if earl warren never retired

[freepcrusher]

would nixon have been allowed to nominate someone? Warren died July 9, 1974 and I would think that because there was a lot of pressure on nixon - that he wouldn't have actually nominated anyone and that Ford probably would have nominated someone in the fall of 1974.

Also, would he have promoted someone straight to chief justice - or would he have elevated an existing justice to chief (like White or Stewart)?

[Fuzzy Says: "Abolish NPR!"]

Warren had been seriously ill for much of the high drama of Watergate.  He likely would have been a passive part of the debate.  It's likely Brennan would have chaired the Justices conferences, being the Senior Justice at that time.

Ford may well have nominated John Paul Stevens to be Chief Justice had the issue held over until Nixon resigned.  The Senate would likely not have allowed Nixon to appoint a Justice.

[Orser67]

My guess is that it the main ramification is that that Ford gets two nominees instead of one. Watergate started being an issue almost immediately after the 1972 election, so I think getting any Supreme Court nominee confirmed in 1973 (certainly by October 1973) would have been very difficult for Nixon.

Afaik, there weren't any huge Burger Court decisions between 1969 and 1974 that would have been changed by the presence of Warren. Also, there's a good chance Burger joins the Court instead of one of Blackmun, Powell, or Rehnquist. So I think the biggest differences really depend on who Nixon and Ford nominate in this slightly different timeline.

[Fuzzy Says: "Abolish NPR!"]

Ford was the last President to nominate SCOTUS Justices based on quality of legal scholarship.  Stevens turned out to be one of the great liberals of the Court, but that was not a surprise for Ford.  Stevens was a jurist from the University of Chicago who was a nominal Republican (in the Potter Stewart mold) but hardly doctrinaire.  (Stewart, though a Republican, loathed Nixon and voted for McGovern in 1972 out of his personal loathing for Nixon.) 

That Court is gone.  So is the Court of the post-Nixon area where moderate, centrist Justices held great sway. 

[President Johnson]

Ford was the last President to nominate SCOTUS Justices based on quality of legal scholarship.  Stevens turned out to be one of the great liberals of the Court, but that was not a surprise for Ford.  Stevens was a jurist from the University of Chicago who was a nominal Republican (in the Potter Stewart mold) but hardly doctrinaire.  (Stewart, though a Republican, loathed Nixon and voted for McGovern in 1972 out of his personal loathing for Nixon.)  

That Court is gone.  So is the Court of the post-Nixon area where moderate, centrist Justices held great sway.  

I largely agree, especially on Ford's excellent choice with Stevens. But Warren is still the best Chief Justice there was.

[freepcrusher]

It's likely Brennan would have chaired the Justices conferences, being the Senior Justice at that time.

Douglas was actually the senior justice - although he was pretty far gone by then.