Richard Nixon broke the law. It cost him his presidency, but he was never charged or convicted for his criminal conduct. That's because President Gerald Ford pardoned him. Ford said he did it for the good of the country -- so the country could heal and unite.
That pardon was a mistake, and it's likely the reason that Ford was not re-elected. Most Americans believe that no man is above the law -- not even a president.
Now we have another president who has broken the law. Donald Trump committed a felony crime by intentionally taking government documents when he left the White House (many of them classified top secret). His crime actually endangered the national security of the country.
GOP officials have tried to defend him, but the indictment explaining his criminal conduct (and his admissions on audio and video tapes) have made that impossible.
Now Republican officials are changing their tactic to defend him. They are beginning to talk about pardoning Trump. And even Trump himself (beginning to fear his conviction) is demanding that all GOP presidential candidates pledge to give him a pardon if elected.
Why would they pardon him. Candidate Nikki Haley said it would be for the good of the country since it would look bad for a former president to go to prison -- something she said only happens in banana republics. And other Republicans are beginning to say the same.
They are wrong. Pardoning a president who has committed a serious crime would NOT be good for the country. It would be disastrous!
Donald Trump got the idea that presidents were above the law when he saw the pardon of Nixon. If he was pardoned, it would just insure that all future presidents would know that could not be punished for breaking the law (because a pardon who happen if anyone tried to punish them). It would truly insure that they would believe themselves above the law.
Most Americans don't like that. They know that making anyone (even a president) above the law puts democracy in danger. A president above the law could break the law to create an authoritarian regime and thus end our fragile democracy. We cannot allow that to happen, and that means Trump should not be pardoned if convicted (which seems likely).
Pardoning Nixon was a mistake. Pardoning Trump would be disastrous!
