Earl Warren, a Model for Bipartisanship

This week’s elections have produced a divided government, but politicians of both parties are saying what voters really want is bipartisanship. The US Supreme Court is also divided, with power going to those justices who become swing votes on abortion, property rights and other controversial issues. A figure from the last century may provide a model for America’s future. In 1946, Earl Warren was elected Governor of California with the nominations of both the Republican and Democratic parties.  As Chief Justice in 1954, he united a notoriously divided US Supreme Court to end racial segregation in public schools. Jim Newton is author of the new biography Justice for All: Earl Warren and the Nation He Made.