The Mind of Justice Brennan: A 25-Year Tribute

Shortly before he stood for re-election in 1956, President Eisenhower received a bit of good news—news that not only might help in his campaign, but also presented an opportunity to establish the sort of legacy that every President wishes to leave. Sherman Minton, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, would retire on October 15, allowing Ike to make his third appointment to the Court in as many years. Eisenhower and his advisors accordingly developed a set of standards for the latest appointment, some designed to help the re-election effort, and others, to enhance the Supreme Court. The new judge should have previous judicial experience and should be held in high esteem by his colleagues on the bench and by the American Bar Association. Eisenhower also wanted a Catholic, someone from the Northeast, and, if he could find one, a Democrat, to emphasize the nonpartisan nature of his Administration. Most importantly, Eisenhower wanted a “judicial conservative” who would see his job as deciding cases according to law, rather than using the law as a tool to shape society to fit his own social and political preferences.

Not long thereafter, Attorney General Herbert Brownell met William Brennan, then a young Associate Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court, at a conference on judicial administration. Arthur Vanderbilt, Chief Justice of the New Jersey court, had planned to speak at the conference but had fallen ill and sent Brennan in his stead. Brownell was impressed with Brennan and recommended him to Eisenhower, as did the staunchly Republican Chief Justice Vanderbilt. Brennan seemed the perfect nominee: He had a reputation as a competent jurist, was well known in New Jersey political circles, was an Irish Catholic, and was a Democrat who had been appointed to the bench by a Republican governor. And, of course, anyone who had the enthusiastic support of Vanderbilt and Brownell must be a judicial conservative. President Eisenhower’s press secretary later said that when Eisenhower offered Brennan the appointment, “I never saw a man say yes so fast.”

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Shortly before he stood for re-election in 1956, President Eisenhower received a bit of good news—news that not only might help in his campaign, but also presented an opportunity to establish the sort of legacy that every President wishes to leave. Sherman Minton, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, would retire on October 15, allowing Ike to make his third appointment to the Court in as many years. Eisenhower and his advisors accordingly developed a set of standards for the latest appointment, some designed to help the re-election effort, and others, to enhance the Supreme Court. The new judge should have previous judicial experience and should be held in high esteem by his colleagues on the bench and by the American Bar Association. Eisenhower also wanted a Catholic, someone from the Northeast, and, if he could find one, a Democrat, to emphasize the nonpartisan nature of his Administration. Most importantly, Eisenhower wanted a “judicial conservative” who would see his job as deciding cases according to law, rather than using the law as a tool to shape society to fit his own social and political preferences.

Not long thereafter, Attorney General Herbert Brownell met William Brennan, then a young Associate Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court, at a conference on judicial administration. Arthur Vanderbilt, Chief Justice of the New Jersey court, had planned to speak at the conference but had fallen ill and sent Brennan in his stead. Brownell was impressed with Brennan and recommended him to Eisenhower, as did the staunchly Republican Chief Justice Vanderbilt. Brennan seemed the perfect nominee: He had a reputation as a competent jurist, was well known in New Jersey political circles, was an Irish Catholic, and was a Democrat who had been appointed to the bench by a Republican governor. And, of course, anyone who had the enthusiastic support of Vanderbilt and Brownell must be a judicial conservative. President Eisenhower’s press secretary later said that when Eisenhower offered Brennan the appointment, “I never saw a man say yes so fast.”