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“REMEMBERING JUSTICE ANTONIN SCALIA” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Senate section on pages S1434-S1436 on March 10, 2016.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
REMEMBERING JUSTICE ANTONIN SCALIA
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, on February 13, 2016, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia passed away in his sleep. He was an enduring legacy of the Reagan administration and the conservative standard not only on the Supreme Court but for the entire American judicial community.
History will remember Scalia as a stalwart defender of the Constitution and a brilliant legal mind. He authored the majority opinion on countless rulings of the Court, preserving and protecting our Nation's founding principles. His intellectual honesty, as well as his humor, will be greatly missed.
Justice Scalia played a pivotal role in the shaping of constitutional interpretation throughout his 30-year tenure on the Supreme Court. He had within him a fervor for law and order; yet he demonstrated a warmth that resonated with many colleagues on both sides of the political divide.
Scalia built meaningful relationships across that divide which were indicative of the strength of his character. Hadley Arkes, an expert in constitutional law, said that Scalia was able to ``find something redeeming and likeable in just about everyone he met, regardless of politics.'' This was no doubt a reflection of his strong Christian background and tremendous character.
You can learn the character of a man best by listening to how those who knew him speak of him. Former colleagues and intellectual adversaries alike are unrestrained in their kind words for Justice Scalia.
Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer spoke fondly of the late Justice, saying: ``Nino sparkled with enthusiasm, energy, sense of humor, insight, and seriousness of purpose--the very qualities that I and his other colleagues have benefited from in more recent years.''
Justice Thomas described Scalia as a patriot with a true calling for interpreting the Constitution and noted that their relationship flourished based on that common interest. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg also described their relationship as close and ``how blessed she was to have a friend of such brilliance, high spirits, and quick wit.''
Scalia had a positive impact on so many lives as a Justice, a colleague, a father, and a friend. His demeanor was just and fair, but marked with personality and humor. Late Justice Scalia was a staunch defender of the Constitution, rendering unbiased opinions and a unique perspective.
Mr. VITTER. Mr. President, today I honor the late Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Antonin Scalia.
During his many years of serving our country, Justice Scalia proved to be a great defender of our constitutional liberties. Regardless of one's politics, it is undeniable that Justice Scalia was a true patriot whose passion for upholding our American principles was matched only by his eloquence and intellect.
Justice Scalia's record of public service stretched from the time President Nixon appointed him as general counsel of the Office of Telecommunications Policy in 1971 to when President Reagan nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court in 1986, where he served until his death in February 2016. Before and intermingled during this service, Justice Scalia also served as an extremely talented attorney in private practice, a brilliant law professor, including for my alma mater Tulane Law School in its summer programs, and an effective leader in the U.S. Justice Department at a number of levels.
One of the single most memorable events in my time in the Senate was when Justice Scalia agreed to visit with and speak to me and my staff. His presence and authority impressed all of us and, as he discussed a number of topics including the importance of protecting our constitutional rights; I admit to being awestruck. It was a great honor to hear directly from one of most significant jurists in American history, and I know my staff remember that day as clearly as I do.
One thing that distinguished Justice Scalia was not necessarily what he did, but what he chose not to do. As a staunch adherent of limited, constitutional government, on numerous occasions, he advocated for the Court to separate itself from political fights or matters involving individuals who are free to decide their own fate. Originalism, the theory that the clear meaning given to words in the Constitution by our Founding Fathers should be honored, was prevalent in Justice Scalia's decisions. He abhorred judicial activism, and he correctly understood that the place for instituting laws was in the legislature, where the will of the people is democratically represented.
I know that Justice Scalia will also be remembered for his upbeat nature, affability, charm, and wit. At the heart of his larger-than-
life personality was an educator, a person who not only ruled on the law, but also took the opportunity to inform readers of his opinions about the history behind the decisions.
I commend his lifetime commitment as a public servant and hope his example will inspire us all as we work to respect the Constitution and protect the freedoms of all Americans. We would be wise to follow Justice Scalia's lead in remembering America's founding principles as we are deciding matters of the future.
I also wish to express our deepest condolences to his wife, Maureen, and to the rest of his family. I am honored to join with the rest of the United States Senate in celebrating the wonderful memory and lasting legacy of Justice Antonin Scalia.
Mr. WICKER. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in expressing the deepest respect and admiration for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Our country has lost a brilliant, principled, and determined jurist.
