The Pardon

From New York Times bestselling author and CNN legal commentator Jeffrey Toobin comes a timely exploration of the most controversial presidential pardon in American history--Gerald Ford's pardon of Richard Nixon--and its profound implications for our current political landscape. In this deeply reported narrative, Jeffrey Toobin recreates the behind-the-scenes political melodrama during the tumultuous period leading up to and following Nixon's resignation. The narrative features a rich cast of characters--including Alexander Haig, Nixon's last chief of staff, who pushed for the pardon, and a young Justice Department lawyer named Antonin Scalia, who provided the legal justification. The Pardon also introduces you to a largely forgotten figure, Benton Becker, the Washington lawyer sent personally by Ford to negotiate the pardon with Nixon. Becker's fresh reflections provide a startling and cinematic picture of the former President--who proved a master manipulator even in exile. Ford's shocking decision to pardon Nixon was widely criticized at the time, yet it has since been reevaluated as a healing gesture for a divided country even by former critics. Toobin anticipates the next turn in the debate by arguing that Ford's pardon was a disaster--an unwise gift to an undeserving recipient, and one that creates an unsettling precedent that is likely to be tested by the next occupant of the Oval Office. The Pardon is a must-read for anyone interested in American history, the complex dynamics of power within the highest office in the nation, and the implications of presidential mercy.