I’m fortunate enough to be in Florida at the moment, on a day when weather.com says my old home town is at about 27 degrees below zero wind chill factor. More chilling than that, however, was the unexpected death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
He was the Second Amendment’s strongest defender on the Supreme Court of the United States, though the quieter Justice Clarence Thomas comes close. Across the gun forums this sad news is being greeted with the collective wail, “We are screwed!” I’m not prepared to go so far as to say that yet, but we’ve certainly suffered a very profound blow. A gun-wise veteran lawyer I know in Kentucky succinctly puts it this way: “We just lost the most powerful and important conservative in America and Barack Obama gets to decide who replaces him.”
Our side prevailed by five-to-four in the landmark Heller and McDonald decisions, with Scalia writing the majority opinion in the former and concurring in the latter. Obviously, the balance now tips. We had all known that the single biggest reason we needed to elect a President this year who respects the Constitution is that there will be multiple new Justices appointed to SCOTUS in the next few years. Scalia’s passing makes the bad dream of the tipped scales come prematurely. President Obama has already stated that he will soon nominate a replacement, and no one reading this needs me to tell them where an Obama appointee is going to come down on this issue. Republican Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, said yesterday that the nation should wait to appoint Scalia’s replacement until after the election; ‘tis devoutly to be wished, but I’m not sure he can pull that off. Here, thanks to regular commentator Don-PA, are reassuring words from an observer whose opinion is more sanguine than mine.
The body wasn’t cold before we started hearing conspiracy theories. (It did seem that “death from natural causes” was announced earlier than I’d have expected; maybe Clarence Thomas should be looking over his shoulder?)
I bid adieu to Justice Scalia, a strong friend of all who believe in the right to keep and bear arms, a right he most articulately reinforced in Heller.
Opinions welcome here in the comments section.
As was the case with Andrew Brietbart, I want a full autopsy by forensic specialists. That should be automatic, considering the Man’s position and the suddenness of the event. West Texas isn’t that far from Arkansas, after all. We in the Freedom Movement have suffered a most grevious blow, indeed. . . . .
It is sad that our trust in our government has devolved to the point that many immediately suspect foul play when a 79 year old dies of reportedly “natural causes”. I must admit when I first heard the news, my mind immediately went to the cases pending before SCOTUS dealing with the executive branch over-reach of the Obama administration that, if allowed to stand, will “fundamentally change” our country, and to what lengths would a political entity go to in order to accomplish that.
As pro-gun advocates we owe Justice Scalia a debt of gratitude for his steadfast upholding of the constitution. Some may point out that his majority opinion on “Heller” left open reasonable restrictions on the 2nd. amendment, but I submit that was a result of negotiation to draw the 5th. vote necessary to establish, finally, the 2nd. amendment as an individual right.
Obama has every right to NOMINATE a replacement, the Senate is obligated to give that nominee CONSIDERATION and either CONFIRM or REJECT. I, as a conservative, will base my future relationship with the Republican Party on how this is handled, and the end result.
:(. The sad occasion of the passing of a great man. Now, however, is the time for our best sheepdogs-in-wolves’-clothing to rise and vie for the new nomination. Let’s hope that Barron and the like have actually been conservatives lying doggo, or else get an epiphany. Reminds me of those occasions that robbers or burglars prey inadvertently upon attorneys and judges, and get caught. Hoo-boy, do the criminals have to face some music then? Also, the legal eagles have thereby been treated to a more personal taste of crime, and maybe become more motivated to support effectively armed self-defense.
People of prominence should exercise great care in dining out. Potassium chloride and calcium gluconate, for example, are insidious and too easily slipped into food or drink. Mere air-filled needles are dangerous, too. Every prominent deceased should be autopsied, and most carefully.
RIP Mr. Justice. If Obama selects his replacement and he/she gets confirmed say goodbye to the 2nd amendment.
Hello: The founding fathers of this great country never intended for the passing of one Supreme Court justice to throw it onto such turmoil. Now more than ever we need our state legislatures to call for an article V, convention of states to introduce amendments to the constitution to trim the powers of the supreme court for starters.
What an American, what a man, what a patriot.
The Constitution of the United States and its Bill of Rights have lost their most ardent, passionate defender.
The Founders of our Nation stand at God’s side with open arms to welcome Chief Justice Scalia to his new Home. May he rest in well deserved peace for having served the highest Court in the United States of America with courage, distinction, honor and integrity.
May God now help us save the Constitution of the United States and its Bill of Rights, literally, from gleeful attackers present, preparing to assault from all sides.
