I agree with Duncan Black's assessment of Ford. Ford's action denied the role of our judicial system in determining the guilt or innocence of Richard Nixon. Furthermore, Ford showed to the people that there is a distinct two tiered system of justice working in America.

This "breach of faith" by Ford (and Nixon) is a critical factor in the decline of Americans participation in the political process itself.

Ken

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Ford and the Wise Old Men of Washington

As we all know, because everybody on the teevee will keep repeating it, Gerald Ford's pardon of Richard Nixon was perhaps the wisest and awesomest thing anyone has ever done in the history of presidenting. Never mind that it wasn't popular at the time. Never mind that it set an awful precedent which led to the pardoning of the Iran Contra figures and transformed corrupt Nixonites into distinguished elder statesmen and Bush administration officials.

We are told again and again that what they nation needed was "to heal." That "the turmoil" needed to be over. That it was necessary to move on.

Read the rest here.