Obama says he will nominate Justice Scalia’s successor
US President Barack Obama has hailed deceased Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia as a "towering legal mind," vowing to nominate a successor.
The senior associate judge, 79, died in his sleep Saturday after a day of hunting at a ranch outside the western city of Marfa, in the US state of Texas.
"For almost 30 years, Justice Antonin 'Nino' Scalia was a larger than life presence on the bench," Obama said on Saturday. "A brilliant legal mind with an energetic style, an incisive wit and colorful opinions, he influenced a generation of judges, lawyers and students, and profoundly shaped the legal landscape."
Obama said it is his “constitutional responsibilities” to name a replacement in “due time” and that the Senate must consider it.
"There will be plenty of time for me to do so and for the Senate to fulfill its responsibility to give that person a fair hearing and a timely vote."
The president’s comments aimed at Senate Republicans who have already said the successor should not be appointed until a new president is elected.
"The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new President," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
Replacing Scalia with a Democrat-appointed justice could change the balance of the court under Chief Justice John Roberts, and would mean the election of the president could immediately determine the direction of the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court, where Scalia was a passionate conservative voice, has twice upheld major provisions of Obama’s Affordable Care Act and also legalized gay marriage in all 50 states.
However, it blocked the implementation of the Obama administration's Clean Power Plan last week.
The death of Scalia also comes as the high court is slated to hear arguments over whether Obama exceeded his constitutional authority by deferring deportations for millions of undocumented immigrants in the US.
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