Believers in our nation’s Founders’ principles are now in essence 300 Spartans who shall soon face Xerxes’ Persian horde at an ongoing legal Battle of Thermopylae.
The fate of the USA as we know it is at stake.
Prayer, resolve and strength will be sorely needed.
P.S. How fitting it was that Chief Justice Scalia died peacefully in his sleep during a hunting trip in Texas, with his dedicated protective detail of Deputy U.S. Marshals and his own cherished firearms by his side. He was indeed a black-robed “operator” at the top of the USA’s legal pyramid who understood with remarkable clarity the critical importance of preserving the Second Amendment ad infinitum.
Chilling? Down right scary to me. Now we have to depend on McConnell To stave off our worst nightmare. I don’t trust him-RINO. Everything I’ve read or seen on tv news suggests waiting for the new administration. We can only hope. This leaves me with a very uneasy feeling.
The first thing I read was Justice Scalia told his friends he wasn’t feeling well and went to bed. Presumably early.
It’s scary times for freedom loving Anericans that hold the constitution and bill of rights as inalienable rights given by God and not man. How can the 2nd amendment be interpreted any different from any other inalienable right in our bill of rights? Why must we defend it constantly against those that wish it didn’t exist? Why is it so controversial? Have we learned nothing from history? America is the greatest nation ever to have existed on the face of the earth because our founders had the foresight and desire to create and ensure every individual’s lasting freedom and independence. We are free because we are not subjects. We are free because of the constitution and our bill of rights. The most important and reassuring document that many have died defending. The second amendment is the teeth of our bill of rights and it ensures our ability to defend those rights. Rights that aren’t given by man to be taken away. These rights cannot be taken because we are born with them. They are given to us by our creator. God help us in this dark period of time in our country. So many have turned away and forsaken the principles and beliefs our great nation was founded on. Christian principles that established the frame work for the greatest document ever written, our constitution! God bless America.
I would wonder if Cheney was practicing somewhere near.
On a serious note, I did not like Scalia, though he was a solid 2A person, a positive.
We are all in trouble if Queen Hillary gets in but the other options are just as scary IMO. Congress will probably block a ninth Justice for years no matter who is elected, also bad.
Well your welcome to mov up here to Montana. It’s about 50 degree out and the snow is about gone down low. We’ve just officially been declared a severe drought. Not all of Montana, just the little patch odd sunshine where I live.
The Supreme Court has faced bigger challenges than this. Where this could all go south is if the senate starts playing the same games that got the current crop of republican presidential candidates where they are today. A stall here. A delay there. And pretty soon you are talking about real lives.
Now that it’s cooled off a little I think I’ll take the dog for a walk.
There’s no battle more crucial for the future of liberty in this country than the battle to delay the appointment of Scalia’s successor until after the election. This is a Litmus Test event: any politician who is truly a conservative will do all they can to delay the appointment. From what I’m gathering, it can be done if Republicans have the courage to do it.
And this makes the upcoming Presidential race all the more important as well. If a Democrat gets elected and nominates a judge (or judges) who will surely represent the exact opposite of Scaia’s reverence for the Constitution, the new liberal majority on the Supreme Court will be poised to throw it (the Constitution) out the window. And who can doubt that the Second Amendment will be first on their hit list.
God rest his soul and my prayers go out to his family and friends. It’s a very huge loss for conservatives and the second ammendment folks for sure.
What’s really disappointed besides the obvious loss of a great man is President Obama gets does the selection of his replacement for certain it will be a progressive. I hope that our republican leadership can fight the nomination until his term expires so that we are not stuck with another Obama appointment on the bench.
Antonin Scalia was perhaps the greatest Supreme Court Justice ever. The next President will likely choose his successor and two or three more Justices. VOTE!
A Constitutional Republic, by definition, has three principle elements:
It is controlled by Law, at least by its Constitution;
It recognizes the private independent sovereign nature of each man or woman of competent age and capacity; recognizing those people as the collective source of all authority in government [including but not limited to: the government’s claim to sovereignty; (which is actually the limited authority to administrate a small portion of said peoples’ collective sovereign authority); and,
Regarding that individual sovereignty the government must therefore be representative in its nature.
Therefore, if a government can create or control its Law, obviously, Law does not control that government; such a government is not a Republic. A Republic must recognize that Law is unchangeable, or at least that it can only be changed by a higher source than government; this limitation does not limit the government from generating statutes in accord with both said laws and the Constitution; through which instrument, all of the authority the government can acquire from the people is acquired.
