Although he was president for less than three years,

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...

appointed two men to the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

Byron White Byron "Whizzer" Raymond White (June 8, 1917 April 15, 2002) was an American professional football player and jurist who served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1962 until his retirement in 1993. Born and raised in Color ...

and Arthur Goldberg. Given the advanced age of Associate Justice Felix Frankfurter at the time of Kennedy's inauguration, speculation abounded over potential Kennedy nominations to the Supreme Court from the start of his presidency.

Byron White nomination

Associate Justice Charles Evans Whittaker retired from the Supreme Court (technically taking

senior status Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...

) in March 1962 after just over five years on the court, citing exhaustion from the workload. The Whittaker retirement gave Kennedy his first vacancy on the Supreme Court. Two names initially came up as potential nominees: Judge

William H. Hastie William Henry Hastie Jr. (November 17, 1904 – April 14, 1976) was an American lawyer, judge, educator, public official, and civil rights advocate. He was the first African American to serve as Governor of the United States Virgin Islands, as a ...

of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

Professor Paul A. Freund.

United States Attorney General The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...

Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925June 6, 1968), also known by his initials RFK and by the nickname Bobby, was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 64th United States Attorney General from January 1961 to September 1964, a ...

had recommended Hastie, who would have become the first African-American on the Supreme Court. Robert F. Kennedy said "it would mean so much overseas that we had a

Negro In the English language, ''negro'' is a term historically used to denote persons considered to be of Black African heritage. The word ''negro'' means the color black in both Spanish and in Portuguese, where English took it from. The term can be ...

on the Supreme Court." However, Hastie was opposed by Chief Justice

Earl Warren Earl Warren (March 19, 1891 – July 9, 1974) was an American attorney, politician, and jurist who served as the 14th Chief Justice of the United States from 1953 to 1969. The Warren Court presided over a major shift in American constitution ...

, who balked because "he's not a liberal and he'll be opposed to all measures we are interested in, and he would be completely unsatisfactory." Associate Justice

William O. Douglas William Orville Douglas (October 16, 1898January 19, 1980) was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, who was known for his strong progressive and civil libertarian views, and is often c ...

also objected to Hastie as the nominee, saying he would be "just one more vote for

Frankfurter Frankfurter may refer to: * Various varieties of sausage ** Frankfurter Würstchen ** Frankfurter Rindswurst ** Vienna sausage, or also called a ''Frankfurter Würstel'' in Austria ** Hot dog, a fully cooked sausage, traditionally grilled or steam ...

". In addition, President Kennedy's adviser, Ted Sorensen, opposed Hastie because Kennedy was in the process of considering another African-American,

Robert C. Weaver Robert Clifton Weaver (December 29, 1907 – July 17, 1997) was an American economist, academic, and political administrator who served as the first United States secretary of housing and urban development (HUD) from 1966 to 1968, when the depart ...

, for a cabinet post (Weaver ultimately became the first

United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development The United States secretary of housing and urban development (or HUD secretary) is the head of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a member of the president's Cabinet, and thirteenth in the presidential line of succe ...

, inviting the charge of reverse racism). Sorensen argued that "the first appointment should be one hailed by all for his judicial mien." Sorensen recommended Freund as the nominee. However, President Kennedy objected to Freund as the nominee because of Freund's Harvard pedigree (having attended

and having been a professor at Harvard Law School at the time of the Whittaker vacancy), given that there already were a significant number of people connected to

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in the Kennedy administration. Ultimately, Kennedy selected White, who was a longtime supporter of his and who had been serving as

United States Deputy Attorney General The United States deputy attorney general is the second-highest-ranking official in the United States Department of Justice and oversees the day-to-day operation of the Department. The deputy attorney general acts as United States Attorney Gener ...

. Kennedy formally nominated White to the Supreme Court on April 3, 1962. White was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

just eight days later, on April 11, 1962, in a voice vote.

Arthur Goldberg nomination

After suffering a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

, Associate Justice Felix Frankfurter retired (technically taking

) from the Supreme Court on August 28, 1962, at the age of 79. There is not much evidence that Kennedy considered any other candidate other than Goldberg for the vacancy. It had been widely reported that Frankfurter's seat was considered a "Jewish seat" on the Supreme Court (prior to Frankfurter, it had been occupied by another Jewish Justice,

Benjamin N. Cardozo Benjamin Nathan Cardozo (May 24, 1870 – July 9, 1938) was an American lawyer and jurist who served on the New York Court of Appeals from 1914 to 1932 and as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1932 until his dea ...

