Ford didn't heal nation, he paved the way for a Bush*

[spanone]

If Nixon had gone thru the process and been processed by the courts, whether guilty or innocent, maybe the likes of Bush*, Cheney & Rumsfeld would have thought twice before committing their crimes. IMHO

[lisa58]

1. My husband said exactly the same thing...

...this is the monster created by the pardon.

[rfranklin]

8. which was compounded by Bush Sr. pardoning the Iran-Contra crooks...

of which he was one.

[KittyWampus]

17. That line of thinking presupposes that putting Nixon on trial would have an deletorius effect

on the incubating lust for power held by men like Rumsfeld, Cheney and Bush Sr.

People like the NeoCons don't let things like that stop them any more than corporations allow a few fines and convictions stop them.

Any more than a full blown drunkt allows a picture of car accident change HIS behavior.

People who are controlled by their lust for anything will just rationalize. For †he most part they don't think they will ever suffer repercussions.

And even if they DO consider repercussions they'll just come up with strategies they believe will help them avoid consequences.

[DesertRat]

2. Or maybe

Cheney and Rummy would have been discredited and been unable to become the powerful monsters that they are now.

[billbuckhead]

4. I don't understand how endlessly pardoning Repukkkes heals America

Wonder if "w" will pardon all the RepuKKKes Congresscrooks in jail?

[CrispyQ]

14. Agreed.

It puts our politicians above the law. The President takes an oath to uphold the Constitution, yet when he violates it he gets pardoned. ???? The current pResident is the worst ever & yet it is looking like he will be allowed to finish his term. :wtf:

No wonder the largest voting segment of the Amrican population is the non-voting sector.

[illinoisprogressive]

3. I don't agree

No one is a soothsayer. I doubt anyone would have thought or predicted these guys would turn evil. They came out of Nixon's administration. And these guys would have been more determined to do what they have for revenge. Just Nixon stepping down got them going.
It was during Ford's administration that Rummy, his assistant Wolfie and cheney plotted thier coup of the moderates and the team Plan B began plotting regime change, only it was the old USSR. They have spent 30 years tightening up the plan. ford didn't know of this and trusted them.
Nixon being Impeached would just stoke the flames higher

[KingFlorez]

5. It's not his fault

Nixon had resigned, there was no reason to go through a long trial.

[spanone]

6. It's what bush* ran on: accountability. Nixon was not accountable.

A trial, long or short, is why the courts exist, to meter out justice.

The process would have proven even to our leaders that you ARE NOT ABOVE THE LAW.

[aquart]

11. He ordered criminal acts. That isn't a reason?

An entire generation learned that justice does not apply to the rich and famous. Justice does not apply to the powerful. We could have taught ourselves and the world about equality of justice, but we went the other way. The other way was the path to George.

[DoYouEverWonder]

16. Why not

He should have been subject to indictment just like any other citizen. There are 1000's of people in prison for much lesser crimes.

[IDemo]

7. If things grow worse for the chimp during '07 (and why wouldn't they??)

impeachment may find itself sliding back onto the table. If he ultimately winds up convicted of any crimes, the repugs and their media will be shouting the "heal the nation" theme at his successor at 120 decibels.

True healing will only come through the closure gained by letting Constitutional law work as it was intended, in this case, through impeachment. And, this time around anyway, it may just act as a deterrent for anyone yet to serve in high office.

IMHO.

[spanone]

9. Painful as a trial may have been, it could have prevented regimes such as Bushco.

possibly.

[aquart]

10. Yup. And I'd like to see one damn pundit admit it.

[Octafish]

12. Watergate was supposed to mean the end of the GOP.

The pardon meant the end of investigating the criminality.
Most everyone, including Nixon, got off the hook.
Today, we see the results all around us.

Great observation, spanone.

[KittyWampus]

13. IMO, that is highly unlikely. You really think those sickened w/ lust for power

would have just slinked away?

Really?

People who are that unbalanced by an all consuming lust for power and control don't think about repercussions. Nor do they believe THEY will suffer consequences.

Please stop and think about how the NeoCons and GOP talk about Viet Nam. In their twisted minds, we lost in VN because of bad press. So they embedded the press in Iraq.

Hell, the same bunch probably thinks Nazis lost in WW2 cause they picked the wrong people to demonize. So this time round, they've got the "Jews" on their side and are going after Muslims.

[spanone]

15. No, I don't think they would have just slinked away, but they may have thought twice.

Jail time is a powerful thing.

[KittyWampus]

18. Do full blown alchoholics think twice? No, and they're very good at shifting blame

and rationalizing others failures as well as their own.

[pansypoo53219]

19. no

i blame corporate media and 24 hour teevee gnews.
that and republikkkan have no shame in their desire for power.