[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 28 (Tuesday, February 23, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H839-H843]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING THE LIFE AND SERVICE OF SUPREME COURT JUSTICE ANTONIN SCALIA
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Poliquin). Under the Speaker's announced
policy of January 6, 2015, the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs.
Comstock) is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority
leader.
General Leave
Mrs. COMSTOCK. Mr. Speaker, before I begin, I ask unanimous consent
that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and
extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the subject of
this Special Order.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from Virginia?
There was no objection.
Mrs. COMSTOCK. Mr. Speaker, this Special Order is meant to honor the
life and three decades of service of Associate Justice of the United
States Supreme Court Antonin Scalia.
Justice Scalia was a person of great joy, great intellect, great wit,
and great faith. Our Nation suffered a tremendous loss on February 13
with the passing of Justice Antonin Scalia.
My husband Chip and I, my parents, and our children are deeply
saddened by the passing of our friend, our neighbor, and, of course, a
legal legend. He was a courageous advocate for the rule of law and the
Constitution.
Justice Scalia and his wife, Maureen, raised an incredible family of
9 children and 36 grandchildren, and we have been so privileged to know
and love them.
Justice Scalia was both a larger-than-life Justice, who leaves a
profound legacy in the law, as well as a down-to-earth husband, father,
grandfather, and absolutely delightful friend who loved his Lord and
God, his wife and family, the law, the opera, his country, hunting, and
a good laugh.
We have all heard the stories of his friendship across the
ideological spectrum, none more famous than his friendship with Justice
Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Justice Scalia explained: ``If you can't disagree
ardently with your colleagues about some issues of law and yet
personally still be friends, get another job, for Pete's sake.''
Justice Ginsburg explained: ``As annoyed as you might be about his
zinging dissent, he's so utterly charming, so amusing, so sometimes
outrageous, you can't help but say `I'm glad that he's my friend or
he's my colleague.' ''
Justice Scalia was a shining example of fidelity, as he was ever-
faithful to his oath to the law, to his family, and to his God.
He was celebrated by so many in the legal community. He was a revered
mentor to the dozens and dozens of clerks who lined the steps of the
Supreme Court last Friday in his honor. And every one of them, no
doubt, had a story that had profound legal discussions in it but also
ended with a good laugh.
He simply will be irreplaceable and leaves a legacy that will be
consequential, discussed, and debated for the ages.
On the personal front, his life was also a great and consequential
life. Justice Scalia married his wife of over 55 years, Maureen, in
1960. They were set up on a blind date. He told one author that Maureen
was ``the product of the best decision I ever made.''
His nine children--nine, how appropriate for a Supreme Court
Justice--were split five and four, five boys, four girls. They became
lawyers, a priest, a poet, an Army major, and parents themselves of
those wonderful 36 grandchildren.
Justice Scalia proudly gave the lion's share of the credit for
raising this large brood to the resourceful, talented, and very smart
love of his life, Maureen, who, as her son Paul said in the homily,
matched him at every step. Justice Scalia said about his children ``and
there's not a dullard in the bunch.''
His son, Father Paul Scalia, was the celebrant for his father's
beautiful funeral mass with the assistance of dozens of priests at the
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception this past
Saturday.
Father Paul began his moving homily saying: ``We are gathered here
because of one man, a man known personally to many of us, known only by
reputation to many more; a man loved by many, scorned by others; a man
known for great controversy and for great compassion. That man, of
course, is Jesus of Nazareth.''
[[Page H840]]
{time} 1930
Father Paul continued: ``In the past week, many have recounted what
Dad did for them. But here today we reflect what God did for Dad, how
He blessed him.''
Father Paul explained how his father understood that the deeper he
went into his Catholic faith, the better a citizen and public servant
he became. That faith now inspires his children and grandchildren and
generations to come of the Scalia family and the so many lives he
touched and influenced.
Justice Scalia also had a rich tenor voice that intimidated many who
came before the Court in front of him, but as his son Christopher
explained, it was also perfect for reading stories to his
grandchildren. His rendition of ``The Night Before Christmas'' was an
annual tradition. He also led many sing-alongs at parties, played the
piano, and also that singing would go on and on for their long car
rides.
Pictures with his children and grandchildren cover the walls and the
end tables and the piano of the Scalia home, and in any picture with
one or more of those children or grandchildren or with his beloved
Maureen, Justice Scalia would always be beaming whenever he was around
his family.
