Word: jaworskis
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Nonetheless, Nixon did gain a great deal in having the burden of prosecution lifted. As many Watergate defendants can testify, the astonishing costs of high-level legal defense are themselves a punishment. Sources close to Jaworski's office report that the conspiracy case against Nixon was virtually "ironclad" and conviction was almost a certainty. Being pronounced guilty by a jury would clearly have been an additional, if justifiable humiliation for Nixon. So Nixon does benefit greatly from Ford's generosity. But the absence of any admission of criminal guilt by Nixon and the granting to him of practical control over...
...asked Buchen to study that question. Buchen quickly discovered, as any reader of informed legal speculation in newspaper accounts at the time had also learned, that Presidents had exerted such power in the past. According to this explanation, Ford had also been in formed that Jaworski was about to in dict Nixon for a whole series of crimes. Since there was doubt that the ex-President could get a fair trial, and since Ford had decided in any case to pardon Nixon at some point, there was no reason to wait. "Mercy is never untimely," said Buchen...
There were problems with these explanations. The presidential pardoning power, including Nixon's authority to pardon him self before leaving office, had been widely discussed, so it seemed unlikely that Ford was all that unaware of his authority. Jaworski, moreover, was not poised to throw the book at Nixon. He was prepared to seek a single indictment for conspiring to obstruct justice in the cover-up?but not until the conspiracy-trial jury had been selected and sequestered. To the contrary, Jaworski had submitted to the White House, at Buchen's request, a memo from his top deputy, Henry...
Ford's agreement with Nixon on the tapes, coupled with the pardon's elimination of any future disclosures in a trial of Nixon, makes it less likely that the record will ever be revealed. Special Prosecutor Leon Jaworski's final report will probably include some new details about Watergate but not all of the untold story. What can be done...
...pardon is irreversible, but Ford could revoke the tapes agreement. That would be the simplest solution. Ford seemed unlikely to negate the deal willingly, but many lawyers doubt its legality and expect it to be challenged in the courts. Jaworski would be in the best position to mount such a challenge. Indeed, at his request, the White House decided to halt the transfer of the tapes and documents to Nixon at least temporarily. But if the agreement stands, other means must be found to pry loose what still needs to be known...