最新杏吧原创

It was 1974. President Richard Nixon had resigned in disgrace before he could be impeached for his role in the 1972 Watergate scandal. His vice president, Gerald R. Ford, had been sworn in as president. At one of Ford鈥檚 first news conferences, 28 of the 30 questions were about Nixon. Ford would determine that his presidency, and the nation, would never escape the dark cloud of Watergate and its accompanying cover up without drastic action.

So on Sept. 8, 1974, Ford issued for any crimes Nixon might have committed. Willard, a longtime 最新杏吧原创 attorney and law professor, didn鈥檛 work for Ford, at the time of the Nixon pardon. He would start work for the nation鈥檚 38th president in 1975 and would become a close aide and confidante. He continues to be a member of the board of trustees of Ford鈥檚 presidential foundation.

On Tuesday, the day before President Joseph Biden , Willard and I were on a panel held by the Springfield Bar Association to discuss insurrection, pardons and the transition of power. Willard told a story of Ford receiving the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation鈥檚 , specifically for the act of pardoning Nixon during a time of great national upheaval.

鈥淪en. Ted Kennedy got up and he read the statement that he had given on the floor of the United States Senate shortly after President Ford鈥檚 pardon of Nixon. It was vitriolic to say the least,鈥� Willard said. 鈥淪en. Kennedy read that, and then he turned to President Ford and he said, 鈥楳r. President. You were right, I was wrong. And my brother would be proud of you to have this award in his name.鈥� That moment captured 鈥� why it was such a courageous decision.鈥�

In his inaugural address on Wednesday, given amid unprecedented security measures following the Jan. 6 insurrection against the U.S. Capitol, Biden spoke of unity 鈥� not the sort of unity that lacks dissent, but the sort that can overcome it.

鈥淭o overcome these challenges 鈥� to restore the soul and to secure the future of America 鈥� requires more than words,鈥� Biden said. 鈥淚t requires that most elusive of things in a democracy: unity.鈥�

Then the president offered nuance, something that the nation has been missing for the past four years.

鈥淥ur history has been a constant struggle between the American ideal that we are all created equal and the harsh, ugly reality that racism, nativism, fear and demonization have long torn us apart,鈥� Biden said. 鈥淭he battle is perennial. Victory is never assured. Through the Civil War, the Great Depression, World War, 9/11, through struggle, sacrifice and setbacks, our 鈥榖etter angels鈥� have always prevailed. In each of these moments, enough of us came together to carry all of us forward.鈥�

Biden鈥檚 moment seeking to unite a country divided by a now twice impeached president, with his trial in the Senate still to come, shares at least some elements in common with the challenge Ford faced more than three decades ago, Willard suggests.

Ford鈥檚 decision to pardon Nixon was not popular. 鈥淚t likely cost him the 1976 election,鈥� against Democrat Jimmy Carter, Willard said. But it was a moment in which the president of the United States made a decision that was bigger than himself, even though it might cost him a political future.

That鈥檚 what so many of our leaders have recently lacked the courage to do 鈥� U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri comes to mind 鈥� when they failed to stand up to the misinformation and conspiracy theories that fueled the anger that led to five people, including a law enforcement officer, dying from an act of domestic terrorism targeting the nation鈥檚 very seat of government.

Getting past this national division, Willard suggested, will take Biden and others considering Ford鈥檚 path, making decisions in the national good, not necessarily the political good. That鈥檚 not to say Willard doesn鈥檛 believe Trump鈥檚 impeachment trial shouldn鈥檛 be prosecuted. Quite the contrary: He believes that constitutional process should move forward, and quickly.

鈥淚 think this trial will take about two days,鈥� Willard says. 鈥淎s we say in the country: 鈥業t ain鈥檛 complicated.鈥欌��

It鈥檚 the next step, Willard says, that will pose a challenge for Biden: Will the Department of Justice open investigations into Trump鈥檚 actions as president? Will Trump continue to garner headlines after he鈥檚 moved to Mar-a-Lago, where he can golf without a gaggle of reporters in tow? How far does accountability go?

Ford鈥檚 vision of unity, offered as a younger Biden was just beginning his long Senate career, required an early act of courage and graciousness. It鈥檚 a guidepost for what might come next in a divided America.

Editor's note: This column has been corrected to show that Nixon's resignation came before an impeachment vote.听