Tag: Scalia

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President Obama: “The Constitution Is Pretty Clear” On Nominating Supreme Court Justices

After several Senate Republicans stated they did not want to hold hearings on a new Supreme Court justice nominee this year, President Obama addressed those would delay the process of replacing recently deceased Justice Antonin Scalia:

“The Constitution is pretty clear about what is supposed to happen now,” Obama said at a press conference Tuesday at the U.S.-ASEAN summit in California.

“When there is vacancy on the Supreme Court, the president of the United States is to nominate someone, the Senate is to consider that nomination, and either they disapprove of that nominee or that nominee is elevated to the Supreme Court,” Obama continued. “Historically, this has not been viewed as a question. There’s no unwritten law that says it can only be done in off years, that’s not in the constitutional text.”

Obama stressed that there was “more then enough time” for the Senate to consider the nominee he submits for consideration.

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How Long Did It Take To Confirm The Current Supreme Court Justices?

Senate Republicans are digging in their heels saying there will be no votes on any Supreme Court nominee to replace Antonin Scalia because “there’s not enough time?”

Check out the stats on how long it took from nomination to confirmation for each of the current SCOTUS justices.

There are 350+ days left in Obama’s administration.

Plenty of time, folks, plenty of time.

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Right-Wing Nuts Theorize Obama Had Justice Scalia Murdered

Well, you knew this was coming.

Folks across the Tea People population theorize that President Obama had Justice Antonin Scalia killed so that Obama could make one more SCOTUS nomination before leaving office.

Because folks don’t die at the age of 79, don’t you know?

Back here in Reality, the coroner in very Red Texas ruled the cause of Scalia’s death was from heart attack.

Watch one of the conspiracy theory folks explain the “murder” of Scalia. 

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U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia Dead At 79

United States Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has passed away at the age of 79 in San Antonio, Texas.

From the New York Post:

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court Antonin Scalia was found dead Saturday on a luxury resort in West Texas, federal officials said.

Scalia, 79, was a guest at the Cibolo Creek Ranch, a resort in the Big Bend region south of Marfa. MySanAntonio.com said he died of apparent natural causes.

Scalia arrived at the ranch on Friday and attended a private party with about 40 people, the website of the San Antonio Express News said. When he did not appear for breakfast, a person associated with the ranch went to his room and found a body.

A federal official who asked not to be named told the San Antonio Express News paper there was no evidence of foul play and it appeared that Scalia died of natural causes.

Scalia was nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan.

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Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia dies at age 79. Here's a look at the justice's life — http://cnn.it/1mzdvWsPosted by CNN Politics on Saturday, February 13, 2016

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Justice Scalia: Public Officials Have To Do Their Job Or Resign

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia

Many feel the only path forward for Kentucky County Clerk Kim Davis is to resign her post so she, not the state, can accommodate her religious beliefs.

Jonathan Adler, of the Washington Post, has found a surprisingly high profile judge who agrees that public officials cannot decline to perform their duties based on the official’s personal view of morality.

That judge? No less than Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.

In 2002, Scalia explained that if he were to conclude that the death penalty is fundamentally immoral, he should no longer serve on the bench:

[I]n my view the choice for the judge who believes the death penalty to be immoral is resignation, rather than simply ignoring duly enacted, constitutional laws and sabotaging death penalty cases. He has, after all, taken an oath to apply the laws and has been given no power to supplant them with rules of his own. Of course if he feels strongly enough he can go beyond mere resignation and lead a political campaign to abolish the death penalty” and if that fails, lead a revolution. But rewrite the laws he cannot do.

The upshot being that public officials don’t get to rewrite the rules of their duties.

While Scalia has not addressed the specific issue of Kim Davis’ refusals to do her job, he noticeably did not dissent from the recent denial for an emergency stay when requested by Davis’ lawyers.

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SCOTUS: Antonin Scalia Praises Ruth Bader Ginsberg For TIME 100

Justice Scalia, the longest-serving member currently on the Supreme Court, praises fellow SCOTUS Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg for TIME’s 100:

Ruth Bader Ginsburg has had two distinguished legal careers, either one of which would alone entitle her to be one of TIME’s 100. When she was a law professor at Rutgers and later Columbia, she became the leading (and very successful) litigator on behalf of women’s rights—the Thurgood Marshall of that cause, so to speak. President Carter appointed her to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 1980, and President Clinton to a seat on the Supreme Court in 1993.

Having had the good fortune to serve beside her on both courts, I can attest that her opinions are always thoroughly considered, always carefully crafted and almost always correct (which is to say we sometimes disagree). That much is apparent for all to see.

What only her colleagues know is that her suggestions improve the opinions the rest of us write, and that she is a source of collegiality and good judgment in all our work.

(h/t JoeMyGod)

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Supreme Court Justice Scalia: “Don’t Paint Me As Anti-Gay”

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia took umbrage at the idea that he would somehow be seen as “anti-gay” during a joint appearance with Ruth Bader Ginsberg last night at George Washington University.

Via Washington Blade:

“The issue of gay rights, on abortion, on many of the issues in which Ruth’s opinions and mine differ does not pertain to the substance,” he said. “It doesn’t pertain to whether gay people ought to have those rights or whether there ought to be a constitutional right or a right to an abortion,” he said.

“That isn’t the issue. The issue is who decides,” Scalia told the gathering. “That’s all. I don’t have any public views on any of those things. The point is who decides? Should these decisions be made by the Supreme Court without any text in the Constitution or any history in the Constitution to support imposing on the whole country or is it a matter left to the people?” he asked.

“But don’t paint me as anti-gay or anti-abortion or anything else,” he added. “All I’m doing on the Supreme Court is opining about who should decide.”

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg added, “It isn’t the Supreme Court that is deciding for the whole society like an imperial ruler. There hasn’t been any major change in which there wasn’t a groundswell among the people before the Supreme Court put its stamp of approval on the inclusion in the equality concept of people who were once left out,” she said.

While Scalia may not like the label “anti-gay,” in 2013, he referred to gays as an “invented minority” in regard to recent rulings on same-sex marriage.

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Supreme Court Justice Scalia: Same-sex marriage decision coming “Soon! Soon!”

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia spoke to a group of high school students at the University of Colorado on Wednesday, taking questions ranging from marijuana use to same-sex marriage.

When asked about the recent legislation that legalized marijuana use in the state, Scalia declined to give his opinion as he would then have to recuse himself should a case concerning the issue come before SCOTUS.

But he did add a little insight to his current frame of mind:

But he added, “the Constitution contains something called the Supremacy Clause,” which is the provision stating that federal laws trump state laws.

The justice was also asked when we’ll find out if the high court will take up the question of whether state same-sex marriage bans are constitutional.

“I know when, but I’m not going to tell you,” he reportedly replied, getting a big laugh from the audience. “Soon! Soon!” he added.

I’m hoping the passage means two things: that a marriage equality case will be taken up by SCOTUS and soon; and that Scalia keeps the “Supremacy Clause” in mind when he hears said marriage equality case.