WASHINGTON (ABP) — Less than two days after the death of William Rehnquist, President Bush bumped up Judge John Roberts to replace him as chief justice of the United States.
The move alters the already-complex political landscape surrounding Roberts' nomination.
Rehnquist died late Sept. 3 at his home in Arlington, Va. — just three days before confirmation hearings were set to begin before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Roberts, a D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals judge Bush tapped in July to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
Bush wasted little time in announcing Sept. 5 that he would tap Roberts, who has only been a federal judge since 2003, to be the nation's 17th chief justice.
“I choose Judge Roberts from among the most distinguished jurists and attorneys in the country because he possesses the intellect, experience and temperament to be an outstanding member of our nation's highest court,” Bush said in announcing the pick.
Bush also alluded to questions about the ability of Roberts, 50, to effectively administer the federal judiciary, given his lack of experience.
“In his extraordinary career, Judge Roberts has argued 39 cases before the nation's highest court,” he said. “Both those who've worked with him and those who have faced him in the courtroom speak with admiration of his striking ability as a lawyer and his natural gifts as a leader.”
Roberts, who served under Rehnquist as a clerk on the high court, replied, “I am honored and humbled by the confidence that the president has shown in me. And I'm very much aware that if I am confirmed, I would succeed a man I deeply respect and admire, a man who has been very kind to me for 25 years.”
Roberts' confirmation hearings, which would have begun Sept. 6, were delayed until at least after Rehnquist's Sept. 7 funeral and burial services.
Rehnquist, 80, had been chief justice since he was elevated to that position in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan. President Richard Nixon first appointed him as an associate justice on the high court in 1971.
Court observers and historians have noted that Rehnquist's legacy on the court will be one of turning the court sharply to the right.
“As chief justice, Mr. Rehnquist was a principled jurist and had shown the greatest respect for the text and history of the Constitution,” said Tony Perkins, president of the conservative Family Research Council, in a statement on Rehnquist's death. “As chief justice, Rehnquist left the Supreme Court with a distinguished legacy.”
Likewise, the liberal group People for the American Way — often a Rehnquist opponent — cited his legacy for the court.
“While we vigorously disagreed with much of his jurisprudence, we remember with respect the chief justice's love for the court, his success in creating comity among his colleagues, and his courage in continuing to work in the face of daunting health problems,” the group said in a statement released Sept. 4.
But both sides anticipated the battle over his successor, which will include a new replacement to be named for O'Connor's seat.
“While the long-term consequences of two new justices will be monumental, filling the vacancies on the Supreme Court is not an emergency requiring hasty action,” said the People for the American Way statement. “Indeed, at this moment in our history, with so much at stake, the president and the Senate should proceed with great care and deliberation.”
But Perkins anticipated another conservative pick — which would move the court further to the right. “We expect President Bush to name a nominee who shares Rehnquist's same commitment to high principle and fair application of the law.”
The move also means O'Connor — who said in her resignation letter that she would serve until her successor was confirmed — will continue to serve on the court. The panel's 2005-2006 term begins Oct. 3.
Rehnquist, who died after a battle with thyroid cancer, was born in Milwaukee in 1924. He graduated from Stanford University and earned graduate and law degrees, respectively, from Harvard University and Stanford Law School. He settled in Arizona, where he worked as an attorney and a Republican activist. He also worked for Arizona Republican Sen. Barry Goldwater's ill-fated 1964 presidential campaign.
Rehnquist's body will lie in state at the Supreme Court building Sept. 6 and 7. Although Rehnquist was a Lutheran, his family reportedly requested that his funeral service be held in Washington's St. Matthew's Catholic Cathedral Sept. 7. The cathedral is much larger than Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Bethesda, Md., where Rehnquist was a longtime member. St. Matthew's also has a special relationship with the Supreme Court, as the site of the annual “Red Mass” service that honors members of the federal judiciary.
Rehnquist was preceded in death by his wife, former Stanford Law School classmate Natalie Cornell Rehnquist, in 1991. He is survived by three children, a sister, and nine grandchildren. Following his funeral, the World War II veteran will be buried, with full military honors, at Arlington National Cemetery.
– Photo available from ABP.