Ron Nessen, who as President Gerald R. Ford’s press secretary from 1974 to 1977 pledged a new era of openness after the Watergate scandal but had an often rocky relationship with the White House press corps, died on Wednesday in Bethesda, Md. He was 90.
His death was confirmed by his son, Edward.
A former wire service and NBC News correspondent, Mr. Nessen joined the White House at an extraordinary time: President Richard M. Nixon, facing impeachment for Watergate crimes, had quit; Vice President Ford had replaced and pardoned him; and a nation and its press, fed up with lies and deception, looked upon the new president and his spokesman with varying degrees of suspicion.
It hardly helped that Mr. Ford’s first choice as press secretary, J.F. terHorst, had resigned after a month, saying he could not support the president’s decision to pardon Mr. Nixon, sparing him from the criminal charges and prison terms faced by other officials in the Watergate affair, as well as by young men who had evaded military service in Vietnam as a matter of conscience.
The event was timed to the first anniversary of the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, which Mr. Biden created last year after signing the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the first major gun safety bill in nearly 30 years. It was also a chance for Mr. Biden to pass the baton to the official who heads that office: Vice President Kamala Harris,fef777 casino who is leaning into gun violence prevention as an issue as she campaigns to succeed Mr. Biden.
Trying to restore trust after a two-year cover-up that began with a break-in at the Democratic National Committee offices at the Watergate complex in Washington, Mr. Nessen said his first loyalty would be to the public. He promised to “get as much news out as possible,” and he told his former colleagues, “If I lie or mislead you, I think you are justified in questioning my continued usefulness in this job.”
He added, “I’m a Ron, but not a Ziegler” — a reference to Ronald L. Ziegler, Mr. Nixon’s press secretary, who had been widely criticized for withholding information and misleading the press during the Watergate scandal.
ImageMr. Nessen, center, appeared at the National Press Club in Washington in January 1977 with two other former presidential press secretaries: Ron Ziegler, left, who served under President Richard M. Nixon, and J.F. terHorst, who worked for Mr. Ford for a month before resigning over Mr. Ford’s pardoning of Mr. Nixon. Credit...Associated PressWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.
Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access.
Already a subscriber? Log in.
Want all of The Times? Subscribe.ricobetpg