Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia Found Dead
WASHINGTON (AP/CNN/KDKA) - Antonin Scalia, the influential conservative and most provocative member of the Supreme Court, has died. He was 79.
The U.S. Marshals Service in Washington confirmed Scalia's death at a private residence in the Big Bend area of South Texas.
The service's spokeswoman, Donna Sellers, says Scalia had retired for the evening and was found dead Saturday morning when he did not appear for breakfast.
Scalia used his keen intellect and missionary zeal in an unyielding attempt to move the court farther to the right and to get it to embrace his "originalist" view of judging after his 1986 appointment by President Ronald Reagan.
Chief Justice John Roberts says Scalia "was an extraordinary individual and jurist, admired and treasured by his colleagues. His passing is a great loss to the Court and the country he so loyally served."
Former President George W. Bush calls Scalia "a towering figure and important judge on our Nation's highest court." Bush goes on to say "he brought intellect, good judgment, and wit to the bench, and he will be missed by his colleagues and our country."
According to CNN, Scalia's death in an election year sets up a major battle over his successor on the bench. The already difficult task of getting a Democratic president's nominee through a Republican-controlled Senate will made even more difficult as the fight over Scalia's replacement will emerge as a dominant theme of the upcoming election.
"His departure leaves a huge political fight in the offing because this is a court with five Republican appointees (and) four Democratic appointees," CNN Senior Legal Analyst Jeffrey Toobin said.
Ted Cruz tweeted about the loss of Scalia, saying that the next president should name his replacement.
Justice Scalia was an American hero. We owe it to him, & the Nation, for the Senate to ensure that the next President names his replacement.
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) February 13, 2016
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