Conservative Icon Justice Antonin Scalia uses foreign law in recent ruling [View All]

[usregimechange]

When a thought could have been expressed more concisely, one does not always have to cast about for some additional meaning to the word or phrase that could have been dispensed with. This has always been understood. A House of Lords opinion holds, for example, that in the phrase “‘in addition to and not in derogation of’” the last part adds nothing but emphasis. -Justice Scalia
http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/10pdf/09-907.pdf

"Both Justice Scalia and Justice Thomas have written extensively criticizing the use of foreign and international law in Supreme Court decisions." -Justice Sotomayor
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getpage.cgi?position=all&page=S7058&dbname=2009_record



"Isn’t foreign law then simply a vehicle by which judges indulge their own policy preferences?" -Senator Sessions



“A Supreme Court justice has no authority to make judgments based on international law, much less world opinion. I have serious concerns with any judge who, in the back of (his) mind, is worried about offending the international community while making a decision about a case in the United States." -Senator Coburn