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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 14, 1974)
"Sugar! Ford's pardoning clos book : joedreesen smiling grimiy Gerald Ford's pardon of Richard Nixon on Sept. 15, 1974, came as an unexpected surprise to an already Confused and" battered nation, floundering in the morass of Watergate. Ford had assured the country three separate times before Sept. 15, that he would let the judicial process run its course in regard to Richard Nixon, and only then would he consider the question of a pardon. """SO Wiry miT'Poft laKysraheaSycTRSnln pardoning MiXGO, resulting in a serious LoS of credibility and popularity to his one-month old presidency? 'According to Ford, by pardoning5 Nixon he hoped to 'shut and seaMhe books" of Watergate and therefore, hea! the nation's wounds. While he gave other reasons for the pardon (Nixon's health, his inability to receive a Tair trial) this, seemed to be his primary motive, according to him. " What Ford eally did was to pour acid on an already festering wound. " - Angry protests were raised nationwide, people complained of a double standard of justice. According to Sen. Howard Baker, Watergate was "once again an issue." ; Was Ford oblivious to the mood of the nation just prior to the pardon announcement? A nationwide public opinion poll then showed that 60 per cent of the American people thought Richard Nixon should be brought to trial. Certainly Ford .was aware of this poll. Unless he was an utter fool, he would have realized "that, by pardoning Nixon, he would alienate at least a majority of the population. So did Ford have other reasons for pardoning Nixon? Was there a deal struck between the two back in the fall of 1973, when they discussed the possibility of Ford becoming vice-president? The chance .'of ,vbeing yjce-presjder)t and i;even( ultim aTelA(aaijdantisJanal iur i n a. sk ize l o r a h v o n'e.' At tin, it t.n-,n . , r. 4 K . . 4 lU.i kll r. .I-J t fl uiui inic, 11 woo nui myuyuii iui pHixun wuuia ue impeached or forced to resign. Esreh i f Ford agreed to pardon Nixon in return for' the vice-presidency, his chances of having to do so were slim. To insure that Ford would not renege on his promise, one could surmise that Nixon taped the discussion of a pardon. In the event that Ford did not go through with the deal, Nixon might have turned this tape over to the press. He had nothing to lose, Ford everything. While the above is mainly conjecture, it is also conjecture which allows us to believe Ford's stated reasons for the pardon, which are in themselves vague and unclear. Ford was merely an appointee of a president who practiced moral terpitude in excess. Could that in itself be a reflection on Ford's character arid integrity? ' The answer to this question and others concerning" Watergate will probably never be known. Gerald Ford has indeed "shut and sealed the book" on Waterqate but without writin'g the last chapter. J Ford learning to say recession A top economic adviser slipped up yesterday and told reporters that President Jerry Ford's inauguration promise to, "straight talk" to America is a hoax. "It really stands for 'late talk," he said, His comment referred to the White House's sudden announcement earlier this week: "By. golly, we're in a recession after all:" ' The President seemed dismayed about the mistake. "Well, there goes my open, honest1 administration image," he said. "It was nice while it lasted.".": - "' The President then admitted he and his ': economic chief Alan Greenthumb have ' known for at !cast five months the nation was in a recession, but purposely have been denying ft. Sort of, ;'. "it was such fun keeping you guessing!" , he said. "Yes, but don't you think the American public deserves to know the truth all' of ; it as it surfaces?" J asked. ' . ....... "Really," he said, "any dimwit educated American citizen can see we'have unerriplcy ment, slow economic growth and "rising . inflation. That's recession. Why should we ' have to come out on page one and laber it ' that? j " 'And anvwavf' I finura as Innrt ns tho American people want to go on believing in endless prosperity despite it all, spending their wads of bills and buying tn credit, I shouldn't spoil their party. They look so happy in their ignorance." The President told us the mastermind organization is LAG, a top-secret cabinet office run by the White House press secretary. LAG processes all truth about the state of the Union as it comes in, and then he and his staff decide how long to wait to release it to the public "for their own good," he said. nancy sbhs second thou qhts "Without LAG I'd probably have "''announced things left and right (that s a pun) at all the wrong times," he said. "Like pardoning Mr. Nixon. That was decided last May, you know, right after the President "-decided he was going to resign." ' "Oh? And what are you keeping from us now?" '.'Oh, there's a host of things about Watergate you don't know yet," he grinned. ;'. daily nebraskan "We're not releasing those until 1990, when, objecffvely."". be judged morer "Hoc thio t-i I : i i .. . '. . '. ' ' uno iiuiuiuy uacK or. intormat on always gone on?" I asked ak , ' f,srtamy. ai' the way. back to Honest Abe. Let s see, I believe the Civil War was actually declared five years before it broke t release 'yet " Ureinat lsn't schuled for.' Based on how far behind it" "is on current ISS1961Sa,d PUb,ic is lly livin, ,J.ct,uaL,y' .LAG insures the public thev'li f thiiv ! ineSe things st al1-" h said. If they d just open up their eyes they could see for themselves half of Whlv ih, of .emerQency or announcing a world food crisis to make thpmthini, J,r wuna. . ' .asked him if that still wasn't hiti,,.;,;' ottinn nnn m . .. -1 1 ' Mian t: illusions? People live under harmful ; And d'pesn'tvit take facing the facts io' create solutions? . y 'cis,to thl'hV st'PPpse- But the longer we delav the better we ook a t IL, e ea'' . possibly can to preven it Beiide It o iJSS me a chance, to practice my rhetoric Do vo5 : ' we Vehnot!innay 25! lly we renot m a recession, it just looks that thursday, novemberl4 1974 page 4