One Man's Unwavering Constitution

"I underwent a tracheotomy nine days ago and at the suggestion of my doctors am continuing to recuperate at home. According to my doctors, my plan to return to the office today was too optimistic.

"While at home, I am working on Court matters, including opinions for cases already argued."

On Nov. 26 would come another statement, about another surgery and a fall days before.

He would spend November and December at home. By Jan. 7, another announcement would say that the chief justice would not be present when court convened on the 10th. And no one knew for sure if he would be able to swear in George W. Bush for a second term. But there he was on that cold, crisp day, making his way with slow, stubborn steps.

They were steps that symbolized his love for the law and the high court.

"I know that he loved the court," says Charles Cooper, a former clerk. "He loved it as an institution. He was committed to it, 100 percent, especially after he lost his wife over 10 years ago. It became the central focus of his life. . . . I believe that he was committed to serving his constitutional term so long as his faculties permitted him to lead the court and to function and perform his duties."

Cooper spent some time with Rehnquist in his chambers earlier this summer, a few weeks before the annual reunion of Rehnquist's clerks in June.

"He was in great spirits at the time, perfectly clear and as quick as always. I think shortly thereafter he began another round of treatments and that took a visible toll on him," Cooper says.

But by the reunion, his spirits were back up, says Cooper. Of his more than 100 former clerks, now spread out all over the country, most turned out. "No one laughed louder or longer" than Rehnquist at the skits, which often lampooned him and which had become a tradition.

"He was just a regular guy," says Cooper. "He played poker. His favorite meal [for lunch] was a cheeseburger and a Miller Lite."

It was that regular-guyness, combined with a giant intellect, that his clerks say inspired their loyalty and reverence. The Chief was also known for his humor and practical jokes.

Mark Stancil, who clerked for Rehnquist from 2000 to 2001, recalled one instance when Rehnquist was being driven by a clerk who had not noticed that the red light had turned green. Rehnquist leaned over and said, "That's all the colors they have."