Scalia Avoids Question on Health Care Issues, Hits Undue Burden Standard in Abortion Cases

Justice Antonin Scalia avoided a reporter’s question on health care issues on Thursday after a speech in which he criticized Roe v. Wade and the undue burden standard.

A reporter from the Washington Business Journal's Bizbeat blog caught up with Scalia to ask about the upcoming Supreme Court case testing the constitutionality of the Obama administration’s health care law.

The reporter asked: “What do you think is the most misunderstood aspect of the coming deliberations on the health care case? Everyone talks about the commerce clause, but there are other issues to decide.”

Scalia’s response: “I’m not going to touch that one with a 10-foot pole.”

Scalia’s talk in Tysons Corner, Va., covered previous Supreme Court rulings that he supports and the ones he is prepared to ignore, the story said. Among those he will ignore are Roe v. Wade and Casey v. Planned Parenthood.

Scalia criticized the holding that prohibits laws placing an under burden on the right to abortion. “For 200 years, no burden was an undue burden,” Scalia said. “You could prohibit it. So I can’t use the law books. So what do I use? How do I act as a judge?”

The Associated Press also has coverage of the speech.