“A Constitutional Republic” is a government created and controlled, at least, by the Law of a Constitution. The Constitution of the United States of America was, in Law, foundationally based on the Bible, the Magna Carta, the principles of The Declaration of Independence and upon the experience of the people. Those documents recognize the divine nature of man’s creation, man’s sovereignty and man’s divine right to life, liberty, property and the pursuit of happiness.
We the people are going to have to take a stand and put a stop the trampling of our rights set forth in our Constitution. Obummer Care could have been stopped under Article 1 section 8 and also Amendment 16 of our Constitution. Our rights to firearms is of course protected under the 2nd amendment but also the 4th,5th,14th section 1.and 19th. SCTOUS can only say what is right and wrong about the laws they can not change existing laws or make any new laws. Knowing our rights and making Congress abide by our Constitution is the only way we have hope to keep these right given to us not by the Government but our Constitution of Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.. If any of the Amendments is affected by SCTOUS’ decision’s it is up to Congress to ratify the existing laws. I think it is time that every gun owner read and understand what WE THE PEOPLE means. Now is the time to read and reread our Constitution. If you don’t know you own something it can easily be taken from you. To put it simply we are going to have to get off our ass and take a stand and know we are right and not let anyone take away our freedom that many in the past have died to protect. Constitutional Republic is We THE PEOPLE as long as we don’t let it be taken away from us.
He shall be missed for his seat will be empty.
We’ll need to hold the Senate’s feet to the fire on this one and I fear our ability to do that isn’t up to it. May God rest his soul in peace and buttress our courage in the years to come.
Did NONE of you take my advice and read the link I provided in the previous blog? Sheesh! Come on, people – give your blood pressure and nerves a break – here it is, again:
http://www.scotusblog.com/2016/02/is-a-recess-appointment-to-the-court-an-option/
I would place my bet that our Dear Leader will probably nominate his crony and boyfriend Eric Holder to replace Antonin Scalia. The liberals are still partying hard and furious since learning of the passing of their most despised Supreme Court judge. The champagne is flowing freely in Follywood and Washington DC.
I have been advising my friends to get any firearms, high capacity magazines, and ammunition they have been considering buying and doing it ASAP.
I think this makes it very important to show support Republican Senate candidates, especially “moderates” in “swing states”, as long as they stand with McConnell against confirming an Obama nominee. These Senators will come under enormous pressure to yield to the Democrats – they will be told that “obstruction” will doom them to defeat.
They need to hear that they will be supported for that stand.
I live in Illinois, and I will be reminding Senator Kirk about this ASAP.
I’d rather his seat be empty for a year than have Obama appoint some lapdog to the SJC. We need to honor Scalia’s memory by finding another person worthy of his seat.
Scalia was under a medical doctor’s care, and had a medical history that included heart issues.
The family is Italian-American and Catholic, therefore opposed to post mortem examination.
79 years of age. Natural Causes. Let him Rest In Peace.
He was a Good, and Decent man. He will be missed.
Having worked at an Ivy League school for nearly 3 decades, I have seen the Left show its true colors often. I dread returning to work today to hear the buzz concerning the passing of this great man and fine Justice.
I find it genuinely amusing that we are considered crazy for championing a right specifically noted in the constitution, yet I am willing to bet that the main criteria that will be used to determine the next Justice will be his/her stand on the “right to abortion”…which does *not* exist in the constitution. Not trying to go off on a tangent, but I have had arguments (with some people seeing the light in the end) wherein I said “If our rights that are actually spelled out in the Constitution are done away with, your ‘reproductive freedom’ argument won’t be worth squat”.
@ Don-Pa: What that article points out is what the law currently provides for options to both the President and the Senate. The former has already proven that laws and his Oath mean nothing, and empirical evidence has shown that the latter is at best a useless body and at worst a rubber-stamp for the Administration. There is, however, a difference between panic and concern.
@ Tom606: please remind your friends to purchase as much of those items as they can with cash. States have already proven that they do not destroy the records of firearm purchases as they promised to do, and some “journalists” feel it is their right to publish the names (and addresses!) of gun owners. Also, credit card companies and banks can be court ordered to turn over their so-called confidential records. In short…I may be paranoid but there’s real proof that someone *is* out to get me! 🙂
Well, thank YOU, Jaji – SOMEbody took the plunge! I realize it doesn’t solve anything, but I can’t believe so many people here did NOT take a chance at feeling better.
Have a great day, “everybody.”
