Would you have pardoned Nixon for Watergate?

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

No.

[Ebsy]

I voted no, but I can sympathize with Ford's position that it only would have hurt the country, but then again, Nixon's actions hurt the country much more.

[Illuminati Blood Drinker]

Obviously not, the man was a crook and should have faced jail time. Ford's pardon effectively proved Nixon right in saying "when the President does it, it's not illegal".

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Of course not, and I would have let Nixon's sabotaging of the peace talks be public information then rather than waiting another 40 years.

[ingemann]

I think in the end, it was much worse for Nixon's legacy that he was pardoned. If not I think the American public would have tired of the whole thing and begun seeing it as a witch hunt. Instead it was ended early, before people had truly tired of the whole thing and it looked like Nixon got away with it.

[TNF]

No

[SATW]

Yes. The country needed to move on and heal.

[windjammer]

no

[The Dowager Mod]

Yup.

[Dazey]

Yes.
If Ford hadn't pardoned Nixon, the Watergate scandal would've continued to engulf the country/news media, to the extent that it would've hurt much more pressing issues, like the economy for instance. In Ford's first month, before the pardon, the majority of the questions asked by pundits and press people was about the fate of Richard Nixon, not about the more important problems of inflation or the energy crisis.

Not only that, but to see a President, who was once a grand, beloved figure, hauled off to prison, would've done a major blow to our sense of national morale and our faith in this system of government.

[Dr. Cynic]

Yes.
If Ford hadn't pardoned Nixon, the Watergate scandal would've continued to engulf the country/news media, to the extent that it would've hurt much more pressing issues, like the economy for instance. In Ford's first month, before the pardon, the majority of the questions asked by pundits and press people was about the fate of Richard Nixon, not about the more important problems of inflation or the energy crisis.

Not only that, but to see a President, who was once a grand, beloved figure, hauled off to prison, would've done a major blow to our sense of national morale and our faith in this system of government.

Clearly, you don't know much about Nixon or his relationship with the public. Nixon was never grand and he was certainly not beloved by anybody.

[Samantha]

No. I don't buy that America was too emotionally fragile to watch a crooked President be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

[Thunderbird is the word]

No. I don't buy that America was too emotionally fragile to watch a crooked President be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

[MyRescueKittehRocks]

No. The president is not above the rule of law.

[Sumner 1868]

Absolutely not, and especially not with hindsight. We needed to prove actions had consequences, and a Nixon trial (even if he was acquitted) would have sent a loud message indeed. Imprisoning Nixon would probably have been the best thing that could ever happen in this country.

I think in the end, it was much worse for Nixon's legacy that he was pardoned. If not I think the American public would have tired of the whole thing and begun seeing it as a witch hunt. Instead it was ended early, before people had truly tired of the whole thing and it looked like Nixon got away with it.

Except that the longer it went on, the more unpopular Nixon became. And people were already expressing fatigue with it by August 1974, yet few wanted Nixon off the hook nonetheless.

[DemPGH]

No, and doing so betrayed all standards of the office.

[Türkisblau]

No president is above the law, as previous commenters have stated and pardoning a president to end "a national nightmare" is essentially creating a precedent that you can get away with the crimes you commit while holding the office.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Of course.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

Yes (not a hack).  Although what he did was wrong, it would have been far more damaging to have a president go to prison than to have him pardoned.  I agree with the critics that the president shouldn't be above the law, but Ford made the right decision because Americans' confidence in their government was at stake.

[RINO Tom]

Yup.

[ElectionsGuy]

Of course.

Yes (not a hack).  Although what he did was wrong, it would have been far more damaging to have a president go to prison than to have him pardoned.  I agree with the critics that the president shouldn't be above the law, but Ford made the right decision because Americans' confidence in their government was at stake.

Then they shouldn't be above the law. Period.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

The pardon process really needs to be reined in. I mean Bill Clinton pardoned his brother.

[NewYorkExpress]

He needed to be tried and convicted, but certainly would have been open to pardoning him after that.

[Zioneer]

Absolutely not, and especially not with hindsight. We needed to prove actions had consequences, and a Nixon trial (even if he was acquitted) would have sent a loud message indeed. Imprisoning Nixon would probably have been the best thing that could ever happen in this country.

I think in the end, it was much worse for Nixon's legacy that he was pardoned. If not I think the American public would have tired of the whole thing and begun seeing it as a witch hunt. Instead it was ended early, before people had truly tired of the whole thing and it looked like Nixon got away with it.

Except that the longer it went on, the more unpopular Nixon became. And people were already expressing fatigue with it by August 1974, yet few wanted Nixon off the hook nonetheless.

I agree completely with tara gilesbie, and additionally, I feel like the sole reason Reagan got away with Iran-Contra was because Nixon was pardoned for Watergate. The only lesson learned was not to be caught. Nobody should be above the law, and presidents should be more in fear of the law.

[SWE]

Yes (not a hack).  Although what he did was wrong, it would have been far more damaging to have a president go to prison than to have him pardoned.  I agree with the critics that the president shouldn't be above the law, but Ford made the right decision because Americans' confidence in their government was at stake.

Americans probably shouldn't have been particularly confident in their government when the President just broke the law he's sworn to uphold