Pascrell Mourns the Death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

PATERSON, NJ – U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09) tonight reacted to the passing of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg from cancer.

“In a difficult year, this is a devastating blow for our country,” said Rep. Pascrell. “From her early years as a Rutgers law professor to her seat on the highest court in the land, Justice Ginsburg was a pathbreaker, a legal pioneer for the downtrodden, for reproductive rights, organized labor, and the environment, and an inspirational figure to millions. That no Supreme Court Justice has ever achieved the popular notoriety of Justice Ginsburg is a testament to her imprint on American life. Justice Ginsburg is irreplaceable.

“At one’s passing, politics should take a backseat. But with our democracy at the precipice, these are no ordinary times. By the test constructed by Senate Republicans in 2016 after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, the Senate should wait on a replacement for Justice Ginsburg until after January 20, 2021. Given the theft of that seat in 2016, I have few allusions about Leader McConnell’s designs this evening. But any senators who seek to replace Justice Ginsburg should accept that doing so may tear America apart irreparably. If Senate Republicans jam through a replacement for Justice Ginsburg before January 20, 2021, we must commit to expand the U.S. Supreme Court at first opportunity to finally balance a court that has been in Republican hands for now over 50 years.

“On Rosh Hashanah, I am mourning an unpretentious, righteous American champion.”