[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 110 (Wednesday, September 7, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9713-S9714]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              HONORING CHIEF JUSTICE WILLIAM H. REHNQUIST

  Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to William 
Rehnquist, 16th Chief Justice of the United States. That is the title, 
Chief Justice of the United States. While the ceremony honoring him 
goes forward I think it is appropriate that we in this body recognize 
his incredible service to the Nation. His biography, where he came from 
and what he did, has been spoken of a great deal. What I wanted to 
speak about is not only that, but also his personal impact on me, one 
that he wouldn't have known or known about.
  As a young law student in the early 1980s at the University of 
Kansas, I can remember studying constitutional law and other areas 
where his opinions came forth. Frequently, in those days he was in the 
minority opinion role.
  Many of my law school professors would say: Can you believe what this 
guy wrote? I remember reading his opinions and thinking his opinion 
seemed very logical. It seems to me, he believed in holding with the 
great traditions of being a nation of the rule of law, not the rule of 
man. The Constitution is a textural document. Chief Justice Rehnquist 
had a big impact on me in his writings and what he believed we stood 
for as a nation. He has had a big impact on this Nation, and he will be 
sorely missed.
  He was genteel in all of his dealings. Even when he presided in the 
Senate over the impeachment trial for President Clinton, he did so in a 
very stately, gentle fashion. Just his presence was one of a man at 
peace with himself, who knew what he was about, and knew his role and 
his duty. He fulfilled his duty to the best of his abilities as Chief 
Justice, Associate Justice on the Supreme Court, as presiding over an 
impeachment trial, and working with clerks.
  I think one of most telling things for an individual is what the 
people say that worked for you, and particularly those who worked for 
you perhaps in a lower capacity. It seems uniform that the clerks for 
Chief Justice Rehnquist admired the man while they worked for him. It 
is a tribute to him how well they worked together and how he helped 
form them. There is a great symmetry about this in John Roberts being 
nominated now, as a former clerk of Chief Justice Rehnquist, and now 
nominated to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court left by his former 
boss. John Roberts is an outstanding nomination to the Chief Justice 
position. I hope we can move forward with in an expeditious fashion, 
certainly thorough, but in an expeditious fashion.
  That is not what we are here today to talk about. Today it is to talk 
about and to reflect upon an amazing American in William Rehnquist. He 
grew up in the suburbs of Milwaukee, WI. His father was the son of 
Swedish immigrant parents, worked as a paper salesman. His mother was a 
multilingual professional translator. Shortly after graduation from 
high school, Chief Justice Rehnquist enlisted in the Air Force and 
during World War II served as a weather observer in North Africa. On 
completion of his service in the Air Force, the Chief Justice began his 
undergraduate work at Stanford University. Yes, he did it on the GI 
bill.
  In 1952, Rehnquist graduated first in his class from Stanford Law 
School, certainly a monumental accomplishment, an accomplishment of 
great discipline. Following law school, he clerked for former Supreme 
Court Justice Robert Jackson. In 1953, he began work at a law firm in 
Phoenix, and his brilliance was noted by the Nixon Deputy Attorney 
General at that time,

[[Page S9714]]

Richard Kleindienst. On October 22, 1971 President Richard Nixon, 
nominated him to serve as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court. He 
was confirmed less than 2 months later, which would be record speed for 
this body by today's standard.
  During his time on the Supreme Court, Chief Justice Rehnquist has 
defended the original text of the Constitution. To a number of people 
that may seem like a simple task. After all, it is the Constitution. It 
is the basic law of the land. What is there to defend? The law speaks 
for itself. It is a set of plain words on a clear document that has 
such a significant historical place in our hearts and minds. Yet he 
comes along on a Court at a point in time when a number of people are 
saying: It is a living document, it can move with the culture, and we 
can interpret the words more broadly. We can interpret it not by what 
it says, but by what we would like it to say.
  Chief Justice Rehnquist fought against that and fought for the 
original text of the Constitution and said it is as it is. This is a 
textural document. If we want to change it, that is fine, but it is 
changed by two-thirds of the House and two-thirds of the Senate and 
three-fourths of the States, not by five people on the Court. Those are 
not his words, but they are the principles he stood for.
  The role of a Justice on the Supreme Court is to look at the plain 
meaning and the original text of the Constitution, not at your own 
cultural bias of the moment and what you believe America may need and 
therefore may be willing to move to.
  The problem with a living document is that you don't have the rule of 
law. You are more of a rule of man. So he defended this proposition of 
the original text of the Constitution, the intent of the Framers.
  Certainly, he was a promoter of life. It was in the 1973 dissent in 
Roe v. Wade that then-Associate Justice Rehnquist wrote, ``To reach its 
result, the Court necessarily has had to find within the scope of the 
Fourteenth Amendment a right that was apparently completely unknown to 
the drafters of the Amendment.''
  These are the Associate Justice Rehnquist's words. In his early years 
of lonely dissents in cases like Roe, Rehnquist made his mark by 
standing for constitutional principle over the political preferences of 
an unelected judiciary. With the retirement of Chief Justice Warren 
Burger in 1986, President Reagan then elevated Associate Justice 
Rehnquist to the Court's top post, where he served with distinction 
until his death.
  The last 19 years have shown that Chief Justice Rehnquist was a 
terrific choice to lead the Supreme Court. He authored countless 
landmark decisions and thought-provoking dissents. In carefully 
reasoned opinions, he insisted that the principle of federalism is an 
integral part of our nation's constitutional structure. He recognized 
that our Government is one of enumerated rights and dual sovereignty, 
with certain functions and powers properly left to the States.
  One example of Chief Justice Rehnquist's commitment to the laws is 
his opinion in Dickerson v. United States. Although a long-time critic 
of Miranda v. Arizona, Rehnquist nevertheless placed his past position 
aside and wrote the opinion in Dickerson, effectively affirming the 
holding of Miranda. He served well. He served nobly, and he served with 
courage. I might note that even during his recent sickness, he found 
the strength to do his duty and to serve in office. He found the 
strength to administer the oath of office to President Bush, to 
consider the challenging cases that came before the Court.
  Peggy Noonan wrote of President Bush's inauguration, ``the most 
poignant moment was the manful William Rehnquist, unable to wear a tie 
and making his way down the long marble steps to swear in the 
president. The continuation of democracy is made possible by such 
gallantry.''
  While some of his colleagues on the Court disagreed with him at 
times, there will there can be no doubt that they admired his strong 
leadership, his likable personality, and his ability to build 
consensus. That is the noteworthy quality of a gentleman. He served 
with distinction. He served us well. He carried his course out, and he 
is now at rest.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Coburn). The Senator from North Dakota is 
recognized.

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