Antonin Scalia

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died suddenly yesterday, he was 79. For almost thirty years he was one of the loudest and most colorful voices on the court. A staunch conservative and self described originalist, Scalia's ability to turn a phrase and intimidate lawyers appearing before the court was legendary.

I disagree vehemently with many of Scalia's views but I liked and respected him. As he himself said of those he fought with, be they his fellow Justices or anyone else, just because I disagree with you doesn't mean I hate you.

Naturally there are those who are already disgracing his memory and they're all Republicans. His death had barely been announced when the press releases started flying, not to express profound sympathy for the Scalia family but to send a loud message to President Obama that he shouldn't bother nominating anyone because it's an election year. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says the Senate won't take up the issue.

The Republican Presidential candidates are of course frothing at the mouth. They all are demanding that President Obama not make a nomination because the people have a right to be heard and an election is coming. First, the American people have been heard from, they elected Barack Obama. Second, the election is ten months away and the next President doesn't take office until 2017.

The people's business does not stop because it's election time. The President is charged by the U.S. Constitution Article II Section 2 to nominate a replacement for any Supreme Court Justice. In this case it happens to be one the alleged conservatives felt was on their side, but that is  irrelevant.

Those politicians calling on President Obama to shirk his Constitutional duty are disgracing the memory of Antonin Scalia. As an originalist Scalia would be the first to say Obama has no choice but to nominate someone and the Senate equally has no choice but to carry out their constitutional duties.

If you're interested in knowing more about Antonin Scalia I highly recommend you read "American Original" by Joan Biskupic. It is a non partisan honest account of an extraordinary man. Scalia's is a life well lived and in the end he got the death we all hope for, he had a wonderful evening, went to sleep and simply slipped away. Not a bad journey.