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The Partisan: The Life of William Rehnquist
The Partisan The Life of William Rehnquist Author:John A. Jenkins William Rehnquist?s life story is profoundly significant yet largely unknown, which is how he wanted it. Rehnquist?s place on the Court was at once an accident of history and an inevitable result of it?something that Rehnquist had secretly coveted since law school, and yet could never have connived to obtain. His nomination in 1971 was one of th... more »e modern political era?s most unlikely appointments.As a justice and later as leader of the Court, he presided over the some of the century?s most dramatic decisions, including the impeachment of President Clinton and the resolution of Gore v Bush. In thirty-three years on the Supreme Court (nineteen as chief justice)?from 1972 until his death at age 81 in 2005?Rehnquist was on a mission, waging a quiet, constant battle to imbue the Court with a deep conservatism favoring government power over individual rights. His story is important because it teaches us why the Court matters, and how and why our least transparent, least understood branch of government has been politicized.« less