Charles Evans Hughes, Sr. (April 11, 1862 – August 27, 1948) was a lawyer and Republican politician from New York. He served as the 36th Governor of New York (1907–1910), Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (1910–1916), United States Secretary of State (1921–1925) under Warren G. Harding and Calvin Coolidge, and the 11th Chief Justice of the United States (1930–1941). He was the Republican candidate in the 1916 election for President of the United States, narrowly losing to incumbent Woodrow Wilson. Hughes was an important leader of the progressive movement of the 1900s, a leading diplomat and New York lawyer in the days of Harding and Coolidge, and a leader of opposition to President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal in the 1930s.
On January 20, 1941, Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes administered the oath of office to PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt for an unprecedented third time. This event came just eight days after Japanattacked the United States, which rather dampened the mood.
While listening to the inauguration on the radio, Peggy Druce recalled that Hughes had been Woodrow Wilson's Republican opponent in the 1916 election and that he would have won the election if he had won California. She reflected that the world would be a different place if Hughes had become President but she was uncertain as to how.[1]
The last decade of Charles Evans Hughes's term as Chief Justice of the United States coincided with the first half of Joe Steele's presidency. Like many in government, Hughes was appalled by Steele's increasing disregard for the Constitution, but was quickly cowed by Steele's harsh reprisal against critics.
After the Supreme Court ruled several key pieces of Steele's Four Year Plan unconstitutional,[2] Steele conferred with Bureau of Investigation Chief J. Edgar Hoover to investigate the justices.[3] Then he gave a radio speech in which he denounced the Supreme Court as nine old men who were not elected, and who were actively wrecking the country. Steele implied the Court's actions were deliberate, and promised that there would be an investigation.[4]
Hoover discovered "evidence" that four justices, James McReynolds, Pierce Butler, Willis Van Devanter, and George Sutherland, were in fact colluding with foreign powers against the United States. In February 1934, Hoover led a group of agents to very publicly arrest the so-called Supreme Court Four for treason while they were in the middle of deliberations.[5] Hughes loudly expressed his indignation, proclaiming Hoover to be out of his mind, all for naught.[6]
The Supreme Court Four were tried by a military tribunal in September. They were convicted after entering guilty pleas, and executed a few weeks later.[7] Steele quickly appointed replacements who came to be called "the Rubber Stamps" by Steele's opponents.[8]
Hughes stayed on as Chief Justice. He swore Steele in for a second time on January 20, 1937 in a cold and pouring rain. Steele seemed to enjoy Hughes' discomfort. Reporter Charlie Sullivan had a sneaking suspicion as to Steele's wishes.[9]
After his death some years later, Hughes was succeeded as Chief Justice by Prescott Bush.
Literary comment[]
The Chief Justice also appears at Steele's second inauguration in the short story. Hughes isn't named, but there is no reason to think someone else was Chief Justice.
See also[]
Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., the Chief Justice in the early 1930s in Southern Victory. In OTL, Holmes was an Associate Justice whose tenure overlapped with Hughes' role as Chief.
*=denotes a character who was a POV for a single scene
1=denotes a character who was a POV for one volume
2=denotes a character who was a POV for two volumes
3=denotes a character who was a POV for three volumes
4=denotes a character who was a POV for four volumes
5=denotes a character who was a POV for five volumes
6=denotes a character who was a POV for six volumes
† denotes a deceased character.
