Women’s March
On the first full day of Donald Trump’s presidency, hundreds of thousands of people crowd into the U.S. capital for the ...read more
On this day in 1977, President Jimmy Carter pardons all Vietnam War draft dodgers.
During his presidential campaign, Carter had announced his intention to pardon those who had failed to register for the draft or left the country to avoid service. In a televised debate with incumbent President Gerald Ford, Carter proposed to implement a blanket pardon, in contrast to Ford’s more selective clemency plan. Carter interpreted pardon as meaning that what you did, whether it’s right or wrong, you’re forgiven for it. And I do advocate a pardon for draft evaders.to bring about an end to the divisiveness that has occurred in our country as a result of the Vietnam War. On his second day in office, January 21, 1977, he followed through on his promise.
A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Carter served on battleships and submarines for eight years, although he did not see combat. His pardon of draft dodgers enraged veterans and was cheered by amnesty groups. Critics argued that not only would the pardon encourage future draftees to defy the law, it was an affront to the men who served and died during the war.
Carter’s pardon stated that only civilians who were convicted of [violating] the Military Selective Service Act by draft-evasion acts or omissions committed between August 4, 1964 and March 28, 1973 were eligible. The pardon was unconditional and wiped criminal records clean, but it only applied to civilians, not the estimated 500,000 to 1 million active-duty personnel who went AWOL (absent without leave) or deserted during the war. Many supporters of Carter’s decision thought they too should be forgiven by the government in an effort to heal national wounds.
On the first full day of Donald Trump’s presidency, hundreds of thousands of people crowd into the U.S. capital for the ...read more
Patsy Cline, one of the most important figures in country music history, first gains national attention with her winning ...read more
Vladimir Lenin, the architect of the Bolshevik Revolution and the first leader of the Soviet Union, dies of a brain ...read more
One day after being convicted of conspiracy with foreign powers and sentenced to death by the French National ...read more
From London’s Heathrow Airport and Orly Airport outside Paris, the first Concordes with commercial passengers ...read more
After more than seven decades as the world’s largest automaker, General Motors (GM) officially loses the title on ...read more
On this day in 1977, U.S. President Jimmy Carter grants an unconditional pardon to hundreds of thousands of men who ...read more
On this day, French Gen. Maxime Weygand is born in Belgium. He was one of the commanders who accepted the German ...read more
One of the most publicized and controversial battles of the Vietnam War begins at Khe Sanh, 14 miles below the DMZ and ...read more
On January 21, 1990, at the Australian Open in Melbourne, American tennis player John McEnroe becomes the first player ...read more
John Moses Browning, sometimes referred to as the “father of modern firearms,” is born in Ogden, Utah. Many of the guns ...read more
On this day in 1985, Don DeLillo wins the American Book Award for his breakthrough novel, White Noise. ...read more
On this day in 1998, Hilary Swank makes her final appearance in a multi-episode arc on the Fox prime-time soap opera ...read more
On this day in 1996, an overloaded ferry sinks in an unexpected storm off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, killing 340 ...read more
Carl Dean Switzer, the actor who as a child played “Alfalfa” in the Our Gang comedy film series, dies at age 31 in a ...read more
In the conclusion to one of the most spectacular trials in U.S. history, former State Department official Alger Hiss is ...read more
On this day 1738, Ethan Allen, future Revolutionary War hero and key founder of the Republic of Vermont, is born in ...read more
In Moscow on the evening of January 21, 1924, shock and near-hysterical grief greets the news that Vladimir Ilyich ...read more