Straha
Banned
It's sometimes said in US politics that the Supreme Court is where you put people to forget about them. In the case of Earl Warren, this was pretty dumb; President Eisenhower called Warren's appointment "the biggest damn mistake I ever made."
Warren was an extremely successful Governor of California, Dewey's VP when he lost to Truman, and a candidate for President in 1952. He agreed to step aside in favor of Eisenhower in exchange for a seat on the Supreme Court. When Chief Justice Vinson was the first to go, Eisenhower tried to renege, Warren promised to spend the next three years whipping up anti-Eisenhower sentiment, and Warren got the job.
He was a gifted attorney and politician, but had no prior juridical experience. In less than a year, he got Brown v. Board of Education, in which he struck down segregation. He would spend the next 15 years ruling in favor of civil rights of all kinds and demanding redistricting on a basis of equality. He was the most active and liberal SCCJ in US history.
A few ideas I'd like your opinions on, and if you'd like a full timeline:
Case 1: Dewey Presidency w/ VP Warren. discussed elsewhere.
Case 2: Warren fights and wins in '52. Lodge, Taft or that Governor of Texas would be his running mate. The Supremes still declare segregation unconstitutional, but without Warren's leadership it's 5-4 with a strong dissent instead of unanimous. Warren enthusiastically enforces the ruling, threatening Reconstruction all over again if the South will not comply; race relations in the 50s become...complicated. The strong dissent means segregation is not a "settled" question at all. For particular terror, Warren can appease the Party by making Nixon SCCJ...
Case 3: Eisenhower reneges, and Warren manages to torpedo him in '56. Stevenson Presidency, without a clear desegregation mandate.
Case 4
ewey wins, and drops dead after the inaugeration. Warren becomes a second FDR? Ooh, I like it! Kiss goodby to the cold war, starting in 1949. An American foreign policy built on honor, keeping our word, no tribute to dictatorships, etc. Even better, he arrests and prosecutes all the right wing traitors that Truman encouraged. We get a Democratic party built around the Dixiecrats, the liberals return to the Republican party, and the blacks....
I could live with that
In all cases, Warren will not force Congressional reapportionment on a basis of equality, allowing the Republicans to maintain control of the Federal government throughout the 50s and 60s, perhaps even into the 70s.
Warren was an extremely successful Governor of California, Dewey's VP when he lost to Truman, and a candidate for President in 1952. He agreed to step aside in favor of Eisenhower in exchange for a seat on the Supreme Court. When Chief Justice Vinson was the first to go, Eisenhower tried to renege, Warren promised to spend the next three years whipping up anti-Eisenhower sentiment, and Warren got the job.
He was a gifted attorney and politician, but had no prior juridical experience. In less than a year, he got Brown v. Board of Education, in which he struck down segregation. He would spend the next 15 years ruling in favor of civil rights of all kinds and demanding redistricting on a basis of equality. He was the most active and liberal SCCJ in US history.
A few ideas I'd like your opinions on, and if you'd like a full timeline:
Case 1: Dewey Presidency w/ VP Warren. discussed elsewhere.
Case 2: Warren fights and wins in '52. Lodge, Taft or that Governor of Texas would be his running mate. The Supremes still declare segregation unconstitutional, but without Warren's leadership it's 5-4 with a strong dissent instead of unanimous. Warren enthusiastically enforces the ruling, threatening Reconstruction all over again if the South will not comply; race relations in the 50s become...complicated. The strong dissent means segregation is not a "settled" question at all. For particular terror, Warren can appease the Party by making Nixon SCCJ...
Case 3: Eisenhower reneges, and Warren manages to torpedo him in '56. Stevenson Presidency, without a clear desegregation mandate.
Case 4
ewey wins, and drops dead after the inaugeration. Warren becomes a second FDR? Ooh, I like it! Kiss goodby to the cold war, starting in 1949. An American foreign policy built on honor, keeping our word, no tribute to dictatorships, etc. Even better, he arrests and prosecutes all the right wing traitors that Truman encouraged. We get a Democratic party built around the Dixiecrats, the liberals return to the Republican party, and the blacks.... I could live with that
In all cases, Warren will not force Congressional reapportionment on a basis of equality, allowing the Republicans to maintain control of the Federal government throughout the 50s and 60s, perhaps even into the 70s.