Death of Antonin Scalia truly a huge loss for the nation
Supreme Court Justice Antonin Gregory Scalia possessed one of the greatest legal minds of our generation. His unexpected death on Saturdaywas a tremendous loss for the nation that he loved, for the rule of lawthat he championed and for the Constitution he strove to restore throughout his 30 years on the court.
Winston Churchill once said, “If you have knowledge, let others light their candles with it.” Many Americans, including our best lawyers and judges, have been lighting their candles for more than three decades fromthe knowledge that Scalia spread through his decisions, his writings and his speeches on howto properly interpret and apply the Constitution.
Our nation has had many Supreme Court justices, but few have changed the course of the law. Scaliawas one of those few. His profound legal analyses will continue to influence the court for a long time to come. And because the courts today have so much power over our everyday lives, hiswork will also profoundly influence the nation as a whole.
Activist judges seek to “interpret”— that is, “change” the law— to implement their particular views on social issues and government policy. Scalia taught that judges must apply the lawas it is written, regardless of their personal views.
His view of the Constitutionwas that its text must be applied as the men who drafted thosewords understood and intended thosewords towork. He rejected the view of those whowant a “Living Constitution”— one that allows judges to legislate from the bench simply by decreeing that thosewords and text mean whatever theywant it to mean. As Scaliawrote in his 2012 book, “Reading Law— The Interpretation of Legal Texts:”
“While it once pretended to reflect at least the current society’s revised beliefs (always as perceived by judges, to be sure), in recent years that pretense has been abandoned, and it has been explicitly acknowledged that the Living Constitution means what reform-minded judges think it should mean.”
The result, he noted, ismany issues that should be decided by the people have nowbeen declared by judges to be “off-limits to the democratic process.”
It is clear fromhis many brilliantly written decisions that Scalia believed in our democratic system, in our Republic. He trusted the American people to make decisions on crucial, controversial issues that judges have no authority— and no business— deciding.
Scalia understood howdedication to the rule of lawhas made America quite different than many other nations. His book urged judges to followhis “proper methods of textual interpretation” of the Constitution and the law, staying out of politics and social ideology. If judges will do that, he argued, “the lawwill be more certain, and the rule of lawwill be more secure.”
Scaliawas, beyond doubt, one of the best justices to ever serve on the Supreme Court. But no summary of his careerwould do justice to the man if it did not also mention hiswonderful sense of humor. His speecheswere always highly entertaining. And, when hearing oral arguments, his eruptions of sarcastic and often acerbic wit raised many a laugh in the courtroom.
His written opinions, particularly his sharp dissents, not only explained the lawbut also pointed out— often in a humorousway— the mistakes made by his liberal colleagues on the court. It is a mark of the man that those colleagues were also great personal friends of Scalia. They, too, will miss his presence in the courtroom at the Supreme Court.
Aswe ponder the loss of Scalia, another Churchill quote comes to mind. “I am ready to meetmy maker,” he said, “but whethermy maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter.”
I have no doubt that the GreatMaker is already enjoying a spirited andwonderful debate with aman whose intellect, humor, wit, humility and faith made him a leading light in his church, his community, the lawand the highest court in the land. We will miss him greatly, but history will remember how luckywewere for his presence.
Hans A. von Spakovsky is a senior legal fellow at TheHeritage Foundation.