An only child himself, he loved that he gave his children the gift of
many brothers and sisters. No doubt that is a great solace to all of
them now, as well as a source of great strength and support for their
mother.
May God bless Justice Antonin Scalia, a good and faithful son, and
may God bless his wife, Maureen, and their entire family, and the
scores and scores of their friends and his colleagues and the millions
more of admirers, and may God bless the country that he so loved.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte),
the distinguished chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I especially thank Congresswoman Comstock
for leading this tribute to Justice Scalia.
The Nation's legal lights faded recently with the loss of the great
Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, but they will not be dimmed for
long, for Justice Scalia left a legacy of illumination that will
continue far beyond his mortal years.
Although Justice Scalia is no longer with us on Earth, his cogent,
witty, and plain-spoken writings will continue to educate law students
and good citizens everywhere for centuries to come.
Justice Scalia was no mere legal technician. He was a deep thinker
who had an uncommon knack for crystallizing powerful ideas into
trenchant, lasting prose. The journey on which he led his readers was
always a joy, always compelling, because Justice Scalia always made
clear where the path started.
He once said: ``More important than your obligation to follow your
conscience, or at least prior to it, is your obligation to form your
conscience correctly.'' And for Justice Scalia, as with morality, so it
was with the law. Justice Scalia always made sure he built his argument
on a solid foundation: the Constitution, the supreme law of the land.
As a strong defender of the rule of law, he was a gentle legal giant.
Like all great educators, Justice Scalia was respectful of others,
regardless of their differing views. ``I attack ideas,'' he once said.
``I don't attack people. And some very good people have some very bad
ideas. And if you can't separate the two, you gotta get another day
job.'' That is a life lesson for all of us who engage in any debates
and the ideas that undergird them.
In that spirit, Justice Scalia often said: ``My best buddy on the
Court is Ruth Bader Ginsburg, has always been,'' and Justice Ginsburg's
moving tribute to her own best buddy should reduce every bitter
partisan to tears.
Throughout his life, Justice Scalia correctly inveighed against the
notion of a living Constitution, the misguided idea that the
Constitution's text and original meaning somehow shifted this way and
that with changes in popular attitudes.
Justice Scalia said:
That's the argument of constitutional flexibility and it
goes something like this: The Constitution is over 200 years
old, and societies change. It has to change with society,
like a living organism, or it will become brittle and break.
But . . . the Constitution is not a living organism; it is a
legal document. It says some things and doesn't say other
things.
As a lifetime-appointed Supreme Court Justice, Justice Scalia, like
all other lifetime-appointed judges, had the opportunity to effectively
alter the meaning of the Constitution if he wanted and could garner the
support of four of his colleagues. But like George Washington refusing
the crown offered him, Justice Scalia rejected the notion the Supreme
Court should impose its own preferred policies on the country through
strained constitutional interpretations.
Instead, Justice Scalia was an ardent defender of democracy,
representative democracy. As he said: ``If you think aficionados of a
living Constitution want to bring you flexibility, think again. You
think the death penalty is a good idea? Persuade your fellow citizens
to adopt it. You want a right to abortion? Persuade your fellow
citizens and enact it. That's flexibility.''
Justice Scalia's respect for article I of the Constitution, the
article that begins with these words, ``All legislative powers herein
granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall
consist of a Senate and House of Representatives,'' that article, which
clearly sets forth the powers of the Congress to legislate, not the
executive branch and not the courts, is one of Justice Scalia's
greatest legacies.
As much as Justice Scalia will be remembered as an able critic of the
notion of a living Constitution, he will be remembered for his own
living dissents, and many majority opinions, which will live forever in
the hearts and minds of lovers of the law in America and around the
world.
Thank you, Justice Scalia.
Mrs. COMSTOCK. I thank the gentleman for his remarks.
I yield to my friend, the gentlewoman from Missouri (Mrs. Wagner).
Mrs. WAGNER. Mr. Speaker, I thank my dear friend and colleague, the
gentlewoman from Virginia, Barbara Comstock, for organizing this
Special Order and for yielding to me.
Mr. Speaker, Father Paul Scalia said in his beautiful eulogy of his
father, Justice Antonin Scalia, on Saturday: ``We give thanks that
Jesus brought him to new life in baptism, nourished him with the
Eucharist, and healed him in the confessional. God blessed Dad with a
deep Catholic faith, the conviction that Christ's presence and power
continue in the world today through His body, the Church.''
