RSSGWB Nominates John Roberts to succeed William H. Rehnquist as chief justice
President George W. Bush this morning nominated John Roberts to succeed William H. Rehnquist as chief justice. The President also called on the Senate to confirm him before the Supreme Court opens its fall term on Oct. 3.
“I am honored and humbled by the confidence the president has shown in me,” Roberts said, standing alongside Bush in the Oval Office. “I am 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.”
“He’s a man of integrity and fairness and throughout his life he’s inspired the respect and loyalty of others,” Bush said. “John Roberts built a record of excellence and achievement and reputation for goodwill and decency toward others in his extraordinary career.”
Now let the escalation of political partisanship begin. Roberts who all but looked assured to pass as the next Supreme Court Justice as many democrats appeared to be on board with his nomination will now be pressured by the Democratic hierarchy.
Democrats said Roberts will now be held to a higher standard, although they had found little in his record to suggest they would thwart his nomination as associate justice.
“Now that the president has said he will nominate Judge Roberts as chief justice, the stakes are higher and the Senate’s advice and consent responsibility is even more important,” Democratic leader Harry Reid said Monday in a statement. “The Senate must be vigilant.”
BREAKING : CHIEF JUSTICE REHNQUIST PASSES AWAY
LA Times has the official statement from President George W. Bush regarding the passing of Chief Justice Rehnquist:
“President Bush and Mrs. Bush are deeply saddened by the news” of Rehnquist’s death, White House counselor Dan Bartlett said. “It’s a tremendous loss for our nation.” The president, after attending church services on Sunday, will make a statement about Rehnquist, presidential spokesman Scott McClellan said.
WASHINGTON Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist died Saturday evening at his home in suburban Virginia, said Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg. A statement from the spokeswoman said he was surrounded by his three children when he died in Arlington. “The Chief Justice battled thyroid cancer since being diagnosed last October and continued to perform his dues on the court until a precipitous decline in his health the last couple of days,” she said. Rehnquist was appointed to the Supreme Court as an associate justice in 1971 by President Nixon and took his seat on Jan. 7, 1982. He was elevated to chief justice by President Reagan in 1986.
The Life of William Rehnquist and his many accomplishments:
Rehnquist summarized his vision of the nation’s constitutional structure in a speech at the University of Texas a few years later:
It is almost impossible … to conclude that the [Founders] intended the Constitution itself to suggest answers to the manifold problems that they knew would confront succeeding generations. The Constitution that they drafted was intended to endure indefinitely, but the reason for this well-founded hope was the general language by which national authority was granted to Congress and the Presidency. These two branches were to furnish the motive power within the federal system, which was in turn to coexist with the state governments; the elements of government having a popular constituency were looked to for the solution of the numerous and varied problems that the future would bring.
See Rehnquist’s CV at Find Law
From CNN, Chief Justice Rehnquist has died. Rehnquist, who presided over the court for nearly 19 years, was 80.
Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who helped shift the U.S. Supreme Court toward a more conservative ideology and strongly supported states’ rights during his three decades on the bench, has died.
NY Times; William H. Rehnquist Dies at 80; Led Conservative Revolution on Supreme Court
William H. Rehnquist, who died Saturday at the age of 80, helped lead a conservative revolution on the Supreme Court during 19 notably successful years as chief justice of the United States.
The Washington Post; Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist Dies, article states the question that many have been pondering since Rehnquist was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Bush now has a major opportunity to attempt to reshape the highest court in the land.
Rehnquist’s death creates the need for two and perhaps three confirmation hearings. If Bush elevates a sitting justice to Rehnquist’s position, confirmation hearings will be required for the designated Chief Justice, as well as for replacements for the associate justice elevated as well as for Roberts.
Here is a real shame. Alan Dershowitz was on Fox around 1 AM, shortly after they Rehnquist’s passing calling him a Republican Thug. There are times and places for such discussions, and this is not one of them. We have the Audio.
Blogs Covering Chief Justice Rehnquist’s Passing:
- Wizbang
- Jawa Report
- The Moderate Voice
- Michelle Malkin
- Kos Calls for the suspension of Roberts Hearings
- Supreme Court Nomination Blog
- My Due Diligence has some interesting comments
- Ian The Political Teen (The Video King)
To Discuss the Passing of Chief Justice Rehnquist, visit the Scared Monkeys Discussion Forum.
Here is an interesting tidbit on John Roberts
As John Roberts prepares for his hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee for confirmation to the Supreme Court , he has one great advantage. He has been here before.
From The Washington Post:
In recent weeks, Roberts has been practicing for his hearings with a team of advisers, trying to anticipate the questions he will face and best ways to answer them. But you might say he has been getting ready for much of his adult life. One of his first jobs as a Justice Department aide in the early 1980s was to help coach Sandra Day O’Connor — whose seat he is now seeking to fill — through her confirmation testimony. He advised O’Connor to keep her answers general and to avoid specifics.
This was his strategy two years ago. He presented himself to the Judiciary Committee as a sort of judicial Everyman, an unbiased arbiter who takes cases one by one with only the law and the relevant facts to guide him. Such a judge demurs when asked about issues in advance and declines to criticize the work of others. The senators wore their politics on their sleeves, but Roberts was bland as he answered — or sidestepped — their questions.
This training will do well for him in the coming weeks.
Discuss the Nomination of John Roberts here.
Sandra Day O’Connor Retiring
Who would have thought, Sandra Day O’Connor, the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court retiring before Chief Justice Rehnquist.
This should make for a pretty interesting summer. Some where I think the Democrats today in the Senate are redefining the term “Extraordinary Circumstances”.
Go here for Supreme Court Discussions.
According to the AP, Sandra Day O’Connor leaving Supreme Court
Others following the breaking story of the surprise retirement:
Over at Wizbang, Mary Catherine Ham hits it perfectly,
Man your battle stations, folks. I’m right outside the city in Arlington right now, but I can hear blood pressures rising from here. A fight to replace a Supreme Court swing vote. This is gonna be a fight for the ages.
Jawa Report, Fox News: Justice O’Connor’s Resignation Imminent
McGehee, Gonzalez Gets His Chance?
The Moderate Voice, So get ready for the mother of all political battles and the possible return of hearing the words “nuclear option“:
1754 Blog, Yahooo
PoliPundit, This is great news!! We can finally replace a “swing” vote on the Supreme Court with a genuine Constitutionalist.
Michelle Malkin, FAREWELL, SANDRA DAY
SCOTUSblog, Analysis: The Rehnquist question remains (A MUST READ)
Captains Quarters, “As Sherlock Holmes would often say, the game’s afoot”
The Political Teen
Pink Kitty, Can we say Senate brawl anyone?
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