Supreme Court Justice Antonin
Scalia passed away 13 February and our president rushed off the golf course to express a few seconds of sympathy. A very brief statement of sympathy in which our president could not help himself in getting in a few digs at the late Justice Scalia’s interpretation of the Constitution, which was quickly followed by a classless announcement that he planned to appoint a replacement for Justice Scalia and he did not give a tinker’s dam who objected.
Anyone who has a genuine scintilla of compassion for the family and friends of Justice Scalia would have waited at least until the body cooled to turn his death into a political circus.
As I watched President Obama speak I was saying to myself, please express sympathy and leave it at that, take the moral high ground and wait a day or two to join the political controversy, be a leader and not a partisan political hack. President Obama disappointed me and lost a chance to be seen as a leader, not a gutter snipe of a Chicago politician.
The gaggle of Republicans running for President addressed the vacancy on the Supreme Court that day and the pending appointment to fill it, much to their discredit, and they deserve to be fully rebuked as well. President Obama could have written a positive page in the history of his presidency by holding the high ground and just waiting 48 hours to be political. He could have stood above the fray and been a leader.
History will not look kindly at this page in President Obama’s legacy.
Robert M. Traxler, Dorr Township
Following is the full text of remarks from President Barack Obama on Saturday on the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
THE PRESIDENT: Good evening, everybody. For almost 30 years, Justice Antonin ‘Nino’ Scalia was a larger-than-life presence on the bench – a brilliant legal mind with an energetic style, incisive wit, and colorful opinions.
He influenced a generation of judges, lawyers, and students, and profoundly shaped the legal landscape. He will no doubt be remembered as one of the most consequential judges and thinkers to serve on the Supreme Court.
Justice Scalia dedicated his life to the cornerstone of our democracy: the rule of law. Tonight, we honor his extraordinary service to our nation and remember one of the towering legal figures of our time.
Antonin Scalia was born in Trenton, New Jersey to an Italian immigrant family. After graduating from Georgetown University and Harvard Law School, he worked at a law firm and taught law before entering a life of public service. He rose from Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel to Judge on the D.C. Circuit Court, to Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.
A devout Catholic, he was the proud father of nine children and grandfather to many loving grandchildren. Justice Scalia was both an avid hunter and an opera lover – a passion for music that he shared with his dear colleague and friend, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Michelle and I were proud to welcome him to the White House, including in 2012 for a state dinner for Prime Minister David Cameron. And tonight, we join his fellow justices in mourning this remarkable man.
Obviously, today is a time to remember Justice Scalia’s legacy. I plan to fulfill my constitutional responsibilities to nominate a successor in due time. There will be plenty of time for me to do so, and for the Senate to fulfill its responsibility to give that person a fair hearing and a timely vote.
These are responsibilities that I take seriously, as should everyone. They’re bigger than any one party. They are about our democracy. They’re about the institution to which Justice Scalia dedicated his professional life, and making sure it continues to function as the beacon of justice that our Founders envisioned.
But at this moment, we most of all want to think about his family, and Michelle and I join the nation in sending our deepest sympathies to Justice Scalia’s wife, Maureen, and their loving family – a beautiful symbol of a life well lived. We thank them for sharing Justice Scalia with our country.
God bless them all, and God bless the United States of America.