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Who Was Antonin Scalia?
Antonin Scalia was a prominent American lawyer and served as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He began his legal career in the 1960s as a practicing lawyer before transitioning to public service in the 1970s. Scalia held significant positions, including serving as the general counsel to President Richard Nixon and as Assistant Attorney General. In the 1980s, he was appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals by President Ronald Reagan. In 1986, Scalia was nominated by President Reagan to the U.S. Supreme Court, where he served until his death on February 13, 2016.
Background, Education, and Family Life
Born on March 11, 1936, in Trenton, New Jersey, Antonin Gregory Scalia was the only child of Salvadore Eugene and Catherine Panaro Scalia. His father, an immigrant from Sicily, arrived in the United States as a teenager via Ellis Island. Salvadore went on to earn a college education and became a professor of romance languages at Brooklyn College. Scalia’s mother, a first-generation Italian American, worked as an elementary school teacher until Antonin was born. He was given the nickname “Nino” as a young boy, in honor of his grandfather, after whom he was named.
Scalia’s upbringing as an only child in a close-knit, multi-ethnic neighborhood in Queens, New York, profoundly shaped his character. He often remarked that the attention he received from both his immediate and extended family made him feel secure, but also burdened with high expectations. His father was a significant influence, instilling in him core values such as conservatism, hard work, and discipline that would define his adult life.
Scalia attended public school where he excelled academically, maintaining straight A’s. He later attended Xavier High School in Manhattan, a Jesuit military school, where his conservative beliefs and deep religious convictions were solidified. Although he described himself as “not a cool kid,” Scalia was highly focused on his studies, graduating first in his class.
In 1953, Scalia entered Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., where he graduated summa cum laude and as valedictorian with a degree in history in 1957. He then attended Harvard Law School, where he met Maureen McCarthy, a Radcliffe College undergraduate. The couple married on September 10, 1960, and had nine children together.
Legal Career
Antonin Scalia began his distinguished legal career in 1961 at the law offices of Jones, Day, Cockley & Reavis in Cleveland, Ohio. While highly regarded and likely on track for partnership, Scalia, like his father, harbored a deep desire to teach. In 1967, he transitioned to academia, accepting a professorial position at the University of Virginia Law School, where he moved with his family to Charlottesville.
Scalia entered public service in 1972 when President Richard Nixon appointed him General Counsel for the Office of Telecommunications Policy. In this role, he contributed to the formulation of regulations for the burgeoning cable television industry. After the Watergate scandal, in 1974, Scalia was appointed Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel. During this time, he testified before congressional committees on behalf of the Ford administration, particularly regarding executive privilege. He also argued and won his first and only case before the U.S. Supreme Court in Alfred Dunhill of London, Inc. v. Republic of Cuba, representing the U.S. Government.
Following a brief tenure at the conservative American Enterprise Institute and a teaching position at the University of Chicago Law School, Scalia received an appointment from President Ronald Reagan to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in 1982. There, he developed a reputation for his powerful, witty, and often critical writing, particularly in relation to the U.S. Supreme Court. This earned him recognition and a place on Reagan’s shortlist for a Supreme Court nomination. Scalia was confirmed as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1986, succeeding Chief Justice Warren Burger.
Supreme Court Justice
As a Supreme Court Justice, Scalia became one of the most prominent legal thinkers of his generation, earning a reputation for his sharp dissents and combative style. His critiques were often scathing, but those who knew him personally described him as unpretentious, charming, and humorous. Among his closest colleagues was Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, with whom he shared a warm personal friendship despite their starkly contrasting political ideologies.
Scalia was a staunch proponent of originalism, the judicial philosophy that the Constitution should be interpreted according to its original meaning at the time of ratification. This perspective was in direct opposition to the more widely held view that the Constitution is a “living document” that evolves to reflect contemporary society. Scalia believed that the Constitution was designed to protect citizens’ basic rights and responsibilities, not to facilitate change. He strongly opposed what he termed “judicial activism,” asserting that any necessary societal changes should be enacted by the legislature, not the judiciary.
Critics, however, argued that this strict adherence to originalism hindered progress, particularly on issues such as racial and gender equality. Some contended that such an interpretation could render progressive laws unconstitutional if they did not align with the framers’ original intent. For these reasons, Scalia was frequently accused of allowing his personal views to influence his judicial decisions.
Throughout his quarter-century tenure on the Supreme Court, Scalia was considered the anchor of the Court’s conservative majority. He became a political celebrity, especially among conservative groups. His decisions sometimes confounded both conservatives and liberals. For example, he voted to protect free speech in the Texas flag-burning case and opposed prohibitions on hate speech. On the issue of abortion, he sought to limit the right to abortion, asserting that such decisions should be made by the legislature rather than the Court.
Scalia’s involvement in the controversial case of Bush v. Gore in 2000, which ultimately decided the presidential election in favor of George W. Bush, earned him significant criticism. He defended his role in the case, stating that his decision was legally justified. Scalia’s recusal record was also notable, with him withdrawing from cases that could present a conflict of interest, such as Elk Grove v. Newdow concerning the Pledge of Allegiance, while refusing to recuse himself in Cheney v. U.S. District Court for D.C., despite his close ties with then-Vice President Dick Cheney.
Dissent Against Affordable Care Act
Scalia made headlines on June 25, 2015, when the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in favor of upholding a key component of the Affordable Care Act (King v. Burwell). Scalia dissented vehemently, accusing the majority of engaging in “interpretive jiggery-pokery” and arguing that the Court’s decision distorted the meaning of the statute. He famously referred to the decision as “SCOTUScare,” suggesting that the Court had manipulated the law to correct perceived flaws. Scalia’s dissent also criticized the Court for overstepping its constitutional role by creating policy decisions that should have been left to Congress.
The following day, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide in Obergefell v. Hodges. Scalia dissented, arguing that the issue of same-sex marriage should not be determined by the Court, but by the democratic process. He expressed his belief that the decision was contrary to the Constitution and the founding principles of the nation.
Death
Justice Antonin Scalia passed away on February 13, 2016, at the age of 79, while at a luxury resort in West Texas. His death was attributed to natural causes, with later reports revealing that he had been suffering from heart issues and high blood pressure. Scalia’s passing marked the end of a remarkable judicial career that had a lasting impact on American law and politics.