I was reading an article about Elon Musk and it mentioned something about people liking Henry Ford warts and all. I tried to google it and aside from various Henry Ford medical institutions with assorted cures/info sheets about warts all I can find is a few articles that use the phrase but don't say anything about him actually having warts.
Examples:
http://www.autonews.com/article/20030616/SUB/306160727/henry-ford----warts-and-all
http://www.deadlinedetroit.com/articles/3504#.Wlw04ainG8E
It seems like it's common enough knowledge that he had them that multiple articles mention it. However I can't seem to find anything about his condition or how he treated them or why it was such common knowledge. Any thoughts would help greatly.
its just an expression. "people liked him, warts and all" means, people liked him even with his imperfections.
The phrase "Warts and All" here means a person's faults in general, not just dermal conditions. Musk is saying that he liked Ford in spite of his shortcomings.
The phrase has been applied to many people and things. For example Mark Garner wrote a book titled "Grammar, Warts and All" in this case promising to include all of the awkward and irregular parts of the language.
The phrase "warts and all" comes from Oliver Cromwell, who supposedly told a portrait painter to depict him accurately and not try to make him look more handsome. These authors are referring to Ford's metaphorical warts -- his well-known racism and antisemitism.