him. For instance, a colleague of Billy’s told us of a teammate who
had so greatly failed Billy that he was considered by Billy’s asso-
ciates as “the enemy.”
In all cases, whatever his spiritual depth and intensity, Billy
still had to deal with his emotions. His response was at the oppo-
site pole of either bitterness or revenge. He turned to the Bible’s
admonitions to love and to forgive.
In the case of “the enemy” described by his colleague, Billy
forgave him and later in life sought him out and invited him to
share a meal. And for Richard Nixon, he reached out far “beyond
the call of duty.” Despite the pain of betrayal, despite the embar-
rassment, despite the questions of “How?” and “Why?”—Billy
never gave up on him.
The night before Nixon resigned, Billy attempted to reach the
president by phone, but without success. Even after Nixon left the
White House in disgrace, Billy refused to pile on. “I shall always
consider him a personal friend,” he told reporters. “His personal
suffering must be almost unbearable. He deserves the prayers
even of those who feel betrayed and let down.”
Billy remained pastoral despite being chief among the
“betrayed and let down.” He tried to visit Nixon in California, but
the former president was too sick for visitors. Undeterred, Ruth
Graham hired an airplane to fly around Nixon’s San Clemente
home towing a banner that read, “Nixon. God Loves You and So
Do We.”
The following spring, Billy finally was able to visit Nixon in
California. His daughter, Julie Eisenhower, recalled, “The purpose
of the visit was simply to reassure both of my parents of his com-
plete love and faith in them. The lack of hypocrisy and absence of
a ‘holier than thou’ attitude had always impressed me tremen-
dously. Dr. Graham’s capacity for friendship and his eagerness to
love make him stand apart from other men.”
When Nixon died in April 1994, Billy accepted the unenviable
responsibility of conducting his funeral. Once again, Billy set aside
his private grief to publicly serve his friend. The eyes of the world—
not to mention the eyes of Presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush,
Experiencing Trauma and Betrayal