Former Supreme Court Nominee Dead at 85

Robert Bork, former Supreme Court nominee, died of heart complications at the age of 85. Bork played a small but crucial role in the Watergate Crisis. Following the orders of President Richard Nixon, Bork fired Watergate special prosecutor in what became known as the “Saturday Night Massacre.” Nominated by President Reagan to the Supreme Court in 1987, Bork is most well-known for the heated debate that took place during his confirmation hearings in the Senate. Bork received the largest negative vote of any nominee in history. It is rare for the Senate to turn down a president’s Supreme Court nominee and even rarer to to base a rejection on judicial philosophy and temperament, instead of qualifications. This turned Bork’s defeat into a watershed event and his name became a verb: getting “borked” is what happens to a nominee is rejected for what supporters consider political motives.

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