This week in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of his presidency, the Boy Scouts of America pays tribute to the late President Gerald R. Ford Jr. President Ford is the only president to earn the rank of Eagle Scout. “I have not sought this enormous responsibility, but I will not shirk it … I believe that truth is the glue that holds government together, not only our government, but civilization itself.”. —President Gerald R. Ford (1913–2006).