), meaning that the president felt significant pressure to appoint a Jew to replace Frankfurter. Kennedy nominated Goldberg, who at that time was United States Secretary of Labor, on August 31, 1962. The

confirmed Goldberg in a voice vote on September 25, 1962.

Names mentioned

Following is a list of individuals who were mentioned in various news accounts and books as having been considered by Kennedy for a Supreme Court appointment: –

United States Courts of Appeals

Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (in case citations, D.C. Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. It has the smallest geographical jurisdiction of any of the U.S. federal appellate cou ...

David L. Bazelon David Lionel Bazelon (September 3, 1909 – February 19, 1993) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Education and career Bazelon was born in Superior, Wisconsin, the son of ...

(1909-1993) **

George Thomas Washington George Thomas Washington (June 24, 1908 – August 21, 1971) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Education and career Washington was born in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, the son ...

(1908-1971) *

Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York and Vermont. The court has appellate juris ...

** Henry Friendly (1903-1986) **

Thurgood Marshall Thurgood Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American civil rights lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 until 1991. He was the Supreme Court's first African-A ...

(1908-1993)(Nominated by Lyndon B. Johnson and Confirmed) *

Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (in case citations, 3d Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts: * District of Delaware * District of New Jersey * East ...

(1904-1976)

Administration officials

* Arthur Goldberg (1908-1990) – United States Secretary of Labor (Nominated and Confirmed) *

(1917-2002) –

(Nominated and Confirmed) * Clark Clifford (1906-1998) – Member, President's Intelligence Advisory Board * Archibald Cox (1912-2004) – Solicitor General of the United States"Capital Notes", New York Post, Dec. 5, 1963 * Henry H. Fowler (1908-2000) – Under Secretary of the Treasury * Nicholas Katzenbach (1922-2012) – Assistant Attorney General of the

Office of Legal Counsel The Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) is an office in the United States Department of Justice that assists the Attorney General's position as legal adviser to the President and all executive branch agencies. It drafts legal opinions of the Attorney ...

Other backgrounds

* Paul A. Freund (1908-1992) – Professor,

Stanley H. Fuld Stanley Howells Fuld (August 23, 1903 – July 22, 2003) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. He was Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals from 1967 to 1973. Life Born in Manhattan, New York City, Fuld was the son of Eman ...

(1903-2003) – Judge of the

New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the Unified Court System of the State of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six Associate Judges who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by t ...

Edward H. Levi Edward Hirsch Levi (June 26, 1911 – March 7, 2000) was an American law professor, academic leader, and government lawyer. He served as dean of the University of Chicago Law School from 1950 to 1962, president of the University of Chicago from ...

(1911-2000) – Dean,

University of Chicago Law School The University of Chicago Law School is the law school of the University of Chicago, a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is consistently ranked among the best and most prestigious law schools in the world, and has many dist ...

Eugene V. Rostow Eugene Victor Rostow (August 25, 1913 – November 25, 2002) was an American legal scholar and public servant. He was Dean of Yale Law School and served as Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs under President Lyndon B. Johnson. In the ...

(1913-2002) – Dean,

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...

Walter V. Schaefer Walter Vincent Schaefer (December 10, 1904 – June 15, 1986) was an American jurist and educator. Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Schaefer graduated from Hyde Park High School and then received his bachelor's and law degrees from University of C ...

(1904-1986) – Associate Justice of the

Supreme Court of Illinois The Supreme Court of Illinois is the state supreme court, the highest court of the State of Illinois. The court's authority is granted in Article VI of the current Illinois Constitution, which provides for seven justices elected from the five ap ...

* Roger J. Traynor (1900-1983) – Associate Justice of the

Supreme Court of California The Supreme Court of California is the highest and final court of appeals in the courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacra ...

* Bethuel M. Webster (1900-1989) – Member of the

Permanent Court of Arbitration The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) is a non-UN intergovernmental organization located in The Hague, Netherlands. Unlike a judicial court in the traditional sense, the PCA provides services of arbitral tribunal to resolve disputes that arise ...

in The Hague, Netherlands *

Herbert Wechsler Herbert Wechsler (December 4, 1913 – April 26, 2004) was an American legal scholar and former director of the American Law Institute (ALI). He is most widely known for his constitutional law scholarship and for the creation of the Model Penal ...

(1909-2000) – lecturer, Columbia Law School

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, John F., Supreme Court Candidates United States Supreme Court candidates by president Supreme Court candidates