Mr. Speaker, last week our country lost one of its most outspoken and
dedicated defenders of faith and liberty. For nearly 30 years, Supreme
Court Justice Antonin Scalia stood as a monument to a faith-based
viewpoint on the Constitution that will be sorely missed.
There is no one in the history of our country who better protected
the original intent of our Constitution and upheld the God-given rights
of all Americans than Justice Scalia.
Shown by his fierce dedication to defending our Constitution, from
protecting Americans from government intrusion to protecting the rights
of the unborn, Justice Scalia was a man of conviction, a man of
passion, and a man of integrity.
His honor and vigilance toward the original meaning of the
Constitution and his historic dissents will ring throughout history.
Every single ounce of Justice Scalia's heart and soul was devoted to
our country, his faith, and his family. His wit, his candor, and his
character will be missed on our Nation's highest Court. The legacy of
Justice Scalia must never be forgotten.
Mr. Speaker, I stand committed today to ensure we continue to
prioritize faith and freedom in this country, protecting our natural-
born rights as citizens of the United States of America. It is simply
the right thing to do.
Mrs. COMSTOCK. I thank the gentlewoman for her remarks.
I yield to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry).
Mr. FORTENBERRY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
When I was informed of the Justice's death, it came across my
electronic devices. I texted my wife back home, and I said: I just want
to cry.
I had the extraordinary privilege of getting to know the Justice on a
more personal basis. In western Nebraska there is a large outcropping.
It is called
[[Page H841]]
Chimney Rock. Chimney Rock was the place that marks the halfway point
across America. When the settlers crossed the great country, when they
got to Chimney Rock, they knew that they were halfway along their
journey.
In the shadow of that rock, just this last December, I was in a duck
blind with Justice Scalia who, as we all know, had that as an
avocation. When you spend a couple of days in a duck blind with
somebody, it is a bonding experience. You get to know them more
personally.
In my own reflections about what Chimney Rock meant to the country, a
bridge between the past and the future, I thought it appropriately
captured the character, the nature, the wisdom of the great Justice.
He was a great student of American history, our legal system, a great
protector of the Constitution and precedents. He understood how
important it was to act in a consistent manner with principle while
looking forward and applying that principle in ever-changing
circumstances of American life. Because he did so with continuity and
with consistency, he was a man of great integrity. His inner voice
matched his outer voice.
When we saw this beautiful outpouring of support at his funeral from
people all across the political aisle, I think the common narrative
there was a deep respect for this great man.
Mr. Speaker, when he died, I felt like America lost her grandfather.
He was a soaring intellect, had an incisive wit, and had in a certain
sense a humble personality. He loved to share a joke. For me to have
the privilege of spending some time in a personal intimate setting with
him I count as an extraordinary privilege of my time in public service.
May God rest his soul. May God grant him peace. May God continue to
bless the United States of America and give us all the strength to
continue to think through how we are going to elevate and form the next
generation of Americans who can apply themselves in such an
extraordinary, sacrificial way as Justice Scalia did.
I remember one other comment I wanted to leave with you. I remember
when the Justice asked me: How many children do you have? You
beautifully talked about how he was so devoted to his family and faith.
He asked me, knowing that I knew he had nine, he asked me how many
children. I said: I have five.
He paused. He said: Respectable.
That was it.
I thank the gentlewoman from Virginia for her beautiful remarks and
for giving me this moment to honor this great American.
Mrs. COMSTOCK. I thank the gentleman for his lovely remarks. Five is
a good start, right, getting to that nine.
I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. King).
Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for
yielding. I especially thank her for arranging this Special Order
tonight in memory of Justice Scalia, who was truly a legal giant. He
was a man who surpassed all of the intellects that I have been aware of
in my lifetime. Certainly no one in the legal profession has
demonstrated more of a love for the law, more respect for the law, and
more respect for the original intent of the Constitution.
Now, I have nowhere near the personal contact with Justice Scalia
that the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Comstock) did or the gentleman
from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry). I did meet him on a number of
occasions. I had the opportunity to speak with him. Usually our
conversations consisted of talking about the fact that we lived in
working class neighborhoods in Queens. We grew up about a mile apart
from each other. We both attended Jesuit high schools. That is about
where the comparison ended as far as the Jesuit high schools, because
he was valedictorian and I was far from it. He was a person who had the
strength of somebody from the neighborhood, but he had the scholar's
intellect.
