Home>News Center>World
         
 

US Chief Justice Rehnquist dies at his home
(AP)
Updated: 2005-09-04 11:47

"The Supreme Court of Florida ordered recounts of tens of thousands of so-called `undervotes' spread through 64 of the state's 67 counties. This was done in a search for elusive — perhaps delusive — certainty as to the exact count of 6 million votes," he wrote.

Rehnquist, who championed states' rights and helped speed up executions, is the only member still on the court who voted on Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision legalizing abortion. He opposed that decision, writing: "Even today, when society's views on abortion are changing, the very existence of the debate is evidence that the `right' to an abortion is not so universally accepted as (Roe) would have us believe."

He believed there was a place for some religion in government. He wrote the 5-4 decision in 2002 that said parents may use public tax money to send their children to religious schools. Two years later, he was distressed when the court passed up a chance to declare that the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools is constitutional.

"The phrase 'under God' in the pledge seems, as a historical matter, to sum up the attitude of the nation's leaders, and to manifest itself in many of our public observances," he wrote.

Rehnquist leaves without accomplishing the legal revolution he had hoped for as the nation's 16th chief justice. As Rehnquist read it, the Constitution lets states outlaw abortion and sponsor prayers in public schools but bars them from giving special, affirmative-action preferences to racial minorities and women. The court he led disagreed.

In 2003, for example, the court preserved affirmative action in college admissions and issued a landmark gay rights ruling that struck down laws criminalizing gay sex, both over Rehnquist's objections. And last year, Rehnquist disagreed when the court ruled that the government cannot indefinitely detain terrorism suspects and deny them access to courts

Rehnquist was somewhat of a surprise choice when President Nixon nominated him to the court in 1971. He was a 47-year-old Justice Department lawyer with a reputation for brilliance and unbending conservative ideology when he was chosen to fill the seat of retiring Justice John Marshall Harlan. Rehnquist, who practiced law in Phoenix before moving to Washington, was the court's youngest member.

For years he was known as the "Lone Ranger" for his many dissents on a then-liberal court that left him ideologically isolated on the far right. Succeeding appointments of conservative justices and Rehnquist's elevation by President Reagan to the federal judiciary's top job in 1986 transformed his role into one of leading and nurturing an increasingly conservative Supreme Court.
Page: 1234



Hurricane Katrina batters US
Pakistani, Indian officials meet for peace
Death toll of Baghdad bridge stampede nears 1,000
 
  Today's Top News     Top World News
 

New Orleans left to the dead and dying

 

   
 

President Hu's visit to the US postponed

 

   
 

China offers US$5 million to hurricane victims

 

   
 

Hu: War remembered for peace, future

 

   
 

EU fails on unblocking Chinese clothes

 

   
 

US Chief Justice Rehnquist dies at his home

 

   
  New Orleans left to the dead and dying
   
  US Chief Justice Rehnquist dies at his home
   
  At least 12 dead in France apartment fire
   
  Japanese encephalitis kills 39 more children in north India, pushing death toll to 432
   
  Arroyo seen winning key vote, but troubles remain
   
  Bush sends more than 7,000 troops to Gulf
   
 
  Go to Another Section  
 
 
  Story Tools  
   
  News Talk  
  Are the Republicans exploiting the memory of 9/11?  
Advertisement