Corrupt Bargain - Ford's 1974 Nixon Pardon

Ford's 1974 Nixon Pardon

Gerald Ford's 1974 pardon of Richard Nixon was widely described as a "corrupt bargain" by critics of the disgraced former president. These critics claim that Ford's pardon was quid pro quo for Nixon's resignation, which elevated Ford to the presidency. The most prominent example was then Representative Elizabeth Holtzman who, as the lowest ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, was the only congressperson to explicitly ask whether the pardon was a quid pro quo. Ford cut Holtzman off declaring, "There was no deal, period, under no circumstances."

Read more about this topic:  Corrupt Bargain

Famous quotes containing the words ford, nixon and/or pardon:

    I am the first to admit that I am no great orator or no person that got where I have gotten by any William Jennings Bryan technique.
    —Gerald R. Ford (b. 1913)

    My mother always used to say, “There is no path to peace. Peace is the path.”
    Donald Freed, U.S. screenwriter, and Arnold M. Stone. Robert Altman. Richard Nixon (Philip Baker Hall)

    I cannot give them my confidence; pardon me, gentlemen, confidence is a plant of slow growth in an aged bosom: youth is the season of credulity.
    William, Earl Of Pitt (1708–1778)