For three decades, Justice Scalia invigorated the Supreme Court, becoming an icon for constitutional originalism. He had a remarkable ability to espouse legal theory with memorable turns of phrase, and he could expose gaps in opposing opinions with laserlike precision. He did not fear differences of opinion but embraced the intellectual challenge that conflicting viewpoints could offer. The enduring friendships he made with those across the ideological spectrum are a true testament to his indomitable scholarship.
Antonin Scalia had a distinguished career in law, academia, and public service before being confirmed to the DC Circuit and later the Supreme Court. The many accolades and achievements of his biography are well known. But Antonin, fondly known as ``Nino,'' was much more than an extraordinary legal mind. He was man of faith and family, raising nine children with his wife, Maureen.
His son, Christopher, wrote this in the Washington Post following his father's death: ``As proud as we are of his legacy as a jurist, of course it's his presence in our personal lives that we'll miss the most.'' To his children, he was a loving father who took them to Sunday mass, listened to Bach in his study, and never shied away from playfulness at the dinner table.
We will remember Justice Scalia in my home State of Mississippi, where we were honored to host him over the years. We shared with him our variety of southern hospitality during his regular visits to the Magnolia State in pursuit of duck, deer, and turkey. When he wasn't outdoors, he spent time educating the public, especially college students, delivering thought-provoking lectures at the University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University, the University of Southern Mississippi, William Carey University, and MUW.
Justice Scalia's unanimous confirmation as the first Italian-American Justice was a historic moment for the Supreme Court and the beginning of a legendary tenure that will have a profound effect for generations to come. He leaves a vibrant legacy--perhaps most notably characterized by his steadfast protection of the Constitution as the Framers intended it. As I said shortly after learning the news of his death, ``I like to think Antonin Scalia and James Madison are having the damnedest visit right now.''
Mr. HELLER. Mr. President, today we honor the life and public service of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, whose passing signifies a great loss for our country. Justice Scalia was a devoted family man, scholar, and tireless public servant. He faithfully served Nevadans and all Americans for over 30 years on our Nation's highest Court. My thoughts and prayers continue to go out to his wife, Maureen, and the entire Scalia family.
Born on March 11, 1936, to Salvatore and Catherine Scalia, Justice Scalia was a disciplined, intellectual conservative from a young age. A diligent student who studied his way to become valedictorian at Georgetown University and graduating magna cum laude at Harvard Law School, Justice Scalia began his legal career in Cleveland, OH in 1961. After practicing law for 6 years in Cleveland, Justice Scalia accepted a position teaching administrative law at the University of Virginia.
Justice Scalia entered public service in 1972, during which he served as general counsel for the Office of Telecommunications Policy and chairman of the Administrative Conference of the United States. In these positions, he expanded his expertise in administrative law, a topic that interested him throughout his career. In 1974, Justice Scalia became the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel. It was here that Justice Scalia would argue and later win his first case before the U.S. Supreme Court.
In 1982, President Ronald Reagan appointed Justice Scalia to the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Justice Scalia's originalist mindset, keen perception, and witty writing caught the attention of President Reagan, making Justice Scalia a top prospect to fill a potential Supreme Court vacancy. In 1986, Justice Scalia was confirmed by the Senate upon the retirement of Chief Justice Warren Burger. As a Supreme Court Justice, Justice Scalia would dramatically change the Court through his powerful dissents and sharp oral arguments.
Throughout his over 30-year tenure on the bench, Justice Scalia never strayed from his conservative principles and steadfast dedication to upholding the Constitution. His prominent leadership and originalist philosophy will never be forgotten as his legacy will live on through generations. I ask my colleagues and all Nevadans to join me today in remembering and celebrating the life of Justice Antonin Scalia.
Mr. CRUZ. Mr. President, Antonin Scalia was one of the greatest Supreme Court Justices in the history of our country. A lion of the law, Justice Scalia spent his tenure on the bench championing federalism, the separation of powers, and our fundamental liberties. He was a passionate defender of the Constitution--not the Constitution as it has been contorted and revised by generations of activist Justices, but the Constitution as it was understood by the people who ratified it and made it the law of the land. Scalia understood that if the Constitution's meaning was not grounded in its text, history, and structure, but could instead by revised by judicial fiat, then the people were no longer sovereign. No longer would the Nation be governed by law, which expresses the will of the people; it would be governed by, as Scalia put it, ``an unelected committee of nine.'' This, he believed, ``robs the People of the most important liberty they asserted in the Declaration of Independence and won in the Revolution of 1776: the freedom to govern themselves.''
