Conservative US Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has died, setting up a major political showdown between President Barack Obama and the Republican-controlled Senate over who will replace him just
Conservative US Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has died, setting up a major political showdown between President Barack Obama and the Republican-controlled Senate over who will replace him just months before a presidential election.
Mr Obama called Scalia, who served on the nation’s highest court for nearly 30 years, a “larger-than-life presence” and said he intended to nominate someone to fill the vacant seat before leaving the White House next January.
Scalia, 79, was found dead at the Cibolo Creek Ranch resort in West Texas on Saturday. He died of natural causes, according to Pre-sidio county judge Cind-erela Guevara, who went to the ranch and saw the body. Chief Justice John Roberts described his former colleague, who was known for his strident conservative views and theatrical flair in the courtroom, as an “extraordinary individual and jurist.”
Mr Obama led the chorus of tributes pouring in for the stalwart conservative, who died in his sleep at a private residence in the Big Bend area of West Texas, according to the US Marshals Service. “For almost 30 years, Justice Antonin Scalia was a larger than life presence on the bench, a brilliant legal mind with an energetic style,” Mr Obama said in Rancho Mirage, California.
“Tonight we honour his extraordinary service to our nation and remember one of the towering legal figures of our time.” Mr Obama also spoke to Scalia’s son Eugene “to pass along condolences to the entire Scalia family,” the White House said. Mr Obama ordered flags at the White House and all federal buildings to be flown at half-staff.
Scalia, who grew up in New Jersey and graduated from Harvard Law School, was a leader of the “originalist” ideology that looks at the US Constitution through the lens of its framers’ 18th century intentions. He was the first Italian-American on the court and a devout Roman Catholic who had nine children.
An avid hunter who wrote the court’s 2008 landmark opinion supporting gun rights, Scalia also was a close friend of liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, with whom he shared a love of opera and often travelled. For three decades, Scalia’s outsized personality gave voice to the values of conservative America on the SC bench, on matters of religion, family, patriotism and law enforcement. A staunch defender of gun rights and the death penalty, the Rom-an Catholic justice was also openly opposed to abortion, gay marriage and affirmative action. The White House is also likely to consider nominating a woman or a member of a minority group.
It has been nearly 50 years since political wrangling between a President and Senate pushed a Supreme Court nomination into the next administration. In 1968, Chief Justice Earl Warren made clear his intention to resign and Democratic President Lyndon Johnson sought to elevate then-Associate Justice Abe Fortas, who had been a close confidant.
Senate Republicans fought the nomination, claiming “cronyism,” and Johnson withdrew it. The appointment fell to his successor, Republican Richard Nixon. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas said Scalia’s death highlighted what was at stake in the election. “We’re not going to give up the US Supreme Court for a generation by allowing Barack Obama to make one more liberal appointee.”
Democrats lined up to push for a speedy appointment, with Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid saying it should happen “right away.” Mr Obama could tilt the balance of the nation’s highest court, which now consists of four conservatives and four liberals, if he is successful in pushing his nominee through the confirmation process.
