Death of a Supreme Court justice
Antonin Scalia, a 29-year veteran of the SCOTUS, has passed away.
Earlier this month, Supreme
Court Justice Antonin Scalia
— ANN-toh-nin skah-LEE-ah — died. Do
you know what the Supreme Court is? (It
is the highest court in the U.S. Its decisions
on important cases can overturn rulings
from lower courts.) Justice Scalia was 79
years old. He had served on the Supreme
Court for almost 30 years. From what
you know, how long can Supreme Court
justices remain in their jobs? (For life, or
until they retire.) From the picture here,
what president nominated him for the
Court? (Ronald Reagan, in 1986.) Justice
Scalia was a very conservative judge. Who
BASIC
wants to read
his
quote
here?
What
do you think
it means? (He
ruled on cases
based on the way the Constitution was
written, not on what it might mean to people
today.) His view of the law made him a hero
to some and a villain to others. He voted for
the death penalty, and against gay rights.
Justice Scalia was one of nine judges on
the Supreme Court. What do you think
happens now that there are only eight
justices? NEXT
3
GENERAL
most conservative justices on the Court.
What does this mean? (In general, that
he believed in preserving traditional ideas
in society.) He was also known for his
views on how to interpret the Constitution.
What is he saying in the quote here?
(That the Constitution should be interpreted
according to what people thought at the time
it was written, not what we think today.)
He was against gun control and for capital
punishment. He regularly ruled against
laws protecting equal rights for minority
groups. Justice Scalia was well-liked by
his fellow judges, even though he often
shocked people with his statements against
gay rights. But Scalia was one of the
strongest voices on the Court and his death
means that future court decisions could
end up very differently. Why is his death
such a big deal for the nation? NEXT
ADVANCED
Can you explain what it means? (That
judges must interpret the Constitution, not in
a modern context, but rather what the words
would have meant when they were written.)
What do you think of this idea?
During his nearly three decades as an
associate justice, Scalia became one of the
most influential and powerful conservatives
on the Court. He supported capital
punishment, and opposed gun control.
He voted for Citizens United, and against
gay rights. He also regularly opposed
guaranteeing equal rights to minority
groups. Justice Scalia became well known
for his strongly worded opinions and his
brash speeches, but he was well-liked by his
fellow justices. In fact, he and Ruth Bader
Ginsburg, one of the most liberal Supreme
Court justices, were best friends. How do
you view Justice Scalia’s legacy? NEXT
Antonin Scalia recently
passed away during a trip
to Texas at the age of 79. Scalia was a
judge, a lawyer, a law professor, and an
advisor to two presidents. But he is best
known for his 29 years on the Supreme
Court of the United States. What is the
Supreme Court, and what does it do? (It
is the highest court in the U.S., and it has
the final say on cases involving the U.S.
Constitution.)
Justice Scalia had served longer than
any other justice on the Court. President
Reagan appointed him to the Court in
1986. Supreme Court justices serve for
life, or until they retire. This practice
is supposed to keep justices focused on
the law instead of having to worry about
running for office. Is this a good idea?
Why or why not? Scalia was one of the
Supreme Court Justice
Antonin Scalia recently
passed away during a trip to Texas. What
does the Supreme Court specialize in?
(Important cases from lower courts that turn
on interpretations of the U.S. Constitution.)
Justice Scalia was 79 years old, and
had spent more than 29 years on the
Court. His passing will affect everything
from current Court cases to the 2016
presidential campaign.
President Reagan appointed Antonin Scalia
to the Supreme Court in 1986. By that time,
Scalia had already served as an adviser to
two presidents, and had established himself
as one of the foremost conservative legal
minds in the U.S. Scalia was known as a
proponent of “orginalism,” which is a specific
approach to interpreting the Constitution.
That view is summed up in his quote here.
Copyright 2016 Knowledge Unlimited
NewsCurrents Week of February 22, 2016
3
Death of a Supreme Court justice (cont'd)
The nomination of a new Supreme Court justice is always political.
With the death of Justice
Scalia, there is now a vacancy,
or open spot, on the Supreme Court. From
the words here, who gets to choose the
person to fill that vacancy? (The president.)
However, the Senate must approve the
president’s choice with at least 51 senators
voting yes. Do you think this is a good
system? Right now, many Republican
senators say they will vote against any
person that Obama chooses. Does this
seem fair even before they know who
the person is? Republicans, like Senator
Ted Cruz, say that since Obama only has
BASIC
a year left to
be president,
they want to
wait for the
next president
to choose a
Supreme Court judge. Why? (They are
hoping that the next president will be a
Republican and will choose a judge who
thinks more like they do.) But Democrats,
like Senator Elizabeth Warren, say that
this doesn’t go along with the Constitution.
Do you agree with what she says here?
Why or why not? NEXT
4
GENERAL
This process will be complicated this year.
For one thing, there are 54 Republicans
in the Senate, as opposed to just 44
Democrats and two independents. This
will make it hard for whomever President
Obama nominates. Many Republicans,
including Senator Ted Cruz, have said
they plan to block anyone the president
nominates, because it is his last year in
office. Why do they want to do this?
(They are hoping that a Republican will
get elected and choose someone who will
vote with the conservatives on the Court.)
But the president and others have said it
is the president’s right and responsibility
to fill this open seat. What is Democratic
Senator Elizabeth Warren saying here?
