Pardon

Gerald Ford: The Man Who Pardoned Richard Nixon

In his own words, he was a “Ford, not a Lincoln”.Gerald Ford had been the Minority Leader in the House of Representatives.

He was chosen by Nixon to be Vice-President, following the resignation of Spiro Agnew in October 1973.

Some people believe that when Ford became next in line of succession the reluctance some politicians had to remove Nixon evaporated.

When he became President on August 9, 1974, Ford spoke of the national nightmare finally being over.

Speculation mounted over whether Nixon would face criminal prosecution. A Memorandum from the Watergate Special Prosecutor, Leon Jaworski on the day Nixon resigned showed how close he came to prosecution.

However, President Ford decided to pardon his predecessor.

He made a television address on September 8, 1974 to give his reasons for the pardon proclamation.