Scalia

What is it about Republicans and shooting birds in Texas for relaxation?

First, Dick Cheney drunkenly blasts his elderly friend square in the face with a shotgun, then Antonin Scalia goes to bed at a hunting resort saying he's feeling crappy, misses breakfast the next morning, and all of his good friends don't bother to even check on him before going out to exterminate the local avian population. He was found by a resort employee later, probably some poor Mexican maid who came in to clean the room.

She's probably been quietly deported by now.

Or I could be making up most of this. There's no proof that Cheney was drunk, or that Scalia had friends. I'm just speculating.

Regarding that image, it's just too easy to find a photo of Scalia that makes him look angry, insane, or ridiculous. But the guy's dead and he can't cause any more damage, so I figured I'd give him a break and put up his regular publicity image. There's no need beat a dead horse. Or even a live one, for that matter. Who beats horses anyway? Sadistic fuckers! I'd never beat a horse, living OR dead! Hey, nobody can say that Connecticut Bob is heartless, right?

So the timing of his passing is interesting. If President Obama successfully appoints a Supreme Court justice to replace Scalia, we will likely end up with a much more moderate Court. The potential of this appointment will certainly have massive repercussions for probably the next 10 years.

Naturally the Republicans were immediately vocal in their opposition to an Obama justice. Scalia's body was still twitching when Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell stated that the Senate will not approve of any new judge before the end of Obama's presidency.

Obviously, making this situation into a partisan brawl instead of an opportunity to show true leadership will ultimately backfire for the Republicans. People are sick and tired of hard line rhetoric; they want action and leadership. No Supreme Court nominee has ever taken more than 125 days to receive approval. We're currently over 300 days until January 20th, 2017.

The Democrats will likely win no matter what. If they succeed in appointing a justice, the Court will be markedly less conservative. If the Republicans stall the nomination until Election Day, they will once again prove in a very public fashion their inability to lead, and that will obviously factor in at the polls.

So, now I'm just waiting to see who President Obama nominates, and then the process begins!