Ford: Nixon Friendship Affected Pardon

[kskiska]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Former President Gerald R. Ford acknowledged in an interview last year that his long personal friendship with Richard Nixon did indeed play a role in his decision to pardon the disgraced former president, The Washington Post reported Thursday night.

``I looked upon him as my personal friend. And I always treasured our relationship. And I had no hesitancy about granting the pardon, because I felt that we had this relationship and that I didn't want to see my real friend have the stigma,'' Ford told Post reporter Bob Woodward.

Ford's remarks, which he asked not be released until his death, add to the rationale for pardoning Nixon a month after he resigned as president in 1974. Ford had claimed that he issued the pardon to allow the nation to move past Watergate and begin a time of healing, not for personal reasons.

Nixon and Ford had been acquainted since the late 1940s, but the depth of their friendship was not widely known. Nixon confided in Ford and sought his help during the Watergate crisis when Ford was House minority leader, the Post reported.

more…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6308731,00.html

[noamnety]

1. Welcome to the Rich White Male Network

*lights incense and chants*

when the ruling class is above the law, it helps to heal the entire country

bastards

[riderinthestorm]

2. Flames! Flames I tells ya! K & R!

Does anyone STILL want to step up and try to admonish DUers about "speaking ill of the dead" knowing that Nixon's pardon was one gigantic good ole boy whitewash of crimes, a personal favor for an old friend?? Anyone??

:nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[Zenlitened]

3. I had that exact same thought.

Reading through some of the past few days' worth of Ford threads... and I can't believe the chorus of patsies out there trying to silence critics.

True, Ford was not the epitome of evil. But he was no American hero. There's a straight-line path from the Nixon era to the current band of crooks infesting the White House, and it runs right through the Ford administration.

"Let's wait a few days... let's not dance on his grave... if you can't say something nice, don't say anything..."

Gimme a break. Adulation is appropriate for his eulogy, if it's adulation people are looking for. But we're discussing the life and impact of a public figure -- a man who became POTUS at a critical juncture in American history -- and pretending there are no facts, no context to his story is ridiculous.

And now here we have Ford's own words, admitting what many DUers have been arguing: His pardon of Nixon was NOT motivated purely by some noble and far-sighted desire to "heal the nation." That seemed like "spin" to a lot of people back then, a rationalization added after the decision had been made. And it sure seems like spin now, more than ever.

:crazy:

[riderinthestorm]

4. I can't believe this has dropped away....

Another shameless kick.