As one of the leading advocates of this restrained judicial philosophy, Justice Scalia became an intellectual force on the Court, where he authored a number of noteworthy majority opinions. In 1997, for example, Scalia wrote the opinion in Printz v. United States, one of the few cases in the last century where the Supreme Court has actually limited the Federal Government's power to coerce the states. In 2001, in Kyllo v. United States, he led the Court in holding that the Fourth Amendment requires the government to obtain a warrant before using high-tech equipment to invade the sanctity of the home. And in 2008, he penned the lead opinion in District of Columbia v. Heller, which finally recognized the people's individual right under the Second Amendment to keep and bear arms.
As important as these majority opinions were, though, Justice Scalia was even better known for his dissents, in which he let his true personality--jovial, acerbic, and witty--fully shine through. Scalia understood that changing the languishing legal culture would take drastic measures, so he wrote his dissents with a specific target in mind: law students. His aim? To delight their senses and engage their brains. To this end, he liberally employed colorful metaphors, pithy phrases, and biting logic; and he mercilessly, yet playfully, exposed the abundant flaws in the writing and reasoning of other Justices. Pure applesauce. Jiggery-pokery. Argle-bargle. If you squinted hard enough, you could almost convince yourself that G.K. Chesterton had taken a seat on the Supreme Court.
But perhaps the highest compliment I can pay to Justice Scalia is this: Several of his key opinions went against some of his staunchest supporters--and they still loved him. Why is that?
The answer is simple: Even in disagreement, Justice Scalia's supporters had confidence that he did not make up his mind by reading the political tea leaves, by voting lockstep with ideological cohorts, or by working his way backward from a desired end to whatever means was necessary to reach that end. Rather, he actually attempted to interpret the law; that is, he consistently did his best to come to a conclusion based on the only items that make a Supreme Court opinion valid in the first place: text and logic.
You don't have to take my word on this, though. Unlike many in our modern society who espouse ``diversity'' yet surround themselves with ideological yes-men, Justice Scalia actively sought out opposing views. His typical practice was to hire at least one ``liberal'' law clerk per term so that he would always have someone calling him out for unexpected mistakes and weaknesses. And in the wake of Scalia's passing, one of those clerks--a self-identified liberal--wrote the following:
If there was a true surprise during my year clerking for Scalia, it was how little reference he made to political outcomes. What he cared about was the law, and where the words on the page took him. More than any one opinion, this will be his lasting contribution to legal thought. Whatever our beliefs, he forced lawyers and scholars to engage on his terms--textual analysis and original meaning. He forced us all to acknowledge that words cannot mean anything we want them to mean; that we have to impose a degree of discipline on our thinking. A discipline I value to this day.
I first met Justice Scalia in 1996, when I was serving as a law clerk for Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who was a judicial gamechanger in his own right. And I had the good fortune of knowing Scalia personally for 20 years. He was brilliant, passionate, and full of humor. He adored his wife, Maureen; his nine children; and his 36 grandchildren. He had a zest for life. He relished anchovy pizzas at A.V. Ristorante Italiano, where he would take his law clerks and the clerks of other Justices. Over the decades, Scalia inspired and mentored a generation of conservatives on the bench and in the legal academy.
Any advocate who stood before Justice Scalia, as I was privileged to do nine times, knew to expect withering questions that would cut to the quick of the case. When he was with you--when he believed the law was on your side--he was ferociously with you. And when he was against you, he would relentlessly expose the flaws in your case.
President Ronald Reagan could not have picked a better person to exemplify the true, nonpartisan role of a judge. A philosopher-king Justice Scalia was not. Rather, he showed the world, with his trademark wit and impassioned personality, what a legitimate, limited, and principled judiciary would actually look like. An incomparable writer, Scalia's legacy will live on for generations. He wasn't perfect, but he was close. What his supporters--myself included--treasured especially was the rock-solid ground he gave us on which to expect so much more from everyone else. And in doing so, he, along with Chief Justice Rehnquist and others, helped spark a revolution on a Court where politics and power had been the only guideposts for decisionmaking for far too long. That, more than anything else, is Scalia's great contribution to the Nation and will be his steadfast legacy.
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