Ford's choice for high court plays key role

Ford stood behind his appointment of the liberal Justice Stevens.
LOS ANGELES TIMES
WASHINGTON -- Gerald R. Ford's influence is not entirely in the past. His one Supreme Court appointee, Justice John Paul Stevens, remains a powerful voice on the court.
Over the past decade, Justice Stevens has emerged as the leader of the court's liberal bloc.
He has played the key role in opinions that upheld the right to abortion, struck down the death penalty for mentally retarded defendants and endorsed equal rights for gays and lesbians. He also has insisted on maintaining a strict separation between church and state.
Earlier this year, Stevens wrote the court's opinion declaring that prisoners held by the U.S. military at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, are entitled to the basic protections of the Geneva Convention.
Historians and legal scholars differ on how to explain the apparent conflict in Justice Stevens' roles as both a GOP appointee and the leading liberal voice on today's court. Some say he has moved to the left in recent years. Others say the court -- and the Republican Party -- have moved to his right since the Ford administration of the mid-1970s.
Ford's views
Ford, who was president between 1974 and 1977, himself was a supporter of abortion rights and in his later years urged the GOP to adopt more moderate stands on social issues.
He also stood behind his appointment of Justice Stevens. "He has served his nation well, with dignity, intellect and without partisan political concerns," Ford said recently.
In a statement issued by the court, Stevens, now 86, lauded Ford. "Decency, intellectual honesty and sound judgment are the characteristics possessed by our finest lawyers. Gerald Ford was such a lawyer," Justice Stevens said. "He was a wise president."