The Nation: Compromise Offer

As a rule, American courts shy away from handing down a far-reaching decision on a constitutional question if they can find another solution. Better to search for a compromise than to spell out a judgment that could cause unforeseen problems later on.

Last week such a compromise on the grave issue of the President's Watergate tapes and documents was suggested by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. White House lawyers were arguing that the President−because he was President−had the unlimited right to decide whether or not the tapes and papers...

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