Scalia Defends Involvement in Cheney Case

HARTFORD, Conn., April 12 -- Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia on Wednesday called his 2004 decision not to recuse himself from a case involving Vice President Cheney, who is a friend of his, the "proudest thing" he has done on the court.

The conservative justice's remarks came as he took questions from law students during a lecture at the University of Connecticut.

The case involved Cheney's request to keep private the details of closed-door White House strategy sessions that produced the administration's energy policy. The administration fought a lawsuit that contended that industry executives helped shape that policy. The Supreme Court upheld the administration position on a 7 to 2 vote.

Critics alleged that Scalia's impartiality had been compromised as a result of his taking a hunting vacation with Cheney while the court was considering the vice president's appeal. The justice rejected that reasoning.

"For Pete's sake, if you can't trust your Supreme Court justice more than that, get a life," he said.