Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Death & Debate: Justice Antonin Scalia & the South Carolina Republican Presidential Debate


When I first agreed to my friend Denyse O'Leary's request to guest blog from time to time on the well respected Canadian blog site Blazing Cat Fur, I could never have imagined covering, however briefly, the untimely death of America's greatest living jurist. The initial reports came in on Twitter, with only a San Antonio newspaper as a source. I texted several friends that "Scalia may be dead" only to follow it up with "confirmed."

His death was universally recognized as a great loss for American jurisprudence, with praise coming from Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as well as Cass Sunstein. President Obama couldn't be bothered to wear a necktie because at moments like this the smallness of him becomes evident in the passing of a great man and he knows it. His words were as trite and banal as the community organizer formerly known as Barry Soetoro would lead one to expect.

I address the death of Justice Scalia passingly in my piece for my growing Canadian audience and then move on to my best analysis of the debate among GOP presidential candidates last Saturday in South Carolina. Early indications would seem to bear out my thoughts: a PPP poll taken entirely after that exceptional debate showed Trump in the lead by almost 20 points.

My article about the loss of Scalia and what the South Carolina debate means can be read by clicking here.





Photo credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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