- http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-35572479
- 14 February 2016
ลำดับตอนที่ #39
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ลำดับตอนที่ #39 : Justice Antonin Scalia's death sparks battle for Supreme Court control
Justice Antonin Scalia's death sparks battle for Supreme Court control
The
death of one of the most conservative members of the US Supreme Court, Justice
Antonin Scalia, has sparked arguments over the process to find his successor.
President
Barack Obama said he would nominate a replacement.
But
the Republican candidates for the presidential nomination have called for a
delay until after the election.
Before
Justice Scalia's death, the US high court had a conservative 5-4 majority.
It
succeeded in stalling
major efforts by the Obama administration on climate change and immigration.
With
places on the Supreme Court now balanced 4-4 between liberals and
conservatives, the fight for influence in one of the highest forums for
decision-making in the US promises to be as fraught as the current presidential race.
Analysis: Anthony Zurcher, BBC News, Washington
Justice
Scalia's death comes just 11 months before the end of Mr Obama's term as
president, so Republicans in the Senate are going to be under intense pressure from
some conservatives to do everything they can to delay confirmation of a
replacement until a new chief executive is sworn
in on 20 January 2017.
That
could involve slowing down confirmation hearings in the Senate committee and filibustering any nominee
before they receive a vote in the full Senate.
Then,
conservatives hope, a Republican president would name a replacement more likely
to maintain the one-vote conservative majority on the Court.
The
longest it has ever taken the Senate to confirm a Supreme Court nominee is 125
days.
'Judicial thinker'
Justice Scalia, who was 79, was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1986. He
died in his sleep early on Saturday.
"For
almost 30 years, Justice Scalia was a larger-than-life presence on the bench," President
Obama said, calling him "an extraordinary judicial thinker" with "an incisive wit".
Leading
Democrats have expressed their eagerness for a new judge to be appointed soon.
§ The president said he
intends to name a replacement "in due time"
§ Hillary Clinton, a
candidate for the Democratic nomination, said Mr Obama "is president of
the United States until Jan 20, 2017. That is a fact my friends, whether the
Republicans like it or not"
§ Fellow candidate
Bernie Sanders urged the party to "get on with it".
Any
nominee for the Supreme Court would have to be approved by the
Republican-controlled Senate, which could also delay a decision until after the
2016 election.
§ Donald Trump, who
leads polls to be the Republican presidential candidate, said Senate
Republicans should "delay, delay, delay"
§ Another candidate,
Texas Senator Ted Cruz, said the party must avoid losing high court influence
"for a generation"
§ Senate Majority
Leader Mitch McConnell said the post "should not be filled until we have a
new president".
President
Obama said he hoped the Senate would respect his nomination to the court and
"fulfil its responsibility to give that person a fair hearing and a timely
vote".
Born
in 1936 in Trenton, New Jersey, Justice Scalia was the first Italian American
to serve on the high court.
He
was one of the most prominent
proponents of
so-called originalism - a conservative legal philosophy that believes the US
Constitution has a fixed meaning and does not change with the times.
In
2008, Justice Scalia delivered the opinion in District of Columbia v Heller, a
landmark case that affirmed an individual's right to possess a handgun.
Throughout his career, the outspoken justice was a vocal opponent of abortion and
gay rights, often writing scathing
dissenting opinions.
In the majority, he supported business interests and was a
strong advocate for the death penalty, but he often parted with his
conservative colleagues on issues of free speech.
He was known for his sense of humour and colourful language,
calling efforts to defend President Obama's healthcare reform law "jiggery-pokery" and "pure applesauce".
The Supreme Court will continue to hear cases during the current
term, with or without a replacement, including a major case involving abortion
rights.
US
Supreme Court justices are appointed to life terms by the president with the
approval of the US Senate.
Appointed by Democratic presidents are associate justices Ruth
Bader Ginsburg, 82, Sonia Sotomayor, 61, Stephen Breyer, 77, and Elena Kagan,
55, who make up the court's liberal wing.
Appointed by Republican presidents are Chief Justice John
Roberts, 61, along with justices Clarence Thomas, 67, Anthony Kennedy, 79, and
Samuel Alito, 65, who are the court's conservative bloc.
VOCABULARY
stalling
(n.)
a
large table or a small shop with an open front from which goods are sold in a public place
a small closed area within a farm building in which
there is space for one animal to be kept› [C] a small area of a room that is separated from the mainpart of the room by walls or curtains:
rows of fixed seats in a church,
often with the sides and backs connected
the
seats on the main floor of a theatreor cinema,
not at a higher level
fraught
(adj.)
full of unpleasant things such as problems or dangers
causing or having extreme worry or anxiety:
intense
extreme and forceful or (of a feeling) very strong:
Intense people are very serious, and usually have strongemotions or opinions:
executive (n.)
someone
in a high position, especially in business, who makes decisions and puts
them into action:
the part of a government that is responsible for making certain that laws and decisions are put into
action› a group of people who run a business or an organization:
(adj.)
relating to making
decisions and managing businesses, or suitable for people with important jobs in business:
sworn (adj.)
formally and officially stated as being true:
filibustering
(v.)
to make a long speech in order to delay or prevent a new lawbeing
made:
appointed (adj.)
officially chosen for a job or responsibility
(of a day or time)
arranged for a meeting, etc. to happen
If buildings or rooms are appointed in a particularway, they have furniture and equipment of the statedstandard:
presence (n.)
the
fact that someone
or something is in a place:
a feeling that someone
is still in a placealthough they are not
there or are dead:
a group of police or soldiers who are watching or controlling a situation:
a quality that makes people notice or admireyou,
even when you are
not speaking:
judicial
(adj.)
incisive (adj.)
expressing an idea or opinion in a clear and direct way that shows good understanding of what is important:
eagerness (adj.)
wanting very much to do or
have something, especiallysomething interesting or enjoyable:
prominent
very well known and important
Something that is in a
prominent position can easily be seen:
proponents (n.)
a person who speaks publicly in support of a particular ideaor plan of action:
opponent (n.)
a person who disagrees with something and speaks against it or tries to change it
a person who someone is competing against in a sportsevent:
scathing
(adj.)
criticizing someone or something in a severe and unkindway:
dissenting (n.)
a strong difference of opinion on a particular subject, especially about an official suggestion or plan or
a popularbelief:
in sports such
as football and rugby,
the offence of disagreeing with a decision made by a referee
(v.)
to disagree with other people about something:
reform (v.)
to make an improvement, especially by changing a person's behaviour or the structure of something:
jiggery-pokery
(n.)
secret or dishonest behaviour
applesauce (n.)
a sweet food made from cooked apples
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