That's so sweet. The power of forgiveness is nice, and for ordinary people like you & me it's probably the best way to go.

BUT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT GANGSTERS HERE!!! WE ARE TALKING ABOUT THE WORLD OF ORGANIZED CRIME!! THESE ARE NOT ORDINARY PEOPLE, THIS WAS NOT AN ORDINARY FAMILY. FREDO WAS A TRAITOR TO HIS OWN BROTHER, DON CORLEONE, HEAD OF THE FAMILY...WHO HAD YEARS EARLIER WARNED HIM NOT TO TAKE SIDES AGAINST HIS FAMILY. FREDO IGNORED THAT WARNING FOR NOTHING LESS THAN HIS OWN PERSONAL GAIN.

And I'm sure to some degree, Michael DID forgive Fredo, since he even states that he knows Fredo was misled and lied to. I think he forgave him after being spoken to by Connie at their mother's wake.

But...that doesn't mean that, strictly in the business sense, he would not come to the decision Fredo Corleone had betrayed his Family and had to suffer the fate of all who had betrayed the Family before.

Another thing to consider...while the actual hit on Michael was unsuccessful, the attempt itself put into motion the entire set of events that became the rest of the movie. Having failed at killing Michael (both in Nevada and Cuba), Roth devised the setup of Frankie, which led to the Senate Hearings that again nearly brought Michael and the Corleone Family down and eventually resulted in Frankie's demise (Roth...he played this one beautifully). Fredo somehow knew about Questadt 'belonging' to Roth. He was in with them good, and though he was blissfully unaware of an impending 'hit' on his brother, and although Michael lived through it Fredo's alliance with Johnny Ola and Hyman Roth did ultimately cause much damage to the Family.

Fredo had to go. Michael was not only justified but really if he was to be an effective Don and protect his Family...he really had no other choice.

Apple