Book Reviews: John Dean: The Rehnquist Choice

The explosive, never-before-revealed story of how William Rehnquist became a Supreme Court Justice, told by the man responsible for his candidacy.

William Rehnquist has played a pivotal role on the Supreme Court bench for three decades. Leading a conservative majority that has dramatically shifted the court to the right, he presided over the impeachment trial of Bill Clinton and even spearheaded the decision to shut down the Florida recount of the 2000 presidential election. In a strange twist of history, he owes his job to none other than John Dean, best known as the star witness of the Watergate hearings, and author of the bestselling Blind Ambition. It was Dean who lobbied for the little-known Assistant Attorney General, and Dean who set off an improbable chain of events that resulted in Richard Nixon's decision to make Rehnquist his final Supreme Court nominee in 1971.

In an unprecedented look behind the scenes at how a court candidate wins presidential backing, The Rehnquist Choice tells the dramatic story of a crucial turning point in our history.

During the Watergate hearings, John Dean's televised testimony was seen by more than 80 million viewers. Today he writes for Salon.com, MSNBC.com, and "Writ," a popular online legal magazine on FindLaw.com. The creator and co-producer of The Pentagon Papers, a docudrama to star Alec Baldwin, he continues to be a sought-after guest on national television.