Word: heals
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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Probably the most widespread continuing reaction, however, was one of disappointment in Ford, who had moved so swiftly to heal the nation's wounds caused by Watergate and the Viet Nam War. Now, unfairly but inevitably, his previously announced intention of seeking leniency for draft evaders and war deserters was seen by many as a calculated move to make a Nixon pardon more palatable. Those somewhat jesting earlier cracks about Ford's intellect were now reviewed in a more serious light. How could he have failed to perceive the ramifications?legal, political and moral?of his decision...
More than that, the President added, the "serious allegations and accusations hang like a sword over our former President's head and threaten his health as he tries to reshape his life." Most important, Ford hoped that the pardon would help heal the nation. Any move to bring Nixon to trial, the President noted, would have taken many months or years. During that period "ugly passions would again be aroused, our people would again be polarized in their opinions, and the credibility of our free institutions of Government would again be challenged at home and abroad...
...American life without being treated as criminals. At the same time, the Government, which was guilty of widespread deception during the Viet Nam War, would foster much needed post-Watergate reconciliation by showing charity toward its dissenting young men. "The purpose of amnesty is to forget the war and heal the wounds," says John Kerry, former head of the Viet Nam Veterans Against the War, "and it may be that the way to do that is to demand a sacrifice on both sides. My heart and my morality say the resisters shouldn't have to do anything to come...
Ford's apparent determination to select a moderate who could help heal the nation's and party's wounds reduces the chances of several Republicans who may be too closely identified with the G.O.P.'s conservative or liberal wings. The conservatives would include Governor Ronald Reagan of California and Senator William Brock of Tennessee. Among the liberals: Senators Charles H. Percy of Illinois and Mark Hatfield of Oregon, and, surprisingly, former Senator Charles E. Goodell of New York. While a member of the House, Goodell helped his close friend Ford become minority leader in 1965. Goodell...
...best hope for Richard Nixon as President was that he might heal through competence; that a pragmatic, efficient leader with access to the best brains-so one imagined at the time-would give the U.S. a new start...