{time} 1945
He had an intellect that went beyond tremendous intelligence. It was
an intellect that was shaped and framed by his deep religious faith and
a belief in undiminished, lasting, and immutable principles. That is
what reflected throughout his opinions. Yet he never let his own
feelings or prejudices influence his thinking.
That was certainly proven in the flag burning case. If there is
anyone who loved his country and would oppose the concept of the act of
flag burning, it was Justice Scalia. Yet he upheld the act as an
expression of free speech, as much as it pained him.
Something that many of us in politics and government have a hard time
doing is following the letter of the law, following the intent of the
law, and following the meaning of the law. Somehow, we like to put in
our own feelings and beliefs. The fact is Justice Scalia told us that
there is a higher principle than that.
Also he had such a respect for language. There were no easy words
thrown about. There were no escape clauses or phrases. There was an
intent and purpose and meaning to everything that he did. To read his
opinions, whether in the majority--and knowing that he was in the
majority made us feel much better--or in his dissents, you realized,
again, how determined he was, how forceful he was, and how committed he
was to arriving at the correct decision--one which, again, followed the
original intent of the Constitution.
There were several references by Barbara Comstock to his funeral
service on Saturday. Again, it was an expression by so many people of
their love and respect for such an outstanding human being, a person
whom I doubt we will ever see the likes of again--certainly, in our
lifetimes.
He was a giant of the law. He was a giant of his faith. He was a
giant of his country. I am proud to join with all of my colleagues
tonight--especially Barbara Comstock, who arranged this Special Order--
in honoring the memory of Justice Scalia and hoping that that memory
lives forward to carry out his unmatched love for the law, love for his
country, and love for his family and his religion.
Mrs. COMSTOCK. I thank the gentleman from New York for his kind words
and for bringing a New York flavor here to such a wonderful man.
I yield to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Walker).
Mr. WALKER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Virginia for
taking the initiative to honor such a great man.
In 1986, Antonin Scalia was nominated. I was a junior in high school.
I am not sure it really resonated to me at the time what the next 30
years would entail. I believe it is safe to say that not only is he one
of the strongest conservative voices of our day, but he could be of all
time.
I think of his life and I think of the example that he left for all
of us, whether in politics or not. It is one thing to be conservative;
it is another thing to effective. He showed with his life that he did
not have to compromise his principles or his values to be effective.
When I look at his peers around him, Justice Ginsburg many times
talked about the friendship and the relationship she had with him. It
was genuine. He took Justice Kagan hunting. He taught her how to hunt.
She killed her first big deer with Justice Scalia at her side. What
does that tell me? It tells me something that we need to remember: you
can connect with people, you can hold your values, but you can have a
genuine love for your fellow man.
There is much to be said about Antonin Scalia's faith. Obviously, he
lived it, but he lived it in a way that set an example for all of us.
Yes, we get frustrated. It is okay to be angry--sometimes vertically,
but never horizontally--with our coworkers, our friends, our neighbors,
and our family.
He set the mark. He set it high. He was someone that could work in,
arguably, the toughest environment in the world, yet still gain the
respect of his political archrivals. For that, I thank him. Tonight, I
honor him for showing us how to be both conservative and effective.
Mrs. COMSTOCK. I thank the gentleman for his remarks.
I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Roskam).
Mr. ROSKAM. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Comstock for
organizing this tonight.
I just have a quick personal story, Mr. Speaker.
Justice Scalia's daughter, Ann, lives in my neighborhood. I served in
the State legislature, and I learned that this woman whose last name,
obviously, was no longer Scalia, was the
[[Page H842]]
daughter of Justice Scalia. So I called her up, and I said: If your dad
is ever in town, I would love to meet him.
I was that guy, Mr. Speaker, who made that call, and she was very
gracious.
Sometime later, she called me up and said: Peter, my dad is coming
in. Why don't you and your family stop by.
So the Roskams ran around the corner. My wife, Elizabeth, myself, and
my four children, who were young at the time, went over and spent a few
minutes on a Sunday afternoon with Justice Scalia. He was very
magnanimous and very gracious in his blue jeans and sweatshirt, getting
up off the couch, but extending himself to us.
A couple of years later, I won a seat in the U.S. House. I thought:
Well, I have got a little bit of a connection. I will reach out and
call him and try to make a courtesy call.
I made some contact with his chambers and his staff and they said:
Well, would you like to come over and listen to an argument?
As a new Member of Congress, I said: I would love to go over.
