more diverse and prosperous, the flag has come to be perceived as a retrograde and inflammatory symbol by many

Roy Barnes: Confederate flag was barrier to GA's future prosperity

The new flag was adopted. Barnes' opponent, Sonny Perdue, made the flag a central issue. There is little doubt that the flag was the crucial issue in Barnes' defeat, According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Barnes' support in Atlanta & other metropolitan areas increased or remained steady, but his support among rural white voters dropped 25 points. Even the "flaggers" weren't satisfied with Barnes' defeat, but continued to heckle him up until his last day in office, shouting epithets as he left the Governor's mansion for the drive to his new home.

Sonny Perdue: 2001: Won election on central issue of Confederate flag

The new flag was adopted. Barnes' opponent, State Legislator Sonny Perdue, made the flag a central issue. Confederate flag supporters began disrupting every Barnes campaign appearance. On Election Day, Sonny Perdue became Georgia's first Republican Governor since 1871.

There is little doubt that the flag was the crucial issue in Barnes' defeat, According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Barnes' support in Atlanta and other metropolitan areas increased or remained steady, but his support among rural white voters dropped 25 points. Even the "flaggers" weren't satisfied with Barnes' defeat, but continued to heckle him up until his last day in office, shouting epithets as he left the Governor's mansion for the drive to his new home.