Died. September 3, 2005, aged 80. William Hubbs Rehnquist. Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court.
WILLIAM REHNQUIST was a lone, right-wing dissenter who gradually shaped the United States Supreme Court into a model that better reflected his own conservative views. During 34 years� membership of the Bench and almost two decades presiding as Chief Justice, Rehnquist helped to redefine the boundaries of American society and the role of the court within it. Recently he presided over the impeachment of President Clinton and the Bush v Gore case, which decided the 2000 election in favour of George W. Bush.
Source: The Times
A Bit of Rehnquist....
It is truly surprising that the state must assign a greater value to a mother's decision to cut off a potential human life by abortion than to a father's decision to let it mature into a live child.
But the greatest injury of the 'wall' notion is its mischievous diversion of judges from the actual intentions of the drafters of the Bill of Rights. . . . The "wall of separation between church and state" is a metaphor based on bad history, a metaphor which has proved useless as a guide to judging. It should be frankly and explicitly abandoned.
Our judges will not continue to represent the diverse face of America if only the well-to-do or the mediocre are willing to become judges.
Perhaps you should say there should be mandatory retirement even of members of the court, members of the federal judiciary. I'm sure there can be questions about whether one does as good work when you get into your - you know, I'm 67.
The Constitution requires that Congress treat similarly situated persons similarly, not that it engages in gestures of superficial equality.