So, over I go and listen to an argument in the Supreme Court. It is
very dramatic, as you know. I was walking out feeling a little bit let
down because I actually wanted to say hello to Justice Scalia. But not
to be disappointed, his staff said: Come on with us.
So I went up to his office, and there in his chambers he set out a
lunch. The two of us had lunch together.
Now, who I was having lunch with was not lost on me. The magnitude,
the scale, the capacity of this man and his ability to influence things
on a grand scale was not lost on me. Yet he was really willing to spend
some time with me that day.
I have got to tell you one other quick story.
A few years ago, I invited him to dinner. I said: Justice Scalia, I
have got a number of my colleagues that would love to have dinner with
you. Would you be willing to come out?
Of course, he did.
I told my wife afterward: This guy is so interesting and so charming,
if he had a radio show, you would listen to it. You would set your
timer so that you could listen to him.
He was so interesting, so cleaver, and so quick and willing to take
all kinds of questions and all kinds of debate and so forth.
I just want to close by saying this. There are many, many times when
we feel overwhelmed by events that are before us in our public life.
There are many times when our constituents feel overwhelmed and they
get this sense of: Is there anybody out there that has got some level
of judgment and wisdom and capacity here? Are there any examples and
role models?
The answer is: Justice Scalia. He is an example. He is an example
that we are all the beneficiaries of: his clear mind; his capacity to
disagree without being disagreeable; his capacity to build people up;
his capacity to articulate a world view; his capacity to be a faithful
and vocal follower of his savior, Jesus, and not be defensive about it;
and to basically invite people along to celebrate and to participate in
this great gift, which is our democracy.
Even in these short interactions that I had with him, you always got
the sense--or, I did--that he got the joke. In other words, there was a
twinkle in his eye.
This is a democracy and we have got roles to play. His role on the
Court was to do his thing. Our role, Mr. Speaker, is to legislate with
that same sense of commitment and character and tenacity and clarity
that Justice Scalia brought to his role on the judiciary.
So, I want to honor Justice Scalia. I want to honor his wife, Mrs.
Scalia. I want to honor his children and grandchildren. I thank them,
because it is a sacrifice for them to have someone of that caliber and
that capacity in that role for our country. It is not a burden that is
easy, but they have been willing to bear that burden. Our country is
better off for it.
Mrs. COMSTOCK. I thank the gentleman for those lovely memories.
In the outpouring that we saw in his passing, one of the pictures
that I saw from a neighbor was a picture of Justice Scalia, who was
probably coming home for a long day at work, and some children on our
street had a lemonade stand. He had stopped and gotten out there to
support those little entrepreneurs. The mom came out and took a picture
of them. He was there beaming with those kids, in his suit, all dressed
up, and these little kids are there with their lemonade stand and so
proud.
He really did take the time that my friend, Mr. Roskam, spoke about
and really just engaged and loved life so much.
I yield to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. DeSantis).
Mr. DeSANTIS. I thank my colleague from Virginia for organizing this
fitting tribute to somebody who really, really did make a difference.
Very few people who serve not only in the judiciary, but really at
any level of government, leave the lasting mark that Antonin Scalia
did. He will join the likes of John Marshall, Joseph Story, and Robert
Jackson as one of the all-time greats in American law.
I think of all the great things you can say about him. He was sharp,
he was witty, and he wrote brilliantly. I think the reason why he is a
titan of modern American law is because he insisted on discharging the
judicial duty in a way that strengthened our overall constitutional
order.
He insisted on textualism when you are interpreting statutes. He had
an originalist outlook when you are talking about the constitutional
interpretation. Those frames of reference really vindicated the
separation of powers.
The judicial power under Article III is to decide cases and
controversy. So you have cases before you that you have got to decide.
It is not to go out and be a roving superlegislature. It is not to
impose your philosophy on society. You decide cases.
So, once judges free their decisionmaking from the objective meaning
of the law in the Constitution, they are taking away power belonging to
the American people that should be exercised through their
Representatives. Justice Scalia always understood that. He was always
insistent that judges have an objective standard when they are
discharging their duty.
When you talk about textualism, you read the statute for what it
says. You don't correct the statute. You don't amend the statute. You
don't find subjective views of some random legislature who happened to
say something in a committee hearing. You actually apply the words as
written. That is the judicial task.
When you do that, you are basically vindicating the power of the
Congress and of the people's elected Representatives, because they are
the ones that wrote the law. If the courts depart from that, then they
are departing from what the elected Representatives did.
