By Jordan Mann
Today, February 20, 2016 the life of Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia will be celebrated with a funeral mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C.
One of Scalia’s nine children, Rev Paul Scalia, a Catholic priest from the Arlington, VA Diocese, will be delivering the homily. The elder Scalia died last weekend at the Cibolo Creek Ranch, a hunting lodge south of Marfa, Texas. According to his doctor, Scalia suffered from a host of chronic conditions. He died in his sleep from natural cause’s just weeks before his eightieth birthday.
During his thirty years as an associate justice on the Supreme Court, Scalia became a hero of the far right conservative movement. His written dissents have often been described as acerbic and even insulting. But, those who knew him personally described him as warm and charming. Interestingly, his closest friend on the bench was justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg who holds vastly different political views.
Scalia adhered to originalism, a judicial philosophy interpreting the Constitution by the theoretical intended meaning of the founding fathers. This means the constitution is static and cannot be interpreted with the views of the present. Originalism is the opposite of the commonly held view that the constitution is a living document, which allows for views that consider contemporary society. The “living document” followers point out that the founding fathers held many views that today would be considered repugnant.
Scalia’s view of the constitution lead him to oppose: affirmative action, universal health care, same sex marriage and LGBT rights, voting rights legislation, government protection of the environment, pro-choice legislation and other liberal views. His passing leaves a court split between liberals and conservatives, although none on the court are as consistently conservative as Scalia. A 4-4 tie vote in the Supreme Court, causes the lower court’s decision to be affirmed, but this does not create a binding Supreme Court precedent.
A Few of the Pending Cases
Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association, a argument over the right of unions to collect mandatory dues. It now looks like it will end in a tie. This will mean the unions can continue to collect mandatory dues. (Liberal win)
Evenwel v. Abbott an argument over the issue of who should be included when creating voting districts. A tie would enact the lower court ruling that all residents should be counted instead of only eligible voters. (Liberal win)
Zubik v. Burwell an argument over the contraceptive mandate of Obama care. Lower courts are divided so a tie in the Supreme Court would lead to no decision. (A liberal win even ending in no decision, if Scalia were voting he would vote against the mandate)
Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt an argument over restrictions imposed in Texas on clinics that perform abortions. A tie would cause the closure of most Texas clinics. Yet, this would still be a liberal win, because Scalia’s vote might have allowed other states to pass restrictions to abortions. (Possible liberal win)
There are many other cases approaching the Supreme Court. The majority of U.S. Court of Appeals judges have been appointed by Democrats. If the Republicans come through on their threat to block President Obama’s nominees to the Supreme Court, it is likely there will be a number of 4-4 decisions. This will cause the decisions of the appeals courts to stand, most likely leading to more liberal decisions.
