When you look at the Nixon pardon, the short-term gain would have been never to pardon him.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
While I do not believe Ford was wrong to pardon Nixon, the timing of the pardon was premature and may have cost Ford the margin of victory in the 1976 election.
At bottom, the decision to pardon Nixon was a political judgment properly within the bounds of Ford's constitutional authority. The specter of a former president in the criminal dock as our country moved into its bicentennial year was profoundly disturbing.
I was never for Richard Nixon until Watergate.
In many ways when Jerry Ford pardoned Nixon, in a certain way, he did speak for the country.
Mr. Ford's decision to pardon Richard M. Nixon for any crimes he might have been charged with because of Watergate is seen by many historians as the central event of his 896-day presidency.
I never believed that Nixon could fully resurrect himself. And the proof of that was in the obits.
I believe that President Clinton considered the legal merits of the arguments for the pardon as he understood them, and he rendered his judgment, wise or unwise, on the merits.
We are all serving a life sentence, and good behavior is our only hope for a pardon.
Of all presidential perks, the pardon power has a special significance. It is just the kind of authority that would attract the special attention of someone obsessed with himself and his own ability to influence events.
The offender never pardons.