Antonin Scalia was known for being one of the most conservative justices on the court, but he was also one of the most animated. Here are a few of his more memorable quotes.
“What is a moderate interpretation of the text? Halfway between what it really means and what you’d like it to mean?”
“The court must be living in another world. Day by day, case by case it is busy designing a Constitution for a country I don’t recognize.”
“We should start calling this law SCOTUScare.” June 2015, King v. Burwell
“If the current society wants to outlaw discrimination by sex, hey we have things called legislatures, and they enact things called laws.” May 2011, California Lawyer magazine
“You don’t need a constitution to keep things up-to-date. All you need is a legislature and a ballot box.” May 2011, California Lawyer magazine
“If it were impossible for individual human beings (or groups of human beings) to act autonomously in effective pursuit of a common goal, the game of soccer would not exist.” June 1996, United States v. Virginia
“You think there ought to be a right to abortion? No problem. The Constitution says nothing about it. Create it the way most rights are created in a democratic society. Pass a law…” To Leslie Stahl, 60 Minutes
“I can be charming and combative at the same time, what’s contradictory between the two? I love to argue. I’ve always loved to argue. And I love to point out the weaknesses of the opposing arguments. It may well be that I’m something of a shin kicker. It may well be that I’m something of a contrarian.” To Leslie Stahl, 60 Minutes
“This case, involving legal requirements for the content and labeling of meat products such as frankfurters, affords a rare opportunity to explore simultaneously both parts of Bismarck’s aphorism that ‘No man should see how laws or sausages are made.'” Dec. 1984, COMMUNITY NUTRITION INSTITUTE, et al., Appellants, v. John R. BLOCK, Secretary of Agriculture, et al.
“Well, I guess the one that created the most waves of disagreement was Bush v. Gore. That comes up all the time, and my usual response is ‘get over it.” On Bush v. Gore
