On the recordMarch 10, 2016
Mr. President, I join my colleagues in expressing the deepest respect and admiration for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Our country has lost a brilliant, principled, and determined jurist. For three decades, Justice Scalia invigorated the Supreme Court, becoming an icon for constitutional originalism. He had a remarkable ability to espouse legal theory with memorable turns of phrase, and he could expose gaps in opposing opinions with laserlike precision. He did not fear differences of opinion but embraced the intellectual challenge that conflicting viewpoints could offer. The enduring friendships he made with those across the ideological spectrum are a true testament to his indomitable scholarship. Antonin Scalia had a distinguished career in law, academia, and public service before being confirmed to the DC Circuit and later the Supreme Court. The many accolades and achievements of his biography are well known. But Antonin, fondly known as ``Nino,'' was much more than an extraordinary legal mind. He was man of faith and family, raising nine children with his wife, Maureen. His son, Christopher, wrote this in the Washington Post following his father's death: ``As proud as we are of his legacy as a jurist, of course it's his presence in our personal lives that we'll miss the most.'' To his children, he was a loving father who took them to Sunday mass, listened to Bach in his study, and never shied away from playfulness at the dinner table.…