(That there’s nothing in the Constitution
that says a president can’t make this
choice in his final year.) Which side of the
argument are you on, and why? NEXT
ADVANCED
saying Obama only has a year left in office,
and shouldn’t have the power to change
the composition of the Court at this point.
In response, Democratic Senator Elizabeth
Warren made the statement shown here.
Do you agree with what she says here?
Why or why not? Others pointed out that
a number of justices were appointed in
the last year of a president’s term, most
recently Justice Kennedy, with no outcry
from the opposite party.
Several Republican candidates have
threatened to make the Supreme Court
appointment a major theme of the 2016
campaign. Senator Ted Cruz has already
threatened to filibuster any Obama
appointee. Do you think this will be an
effective strategy for these candidates?
Or do you think their strategy might
backfire with voters? NEXT
The words at top here are
from the U.S. Constitution.
They spell out the procedure for choosing
a Supreme Court justice when there is
a vacancy, or open spot, on the Court.
In your own words, what is this
procedure? (The president nominates
someone, and then the U.S. Senate’s
job is to give “advice and consent.”) In
this case, “advice and consent” means
that senators meet with the nominee,
and then vote about whether to confirm
or deny the nomination. In order for a
nominee to be confirmed, he or she must
receive at least 51 votes from the Senate.
What happens if the Senate doesn’t
confirm the nominee? (The president
must nominate someone else and the
process starts all over.) Does this seem
like a good system for filling such an
important job?
Supreme Court justices
serve for life, or until
they retire. How do the words here
from the Constitution define the
procedure for selecting a new justice?
(The president nominates someone, and
the U.S. Senate provides “advice and
consent.”) Do you know what “advice
and consent” means here? (Nominees
go through a Senate hearing, and then
wait for a Senate vote either confirming
or denying their nomination.) How many
votes are needed for confirmation? (51
votes.) President Obama says he plans to
fulfill his presidential responsibility by
nominating someone soon. But the Senate
Republican leadership has already vowed
to block an Obama nomination. How can
they do this? (By not even bringing it up
for a vote.) Republicans justify this by
4 NewsCurrents Week of February 22, 2016
Copyright 2016 Knowledge Unlimited
Death of a Supreme Court justice (cont'd)
How will Justice Scalia’s death affect the Court and its new cases?
These are the eight justices
currently on the Supreme
Court. They are split up here on purpose.
One of these groups is conservative, and
usually voted with Justice Scalia. The
other group is liberal, and usually voted
against him. Which is which? (Liberals
are on the left, and conservatives are on
the right.) What do you think the words
“swing vote” next to Anthony Kennedy
mean? (That Justice Kennedy sometimes
“swings” his vote over to the liberals.) The
Court has to rule on some very hard cases
BASIC
this spring.
But
now,
many of the
close
cases
could easily
end up in a
tie, with the four liberals against the four
conservatives. If this happens, then the
any ruling made by the lower court stays
in place and nothing changes. Is this
a good reason to fill the vacancy, or
empty spot, soon? END
5
GENERAL
been a “swing vote” on the court. What
does this mean? (Justice Kennedy has
voted with the four liberals on certain
issues.)
There are some extremely important
cases on the Court’s docket this term.
The Court’s decisions on these cases
could affect millions of Americans. These
include cases about the powers and
rights of labor unions, abortion rights,
immigration, climate change rules, and
more. If the Supreme Court ends up in
a tie vote, the last court’s ruling usually
stands. However, any of these cases could
be challenged and end up back in the
Supreme Court all over again. Is this a
good reason to fill the vacancy as soon
as possible? Why or why not? END
ADVANCED
Some very important cases on the Court’s
docket were expected to come down to
a 5-4 vote with the Court’s conservative
majority prevailing. What happens now
in case of a tie? (The ruling of the lower
court stands.) The Court’s current docket
includes a number of extremely important
cases affecting millions of Americans.
These cases involve major issues like the
power of unions, immigration, climate
change rules, affirmative action, abortion
rights, voting districts, and more. But any
of these cases that end up in a tie vote can
be challenged and end up right back in the
Supreme Court again. Do you think it is
important to have the Supreme Court
vacancy filled as soon as possible? Why
or why not? END
The death of Antonin
Scalia leaves an important
vacancy on the Supreme Court. Until this
is filled, there are only eight justices on
the Court instead of its usual nine. Why
is this a problem? (It is an even number,
possibly leading to tie votes.)
The current Supreme Court is split along
political lines. The four justices on the left
tend to vote along liberal lines. Democratic
presidents usually choose justices who
vote with the liberals. The four on the
right are considered conservative justices.
Republican presidents usually choose
justices who vote with the conservatives.
The four on the right, together with
Justice Scalia, often formed a conservative
majority on the court. This was not a solid
majority, as Anthony Kennedy has often
Supreme Court vacancies
are usually filled relatively
quickly. One of the reasons for this comes
down to simple math. What does this
mean? (Until the vacancy is filled, there
are only eight justices on the Court instead
of nine; this even number could easily
lead to tie votes.) This is especially likely
because of the political split on the current
Supreme Court. How is this shown in the
image here? (The four justices on the left
usually vote along liberal lines, while the
four on the right are usually conservative
voters.) Justice Scalia represented the
fifth vote of the conservative majority —
although this bloc was not always solid.
Why? (Justice Anthony Kennedy was often
considered a swing vote, as he sometimes
voted with the liberal justices.)
Copyright 2016 Knowledge Unlimited
NewsCurrents Week of February 22, 2016
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