Pardons
I have a clear recollection of standing at an AP teletype machine at a college radio station when —on September 8, 1974-news of President Ford’s pardon of Richard Nixon came across the wire.
Ford had—until then-been riding a wave of good will from the American public. There were positive depictions of the amiable President and his attractive family on tv and in magazines and America was happy to be moving on from the “long national nightmare” of Watergate.
It all ended at that moment. The air came rushing out of all that good will. The pardon landed with a thud. There is general agreement that Ford’s act contributed to his loss to Jimmy Carter in the 1976 election.
Shortly thereafter the famed defense attorney William Kunstler (Chicago 7 defense) came to my school and, in a radio interview, Kunstler told me that Nixon and Ford had worked out “a deal” for the pardon prior to Nixon’s resignation. This turned out to be incorrect but many people at the time believed as Kunstler did.
Later, many who criticized Ford for the pardon came around and said it was the right thing to do. This list included Ted Kennedy and even Bob Woodward. Ford was even given a Profile In Courage award from Kennedy Library.
Jeffrey Toobin, author of the new book about pardons, still sees Ford’s pardon as a mistake.
Toobin thinks President Biden’s pardons of his family members was largely driven by his deep devotion to family, particularly given the tragic losses of family members Biden experienced early in his senate career.
President Trump is aggressive about pardons. He’ll pardon pretty much anyone he sees as an ally and (conversely) seek to punish anyone he sees as an enemy. This is in keeping with his “transactional” approach to relationships.
Toobin points out that most presidents try to bury their pardons in a flurry of activity as they prepare to leave office. (Clinton’s pardon of Marc Rich is an infamous example.) Not Trump. He’ll be issuing pardons openly along the way.
If you’re interested in a frame by frame walk through of the Ford pardon of Nixon, this is a fun read. I guess because the events happened back when I was in my twenties, it continues to capture my interest…and brings back current events memories I have of that time.