William Rehnquist

Early life

William Hubbs Rehnquist was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and grew up in the suburb of Shorewood. He was the grandson of Swedish immigrants. His father, William Benjamin Rehnquist, was a paper salesman; his mother, Margery Peck Rehnquist, was a translator and homemaker. Rehnquist changed his middle name to Hubbs, his grandmother's maiden name, during his high school years. After graduating from Shorewood High School in 1942, Rehnquist attended Kenyon College for one quarter in the fall of 1942, before entering the U.S. Army Air Forces. Rehnquist served in World War II from March, 1943 to 1946. He was put into a pre-meteorology program, and was assigned to Denison University until February, 1944, when the program was shut down. He did 3 months at Will Rogers Field in Oklahoma City, 3 months in Carlsbad, New Mexico, and then went to Hondo, Texas for a few months. He was then chosen for another training program which began at Chanute Field, Illinois, and ended at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. The program was designed to teach the maintenance and repair of weather instruments. In the summer of 1945 he went overseas and served as a weather observer in North Africa.

Related Topics:
Milwaukee - Wisconsin - Shorewood - Swedish - 1942 - Kenyon College - Fall - U.S. Army Air Forces - World War II - March - 1943 - 1946 - Meteorology - Denison University - February - 1944 - Will Rogers - Oklahoma City - Carlsbad, New Mexico - Hondo, Texas - Chanute Field - Illinois - Fort Monmouth, New Jersey - Weather - Summer - 1945 - North Africa

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After the war ended, Rehnquist attended Stanford University with assistance under the provisions of the G.I. Bill. In 1948, he received a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in political science. In 1950, he went to Harvard University, where he received a master's degree in government. He returned later to the Stanford Law School, where he graduated in the same class as (and dated) Sandra Day O'Connor, who would later serve alongside him on the Supreme Court. It has been cited that Rehnquist graduated first in his class, probably based on the fact that Rehnquist was class valedictorian during graduation ceremonies. Stanford's official position is that the law school did not rank students in 1952. Link to article. Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz has alleged that while at Stanford, Rehnquist publicly engaged in bigoted acts such as goose-stepping and making the "Heil Hitler" salute in front of Jewish student dormitories, although there is little evidence to support these claims.

Related Topics:
Stanford University - G.I. Bill - 1948 - Bachelor's degree - Master's degree - Political science - 1950 - Harvard University - Stanford Law School - Sandra Day O'Connor - Alan Dershowitz

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Rehnquist went to Washington, D.C. to work as a law clerk for Justice Robert H. Jackson during the court's 1951–1952 terms. There, he wrote a memorandum arguing against school desegregation while the court was considering the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case. Rehnquist later claimed that the memo was meant to reflect Jackson's views and not his own. Rehnquist?s memo, entitled ?A Random Thought on the Segregation Cases,? defended the separate-but-equal doctrine embodied in the 1896 Supreme Court case of Plessy v. Ferguson. Rehnquist concluded that Plessy ?was right and should be reaffirmed.? When questioned about the memos by the Senate Judiciary Committee in both 1971 and 1986, Rehnquist blamed his defense of segregation on the late Justice Jackson, stating ? under oath ? that his memo was meant to reflect the views of Justice Jackson. But Justice Jackson voted in Brown, along with a unanimous Court, to strike down school segregation. According to law professor Mark Tushnet, Justice Jackson?s longtime legal secretary called Rehnquist?s Senate testimony an attempt to ?smear the reputation of a great justice.? Rehnquist later admitted to defending Plessy in arguments with fellow law clerks.

Related Topics:
Washington, D.C. - Law clerk - Robert H. Jackson - 1951 - 1952 - Memorandum - Desegregation - Brown v. Board of Education - Plessy v. Ferguson

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Rehnquist moved to Phoenix, Arizona, where he was in private practice from 1953 to 1969. During these years, he was active in the Republican Party and served as a legal advisor to Barry Goldwater's 1964 presidential campaign. During the 1986 U.S. Senate hearings on his chief justice nomination, several people came forward to complain about what they viewed as Rehnquist's attempts to discourage minority voters in Arizona elections when Rehnquist served as a "poll watcher" in the early 1960's. Rehnquist denied the charges.

Related Topics:
Phoenix, Arizona - 1953 - 1969 - Republican Party - Barry Goldwater - 1964 presidential campaign - 1986 - U.S. Senate - 1960's

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