I am sure he saw countless statutes that were asinine as a matter of
policy, but he said: That is not my job to correct that. So he is
absolutely vindicating the separation of powers in the constitutional
order.
The same thing with constitutional interpretation. Before Justice
Scalia took the bench, this was a freewheeling thing. Judges would say:
Society matures and it is up to us to, effectively, update the meaning
of the Constitution.
That means you have five lawyers--unelected, unaccountable--that
serve as an effective roving constitutional convention that can change
the Constitution based on one case that happens to come in front of
them.
That was something that Justice Scalia thought was totally outside
the bounds of the proper judicial role. He says the Constitution has a
fixed, enduring meaning, and it is our job as judges to ascertain that
meaning and apply it to the cases and controversies before us.
So, if you look at a figure that has had more impact on how we think
about the law and the Constitution over the last 50 years, you are not
going to find one that surpasses Justice Antonin Scalia. He was a great
American in every respect. He fought the good fight. He finished the
race. He kept the faith. What a good guy. What a life.
Mrs. COMSTOCK. I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr.
Rothfus).
Mr. ROTHFUS. I thank my colleague, the gentlewoman from Virginia, for
organizing this Special Order on behalf of this remarkable, remarkable
American.
On February 13 of this year, our country lost a giant. His legacy
will
[[Page H843]]
never fade. Justice Scalia influenced countless jurists, attorneys, law
students, and everyday Americans. My thoughts and prayers have been
with his wife, Maureen, Father Paul, and the entire Scalia family since
the passing of this outstanding American statesman.
Regardless of whether one agreed with his opinions on the Supreme
Court, this man's consistent integrity and admirable character cannot
be denied. In both word and action, he was a man of the strongest
character and deepest virtue.
{time} 2000
This was evident in the commencement address he gave to the
graduating class of the College of William and Mary in 1996, when he
said: ``Bear in mind that brains and learning, like muscle and physical
skill, are articles of commerce. They are bought and sold. You can hire
them by the year or by the hour. The only thing in the world that is
not for sale is character.''
The way he lived out the virtues of integrity and humility did not go
unnoticed.
Several weeks ago, we here in Washington had the opportunity to go to
the National Prayer Breakfast, which attracted Members of Congress, the
President, Senators, Ambassadors, people from all over the world, and
we were treated with an appearance by famed tenor Andrea Bocelli.
I think that Justice Scalia would have enjoyed his appearance and his
appreciation for opera.
In addition to his wonderful renditions of ``Panis Angelicus,''
which, again would have been another treat for Justice Scalia, and
``Amazing Grace,'' Mr. Bocelli lamented the dark shadow that war casts
on the world and expressed concern for its victims, identifying war as
a major problem in our world today.
But then it was interesting. Mr. Bocelli stated: ``There is that
small, hateful word, `hubris,' already known in antiquity.'' The
ancient Greeks used it to define pride and the arrogance it entails.
Bocelli's use of the word ``hubris'' was compelling in that he spoke
it in the center of power here in the United States.
That word conjures a theme that we have seen in Justice Scalia's
work. Justice Scalia went about his task of considering significant
constitutional and legal issues of the day with a profound and seldom
seen humility about the role of courts in our country.
They are not there to impose their own beliefs on the people, but to
adjudicate competing claims in the context of a Constitution that has
enduring meaning.
To interpret the law in any other way otherwise aggrandizes power to
a select few, a power that was never intended by the Founders. This
humility of position that Justice Scalia had I believe will be a
lasting legacy.
Regardless of whether one agrees with Justice Scalia from a policy
perspective, his writings reflect a profound respect for an
understanding of our system of government and an unparalleled respect
for an interpretation of the Constitution grounded in text and in
history. For this our Nation should be forever grateful.
May he rest in peace.
Mrs. COMSTOCK. I thank the gentleman, and I thank all of my
colleagues for their comments.
Mr. Speaker, I really appreciate this opportunity for all of our
colleagues to join us in celebrating the life of this great man,
Justice Scalia, who so many of us were privileged to know and count as
a friend.
For anyone who would like to view the beautiful mass of Christian
burial for Justice Scalia that was presided over by his son, Father
Paul Scalia, who gave a beautiful homily, that can be found on C-SPAN.
I appreciate that that was covered.
I also, again, appreciate this opportunity to celebrate this
beautiful life, this family.
I yield back the balance of my time.
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