THE PARDON The Politics of Presidential Mercy

Legal journalist Toobin, author and narrator, examines the history, meaning, and ongoing significance of the presidential pardon. A longtime CNN legal analyst and prolific author, he is an effective narrator whose tone and style sound like a historian's. The central story--but by no means the only one--is the September 1974 pardon of Richard Nixon by President Gerald Ford. Toobin, who has done exhaustive research, argues that the pardon was a mistake that damaged Ford's reputation and may have cost him a very close election. Toobin points out that Bill Clinton's pardon of his brother and Biden's of his son were both egregious, and that Trump's pardons of the January 6th rioters has demeaned this presidential prerogative. A.D.M. © AudioFile 2025, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2025]