Betty Ford

Betty Ford sat with her husband Gerald for a 1997 interview with Lesley Stahl for CBS’ “60 Minutes.” She spoke about her struggles with alcoholism, her mastectomy for breast cancer, and her reputation for candidness, which on occasion caused controversy.

For instance, in a famous 1975 “60 Minutes” interview, she was asked by Morley Safer how she would react if her 18-year-old daughter had a pre-marital “affair.” She replied, “Well, I wouldn't be surprised. I would think she's a perfectly normal human being, like all young girls. If she wanted to continue, I would certainly counsel and advise her on the subject.”

When asked by Stahl how President Ford reacted to the interview, she recalled, “When he saw it, he said, ‘Well, honey, there goes about 20 million votes, but we'll make it.’”

She also told Stahl, “The cabinet sometimes felt that I shouldn’t be so outspoken. And I think they talked to him more about having Betty, you know, step in the background.”

To learn more about Betty Ford, read her profile on findingDulcinea.