We may have lost the ability to force CA, NY, NJ, etc to follow the Constitution but I don’t think the 2A is at risk in TX, MT, IN, etc. As a commentator elsewhere noted, if the fate of the Republic rests on the death of one 79 year old man, we have been doing a lot wrong for a long time. Nevertheless, he will be greatly missed.
As for the conspiracy theories, I have actually been to Marfa and having them screw everything up doesn’t greatly surprise me. It is a remote little town full of hippies. If they had a doctor, it was in a clinic for the poor. Alpine about 35 miles away has some doctors but for any serious medical stuff, it is Odessa which is 100+ miles. I saw an LEO carrying a SA revolver. Their big claim to fame is the Marfa Lights which are suppose to be be some sort of extraterrestrial thing.
I too will be watching the entire mess. First off, Republicans like to say they want people to follow the constitution but then when a president is saying he actually will they are upset? It is the duty of the president to nominate a justice. It is also the duty of the Senate to either confirm or not. Scalia may have been a good friend for gun rights but he was most definitely not a good friend to women, or gays or the environment. Does that make me a liberal but pro gun? Probably, sorry but the most important thing is that there be a full supreme court ruling on important cases. I fear a too conservative court far more than I fear a too liberal court.
What Scalia’s death has most likely done for the second amendment issue is to further reduce the likelihood that any additional case clarifying what can and cannot be restricted under 2A will be heard by the Supremes. As I’ve previously written here, there have been numerous cases go up to the court on that issue and they’ve not yet been willing to hear one of them. It only takes the vote of four of the nine justices to hear a case, so that means that even with Scalia there they couldn’t muster that number of votes. Since it was Scalia who said in his majority opinion that reasonable restrictions were going to be okay it’s at least possible that he wasn’t in favor of hearing the new cases, but it’s probably far more likely that he and Thomas have voted to hear them and it was two out of the three consisting of Roberts, Kennedy, and Alito (with my money being on Kennedy and one of the other two) who have chosen not to join in. Since those votes are not public, however, all that is rank speculation. But I can’t imagine that it’s not going to be a hard roe to hoe to get another 2A case heard — much less won in favor of an expansion of 2A rights beyond where it was left in Heller and McDonald — without Scalia there.
@ Dave (the Liberal, non-uncle one)
I very much agree with your assessment. The SCOTUS has always seemed particularly embarrassed by the 2A (per this article):
http://polyticks.com/polyticks/beararms/emb2nda2.htm
and has, historically, shown a great reluctance to ever touch any 2A case. This is what made the Heller Decision such a great surprise.
Without Scalia there, it could be decades before the SCOTUS takes another 2A case.
FOOD for thought:
I find it interesting that in America a person can “accidentally” kill another person with their car and unless they are DUI they typically only face a civil fine and a suspension of their drivers license. If you are a doctor and,”accidentally” kill someone on the operating table you might be sued but typically face no criminal charges. BUT if you “accidentally” pull a trigger and kill someone you almost certainly will face a manslaughter charge. It’s even more ironic that car accidents and medical malpractice kill many more people every year than the use and misuse of firearms.
The take, by an Old Friend, on how, and Why BHO really feels about Antony Scalia.
WITH OUT A DOUBT DUE TO THIS ACTION BY THE CURRENT POTUS’s FAILURE TO PERSONALLY
ATTEND JUSTICE SCALIA’s FUNERAL, HE PROVES TO ALL IN THE WORLD, TO BE CONSIDERED A “RADICAL
RACIEST” WHO IS NOW PUBLIC-ALLY SHOWING HIS “TRUE CLOSET” VIEWS ABOUT ANYONE
WHO HAS A WHITE SKIN COLOR. HE HAS FORGOTTEN HIS OWN RACIAL HERITAGE OF A WHITE MOTHER,
HER WHITE PARENTS, AND THAT HE CANNOT IGNORE THAT HE IS NOT A REAL NEGRO, A TRUE BLACK,
AS HE IS BY BIRTH A “‘MULATTO”, A PRODUCT OF AND BY BOTH BLACK & WHITE RACES OF BLOOD AND A
MIXTURE OF BOTH RACES, WHICH HE HAS NEVER ACCEPTED AS A PERSON OR AS THE POTUS FOR THE U.S.,
FOR BOTH RACES. THIS ACTION ALONE WILL STAND AS AN EXAMPLE AS A “DIVIDER OR PROMOTER, OF DIVIDED
RACES, BASED ON THE COLOR OF SKIN ALONE, ” & MAY WELL BE THAT IT WILL BE HIS “LEGACY” IN HISTORY !
