ford pardoned nixon. this "spared" the nation of the spectacle of having a former president face actual justice. this did little to heal any particular wounds the nation had, it only healed the wounds the REPUBLICAN PARTY had. besides, the nation wasn't really all that divided about nixon by that point. he had terrible approval numbers, which is ultimately, duh, why he resigned.

but the nation WAS deeply divided about vietnam, and remained so as those who avoided the draft remained in the news, avoiding return to the u.s., or facing prosecution. carter's unconditional pardon for draft dodgers did FAR more toward helping the nation move past that bitterly divided era.