Talk:Warren E. Burger

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[edit] Burger's less positive side

Should there be any mention in the article of the very critical picture of Burger provided in The Brethren by Bob Woodward and Scott Armstrong in 1979? The book was a best-seller, and its depiction of Burger as a domineering, power-hungry Chief with little to no control of the court's consensus surely influenced many Americans' ideas about his work (and, if at all accurate, gives an impression of how his Court functioned in reaction to him). I don't want to post some hatchet job on Burger, but I think the article as it stands is a little too obsequious (just a little) -- for example, it notes his staunch support for checks and balances in his ruling against Nixon, while Woodward and Armstrong's information depicts Burger as very deferential to the powers of the executive branch, their book claiming that Burger would have much preferred a narrow ruling that preserved executive privilege in many scenarios but that he was pulled to the position of the other justices at the last minute to emphasize the Court's unanimous rebuke of Nixon's claim. Any thoughts on whether or not some carefully attributed remarks would be appropriate? If so, does someone have an equally well-known (or else well-respected) source that might defend against W&A's picture of Burger, in order to help assert NPOV? Jwrosenzweig 23:22, 21 July 2005 (UTC)

I'm going to reiterate this claim once more...if no one responds in the next few weeks, I think I'll try and even things out. I'm worried I'll be too hard on him, but the article as it stands is entirely too glowing and admiring of a man who (to my knowledge) was not a very capable judge. Jwrosenzweig 01:55, 12 February 2006 (UTC)
I read The Brethren, and it sounds like he was worthless.Cameron Nedland 23:08, 19 December 2006 (UTC)

The Brethren does not cite most of its sources (which were largely anonymous), even if it is generally regarded as credible. However, some of William Brennan's then-confidential memos are now being published, and they appear to confirm at least some elements of that book's portrayal of Burger. Among other things, the memos claim that the Nixon tapes decision was largely written by Potter Stewart, and that Burger only agreed to replace large parts of his opinion with Stewart's after it became clear that no other justice was going to join him. http://www.slate.com/id/2156940/entry/2156942/

Jschonholtz 20:55, 10 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Homer thinks he's delicious?

Homer Simpson: "Chief Justice of The Supreme Court. What great men he would join: John Marshall. Charles Evans Hughes. Warren Burger. Mmmmm, Burger" Perhaps this should be mentioned in the article. 153.104.16.114 19:07, 13 November 2005 (UTC) done with elaboration.

Yeah....I'm thinking no. Kade 19:25, 25 December 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Link to Ripon College speech?

I've searched all over the internet for this speech and I can't find it. What I did find was 25 copy-paste jobs of the Wikipedia article. I'd like to see something to corroborate this, the credibility of the article is at stake and its sources are sparse. Kade 19:26, 25 December 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Confusing sentence

"...he vigorously dissented from the Court's holding in the case of Solem v. Helm that a sentence of life imprisonment for issuing a fraudulent check in the amount of $100 constituted cruel and unusual punishment."

If you would learn to read, it won't be so confusing. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 149.175.206.237 (talk) 00:30, 13 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Last Will and Testament of Warren Burger

We wish to advise everyone that we (the Living Trust Network) have a copy of Warren Burger's Last Will and Testament posted on our website, which we believe is of interest to anyone seeking information about life of Warren Burger. We have also discussed our desire to post a link to Warren Berger's Last Will and Testament with Wikipedia administrators [See User talk:Livingtrust], either under "references" or "external links." Last Will and Testament of Warren Burger. Wikipedia does not object to the link but has requested that we not put the link up ourselves since we are a commercial website. Instead, it has requested that we make it known that the Last Will and Testament is available, and anyone who wishes to add the link to the "reference" section or the "external links" section may do so. So, we solicite your help in adding the link set forth above. Thanks. Livingtrust 01:30, 8 August 2006 (UTC)

  • Quite frankly, I do not understand the relevance of including Burger's will in the article. What purpose does it serve? If we had a will for every individual with an article, would we include it? Unless there is something particularly notable or unusual about his will, then why include? As for including a link to the will site, I think that is a separate matter. Again, this should not be an exercise in advertising.--RexRex84 05:31, 10 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Burger & Blackmun

I modified this sentence by adding the italicized language.

  • was a longtime friend, although they grew apart during their mutual service on the Court.

I added my source -- the Greenhouse book -- at the end of the page. I tried to express this idea generally; Greenhouse does so in more detail. ---Axios023 04:19, 8 August 2006 (UTC)