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As Reagan made clear in his 45-min. acceptance speech, he is determined to pursue a more centrist course in the election than is suggested by the language of his platform. The speech was not filled with great content; much of it was no more than a rephrasing of his campaign positions, superficial and rhetorical. But the great strength of the speech was Reagan's relaxed but forceful delivery. Said he: "We face a disintegrating economy, a weakening defense and an energy policy based on the sharing of scarcity. The major issue of this campaign is the direct political, personal and moral responsibility of Democratic Party leadership—in the White House and in Congress—for this unprecedented calamity which has befallen us." Reagan promised to freeze federal hiring, increase U.S. defenses, cut taxes and take measures to stimulate stronger economic growth. But at the same time, he reached out to groups that might be disaffected by his conservatism. Early in his speech he pledged as President to work with the 50 Governors to "eliminate discrimination against women." At the end, his voice choked by emotion, he asked for a moment of silent prayer, then declared: "God bless America." The delegates, who had interrupted him 70 times with applause, cheers and blaring horns, leaped to their feet for a 20-minute ovation. Over and over again they sang God Bless America and This Land Is Your Land. A few even sang Boola-Boola, in honor of Yale Graduate ('48) Bush.
It was the climactic moment of the convention, which had been so carefully scripted by the Reagan forces that it was becoming a staggering bore—until the very day of his nomination. In his evening of triumph, while he was being anointed by the votes of 1,939 ecstatic supporters,* he came perilously close to making what could have been a major mistake. Determined to strengthen his candidacy by achieving what many Republicans began to call their "dream ticket," Reagan made a last-gasp effort to persuade his 1976 rival, former President Gerald Ford, to become his running mate. Nevada Senator Paul Laxalt, Reagan's close friend and campaign chairman, summed up the reason in an interview with TIME: "Our polls show that every prospective bride is a drag on the ticket, except Jerry Ford. That would be a political marriage made in heaven."
But Ford remembers all too well the frustrations of the Vice President's office, in which he served for nine months under Richard Nixon, and the stipulations needed to make the job attractive to him proved too great. It amounted in the end to an unprecedented plan that would have given Ford sweeping authority over the budget, foreign affairs and domestic policy (see following story). Only when his negotiations with Ford failed did Reagan put aside his personal dislike of Bush and tap him for the job. Bush has no grandiose illusions about his role if the G.O.P. ticket wins in November. He told TIME the day before his selection: "Everyone says they are going to reinvent the wheel, that their Vice President is going to be in on developing North-South strategy and other great projects. But it never happens. Two years later, you wake up and find he's still going to funerals."