JUSTICE Harlan was one of the 20th century's giants on the Supreme Court of the United States--a man whose lucid intellect and consistently clear reasoning won him the highest respect of his judicial colleagues, of the legal profession at large, and of the Nation he served with such selfless dedication.
His contribution was enormous, and he will be deeply mourned and enormously missed.
Mrs. Nixon and I join the Nation in expressing our sympathy to the family of this splendid American.
Note: Justice Harlan, 72, died of cancer in George Washington University Hospital, Washington, D.C. He served on the Supreme Court from 1955 until his retirement in 1971.
The statement was made available to the press at Key Biscayne, Fla.
Richard Nixon, Statement on the Death of Former Associate Justice John M. Harlan. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/240564