Village Chief Broder Wants Obama To Pull A Ford

Chief Broder's argument in the WaPo this morning: Yes, there's evidence that Bush and Cheney were up to some truly horrible things. No, we shouldn't investigate any of it because the truth will do too much damage to the country.

Looming beyond the publicized cases of these relatively low-level operatives is the fundamental accountability question: What about those who approved of their actions? If accountability is the standard, then it should apply to the policymakers and not just to the underlings. Ultimately, do we want to see Cheney, who backed these actions and still does, standing in the dock?

I think it is that kind of prospect that led President Obama to state that he was opposed to invoking the criminal justice system, even as he gave Holder the authority to decide the question for himself. Obama's argument has been that he has made the decision to change policy and bring the practices clearly within constitutional bounds -- and that should be sufficient.

In times like these, the understandable desire to enforce individual accountability must be weighed against the consequences. This country is facing so many huge challenges at home and abroad that the president cannot afford to be drawn into what would undoubtedly be a major, bitter partisan battle over prosecution of Bush-era officials. The cost to the country would simply be too great.

When President Ford pardoned Nixon in 1974, I wrote one of the few columns endorsing his decision, which was made on the basis that it was more important for America to focus on the task of changing the way it would be governed and addressing the current problems. It took a full generation for the decision to be recognized by the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation and others as the act of courage that it had been.

The truth of what was done in our name is too horrible for America to handle. Therefore, the only choice we have is to ignore it until it becomes our standard doctrine.

Got it.

What a glorious country we live in. We can impeach Clinton for getting a hummer from an intern. Going after Bush and Cheney for subverting the Constitution, lying us into a war we're still stuck in, failing to prevent 9/11 and for authorizing torturing people in the crusade to keep from failing America again?

That gets a free pass.