WASHINGTON
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia on Sunday defended some of his more controversial opinions, arguing that nothing in the U.S. Constitution supports abortion rights and the use of race in school admissions.
Scalia, a leading conservative voice on the high court, sparred in a one-hour televised debate with American Civil Liberties Union President Nadine Strossen. He said unelected judges have no place deciding politically charged questions when the Constitution is silent on those issues.
Arguing that liberal judges in the past improperly established new political rights such as abortion, Scalia warned, “Someday, you’re going to get a very conservative Supreme Court and regret that approach.
“On controversial issues on stuff like homosexual rights and abortion, we debate with each other and persuade each other and vote on it either through representatives or a constitutional amendment,” the Reagan appointee said. “[Determining] whether it’s good or bad is not my job. My job is simply to say if those things you find desirable are contained in the Constitution.”
Strossen countered that such a legal approach would have barred the landmark 1954 ruling in Brown v. Board of Education, a unanimous decision outlawing racial segregation in public schools.
“There are some rights that are so fundamental that no majority can take them away from any minority, no matter how small or unpopular that minority might be,” she said. “And who is better positioned to represent and defend and be the ultimate backstop for rights of individuals and minorities than those who are not directly accountable in the electoral process; namely federal judges?”
