Chief Justice Rehnquist dies at 80	美最高法院首席法官病逝
Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist died Saturday evening at the age of 80. Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, who quietly advanced the conservative ideology of the U.S. Supreme Court under his leadership, died Saturday evening. He was 80. The justice, diagnosed with thyroid cancer, had a tracheotomy and received chemotherapy and radiation as part of his treatment. Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said Rehnquist had "continued to perform his duties on the court until a precipitous decline in his health the last couple of days." Then with his three children beside him, the justice died at his suburban Arlington, Virginia, home, the court spokeswoman said. Rehnquist had become increasingly frail after his cancer diagnosis last October, but his office had refused to characterize the seriousness of his illness. Meanwhile, he had worked from home for several months and missed oral arguments in a number of cases. "America will honor his memory," President Bush said Sunday. He praised Rehnquist as "a man of character and dedication " who "led the judicial branch of government with tremendous wisdom and skill." Bush said he would move quickly to choose a "highly qualified" candidate as his replacement on the Supreme Court. Hours after leaving the hospital in July following treatment for fever, he made a decree: "I want to put to rest the speculation and unfounded rumors of my imminent retirement," he said in a written statement. "I am not about to announce my retirement. I will continue to perform my duties as chief justice as long as my health permits." He went to work the next day. President Nixon appointed Rehnquist to the Supreme Court in 1972, and in 1986, President Reagan tapped him as chief justice to replace Warren Burger.    (Agencies)	上周六（9月3日）晚，美国最高法院首席法官威廉·伦奎斯特在家中去世，享年80岁。他在任期间，默默推动了保守主义思想对美国最高法院的影响。 首席法官威廉被诊断出患有甲状腺癌，他先后接受了气管切开术、化疗和放射性治疗。 美国最高法院女发言人凯西·阿尔贝格说伦奎斯特“一直带病坚持法院的工作，直到最后几天他的健康状况急剧恶化为止”。 美国最高法院发言人还说，伦奎斯特在位于弗吉尼亚北部小镇阿灵顿市郊的家中病逝时，他的三个孩子都陪伴在他身边。 自从去年10月被诊断出患有甲状腺癌后，伦奎斯特变得越来越虚弱，但他所在的办公室拒绝透露他的病情到底有多严重。 在此期间的几个月内他不得不在家工作，错过了几个案件的口头辩论。 美国总统布什上周日发表讲话说：“美国人民将以他为荣”，他称赞伦奎斯特是“一个有个性的、无私奉献的人”，他“凭借自己杰出的智慧和才能领导整个国家的司法部门”。 布什总统表示他将尽快挑选一位“完全能胜任的”继任者，填补最高法院的空缺。 今年七月，因发烧而住院接受治疗的伦奎斯特，在出院几小时后，就在一份书面声明中公开宣布：“我想要制止那些有关我即将退休的猜测和没有根据的传言。我还不会宣布退休，只要我的健康状况还允许，我将继续坚守岗位，行使自己首席法官的职责。”第二天，他就重新回到工作岗位继续工作了。 1972年，尼克松总统提名伦奎斯特出任最高法院法官。1986年，由里根总统提名，他接替沃伦·伯格出任首席大法官至今。 （中国日报网站 薛晓文译）