Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was found dead at a West Texas resort on Feb. 13, 2016. He was 79 years old. Nominated by President Reagan and confirmed unanimously by the Senate in 1986 to replace the retiring Chief Justice Warren Burger, Justice Scalia served on the Supreme Court for 30 years.
Article II of the US Constitution states, “The president shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States.” The last justice to be nominated and confirmed by an outgoing president was Justice Anthony Kennedy who was nominated by the outgoing Ronald Reagan in Nov. 1987 and confirmed in Feb. 1988 before the Nov. 1988 election.
The 2016 presidential candidates expressed their condolences to the Scalia family and debated whether President Obama should nominate a replacement for Justice Scalia’s seat or whether the Republican-controlled Senate should block a nomination so that the next president may nominate a replacement.
(via 2016 Presidential Candidates Debate Supreme Court Appointment to Replace Justice Scalia - ProCon.org)
Source: procon.org
