A Man of Influence (book review of Antonin Scalia biography)

New York Times ^ | December 31, 2009 | Jeffrey Rosen

[reaganaut1]

Love him or hate him, Antonin Scalia has had a greater influence on the way Americans debate the law today than any other modern Supreme Court justice. Conservatives hail Scalia as the founding prophet of their true faith — the Jurisprudence of Original Understanding — and the leader of the opposition to moral relativism and judicial imperialism in the age of Obama. [...] It’s hard to write a fair-minded biography of such a polarizing figure, but that’s what Joan Biskupic has done with “American Original.”

...

On the court, Scalia has shown a disdain for elites that keeps him not only in the Dick Cheney but also the Sarah Palin wing of the Republican Party. He is nostalgic for a 1950s world that he believes the court is dismantling in front of his eyes. But in addition to being nostalgic, Scalia can also be bitter. As the grandson of an Italian factory worker, Scalia has said repeatedly that he empathized not with African-American beneficiaries of affirmative action but with “the Polish factory worker’s kid” who lost a job or a university slot because of “reverse discrimination”; as a Supreme Court justice, he has written a series of decisions striking down affirmative action. “You have to be prepared to be regarded as idiots by sophisticated, modern society,” he told Biskupic in explaining his 1996 speech urging a Christian audience to “pray for the courage to endure the scorn” of the “worldly wise,” who don’t believe in miracles and the resurrection of the dead. And he also told Biskupic how much he lamented the decline of the recreational hunting culture of his youth. He then wrote a 5-4 decision declaring the right to bear arms to be a fundamental, individual right.

[reaganaut1]

I hope Scalia, 73, can serve for many more years, especially considering the sort of judges Obama would choose.

[jonno]

Agreed

[billorites]

Joan Biskupic was interviewed about her Scalia book by former Solicitor General Ted Olsen on CSPAN or BookTV recently.

It must have lasted at least an hour and was fascinating to listen to while I prepared Christmas dinner.

You can watch it Here on the web. Highly recommended for anyone with a geeky interest in the courts.

[good1]

Rosen errs in his critique of Scalia when he accuses him of conviently matching hi personal views with his judicial opinions, but fails to consider (and affirm) that these same views do also conform with originalist Constitutional views.

There is nothing wrong with having one's personal views also match with those of the founders.

I greatly admire Justice Scalia, may we have many more like him sit and rule on our highest court.

[Huck]

Scalia's OK, but Thomas is much better. See Raich. The fact that Scalia was willing to affirm Wickard v Fillburn shows you there is something seriously wrong with his brand of "originalism."

[Sparky1776]

My favorite show on TV, especially enjoyed that interview. Hope he doesn’t go hunting with Cheney anytime soon!

[browardchad]

Thanks for the link. A fascinating interview.

[good1]

See Raich

Tell me more. What is this reference?

[JmyBryan]

ping

[Huck]

It was a SCOTUS case concerning a couple of people home-growing pot for medicinal use ( I know, whatever.) Anyway, Scalia sided with the liberal majority, and used Wickard v Fillburn as the basis for the decision. Wickard was a new deal era case where a guy got busted for growing wheat to feed his animals. The gubmint was banning wheat growing in order to control prices (protect farmers.) The ruling established that an activity didn't have to be interstate or commerce in order to fall under interstate commerce protection. It only had to have a "substantial effect" on interstate commerce.

The Raich ruling was 6-3. Scalia and the libs against the 3 other conservatives. Thomas wrote the dissent. To me, it demonstrates that Scalia is quite capable of outcome-based jurisprudence, whereas Thomas, imo, is much more likely to support limited power of national gubmint, regardless of the issue.

Both Wickard and Raich are available online. Just google em.

[onedoug]

Conservative windbag