Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who died on Saturday at the age of 80, "helped lead a conservative revolution on the Supreme Court," the... New York Times reports. Rehnquist, a native of Milwaukee and graduate of Stanford Law School, was appointed to the court by former President Nixon in 1971 and appointed to chief justice 19 years ago. According to the Times, he served one of the longest and "most consequential" terms, managing "to translate many of his long-held views into binding national precedent" (Greenhouse, New York Times, 9/5). Over Rehnquist's dissents during his 34-year tenure, the Supreme Court upheld Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court case that struck down state abortion bans, and declared Nebraska's law prohibiting so-called "partial-birth" abortions unconstitutional (Richey, Christian Science Monitor, 9/6). Several newspapers have published articles profiling the life and career of Rehnquist. Some of these are listed below.
"William Rehnquist: 1924-2005: Fiery Intellect Helped Recast American Life: Conservative Helped Recast Court's Role; From Major Social Issues to Government Authority to the 2000 Election, Jurist Left an Indelible Mark" (Crawford Greenburg, Chicago Tribune, 9/5).

"Rehnquist Led Court To Right; But His Desire for Unity Often Trumped Principle of Conservatism" (Levine, et al., Houston Chronicle, 8/5).

"Chief Justice, 80, Led Court on a Conservative Path" (Savage, Los Angeles Times, 9/4).

"Chief Justice Remembered as Staunch Conservative" (Taylor, Washington Times, 9/5).

Media Coverage
Several broadcast programs reported on Rehnquist's tenure, including his position on abortion rights:
APM's "Marketplace": The segment includes comments from Erwin Chemerinsky, a law professor at Duke University, and Charles Tiefer, a law professor at the University of Baltimore (Dimsdale, "Marketplace," APM, 9/5). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

CBS' "Sunday Morning": The segment includes comments from Mark Tushnet, law professor at Georgetown University (Stewart, "Sunday Morning," CBS, 9/4). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

NPR's "All Things Considered": The segment includes comments from Douglas Kmiec, professor of constitutional law at Pepperdine University, and Jeffrey Rosen, associate professor at George Washington University Law School and legal affairs editor at the New Republic (Block, "All Things Considered," NPR, 9/5). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

NPR's "All Things Considered": The segment includes comments from Mike Young, president of the University of Utah and a former law clerk for Rehnquist (Totenberg, "All Things Considered," NPR, 9/4). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

NPR's "Day to Day": The segment includes comments from Slate legal analyst Dahlia Lithwick (Chadwick, "Day to Day," NPR, 9/5). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

NPR's "Weekend Edition Sunday": NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg reports that Rehnquist made it "easier to regulate" abortion but did not succeed "in his ultimate goal of making abortion something that the states should decide for themselves" (Hansen/Totenberg, "Weekend Edition Sunday," NPR, 9/4). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

NPR's "Weekend Edition Sunday": The segment includes comments from President Bush (Elving/Hansen, "Weekend Edition Sunday," NPR, 9/4). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer

NPR's "Weekend Edition Sunday": The segment includes comments from Young (Totenberg, "Weekend Edition Sunday," NPR, 9/4). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.

PBS' "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer": The segment includes comments from David Leitch, a former clerk of Rehnquist and colleague of Roberts, and Pam Karlan, a Stanford University professor who has argued numerous cases before the Supreme Court ("NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," PBS, 9/5). The complete segment is available online in RealPlayer.


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