THIS PERSONAL ACTION ALONE, AT LAST, FOR ALL TO SEE, IS HIS “TRUE FEELINGS”, BY FAILING TO HONOR
THE U.S. SUPREME COURT AND JUSTICE SCALIA DEATH OR FUNERAL, BY HIS PRESENCE AS POTUS, IT ONLY
PROVES HIS OWN “TRUE – RADICAL, RACISM COLOR “, TO NOT ONLY THE U.S., BUT TO THE WORLD, AS WELL.
Another thing to think about is that back in the 1950’s Pres Eisenhower made a lot of his Justice appointments during recesses of the Senate, even if the Senate did have to vote to approve the appointee after they were back in session. So in the early 60’s when the Dems were in charge of Sen and Pres, they passed a law about recess appointments in the Last Year of a President’s term. Don’t remember the SBill # but figured someone more able to use this here computer thing than me would be able to find and spread word on the subject.
It makes total sense to delay until the new President is elected. Challenges to BHO’s executive actions are working there way through the court system. Whether or not those actions are within his powers or a usurpation of Congressional power or States Rights under the Constitution should not be decided by an BHO hand picked Supreem Court Justice.
There are two reasons for this, which are two sides of the same coin: 1 – The integrity of the SC. 2 – The new Justice’s credibility. A BHO appointed Justice ruling in favor of BHO’ s Executives Actions wold be preceived as a payoff for the appointment to a large percentage of the U.S population.
The Senate Should Never go into Recess for the Remainder of BHO’s term. It should be technically be doiing business, even if most of the Senators are away from Washington.
Brittius said it best. IMNSHO Conspiracy Theories are fun in ‘The X-Files’ or ‘Person of Interest’ but other than that they just get really tiresome really quickly.
FYI – Action Item
I received an email urging citizens to call the following Senator’s phone number if you want the next President to nominate the NEXT Supreme Court Justice. Let us face it phone calls can create backbone and justification for politicians.
If you pro 2nd Amendment regardless of party these calls can make a difference.
Below is from the email:
1. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) – (202) 224-2541
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has vowed to block the nomination, but we all know he can’t be trusted. McConnell has made it his mission to cut deals with the Democrats and he has repeatedly allowed bad legislation to be passed that he claimed he opposed.
Conservatives should let McConnell know that we will hold him personally responsible if Senate Republicans betray us once again on this issue. And we won’t be fooled if he plays “failure theater” and pretends to oppose the nomination while allowing other senators to push it forward.
2. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) – (202) 224-3744
Senator Grassley is the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and he is not required to hold any hearings on the president’s future nominee. If Senate Republicans have no plans to confirm the nomination, there is no reason to hold hearings that elevate the nominee.
In addition to Senator Grassley, please call these other six members of the Judiciary Committee who could go wobbly and cause the committee and the entire Republican conference to cave.
3. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) – (202) 224-5251
4. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) – (202) 224-5972
5. John Cornyn (R-TX) – (202) 224-2934
6. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) – (202) 224-4521
7. David Perdue (R-GA) – (202) 224-3521
8. Thom Tillis (R-NC) – (202) 224-6342
It is extremely important that these senators hear from you. They have all been programmed by Mitch McConnell to think they have to compromise with the Democrats to “get the Senate working again.”
Blocking this nomination will require Republicans to throw that excuse out the window, which will in turn cause many to question why they chose to cave on so many other important things last year.
Iraude: great revelation on the no recess appointments possibility. Definitely time to look that one up.
Nevada Vin: BHO could take advantage of an absent Congress to declare martial law, and Congress would not likely get back to D.C. He may have more difficulty in persuading a sitting Congress to take his orders to leave. Or will it actually be more like “hail, hail the gang’s all here,” with Congress going nowhere?
Jaji:
I appreciate your advice.
Anyone who believes the government will destroy records of firearms purchases as required by law is a fool as the feds often ignore the very laws they made up for us lowly, ignorant peasants. Anytime I buy a gun through a dealer, I’m assuming the government is keeping a record of that transaction so they know who to look up when our Dear Leader or his anti-gun successor decides to order his/her stormtroopers to confiscate them.
Buying supplies with cash is a good idea, but it has to be done in person which means paying tax on the items. Also, the best deals are usually via mail order (I always pick a seller not located in my state to avoid the sales tax) so they have to be paid by credit card. So make your choice, more privacy or lower prices.
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