Political battle brews over replacing Scalia

rmstock · February 14, 2016, 07:24:59 PM

Making sense of the fight to replace Justice Scalia
JUDICIARY
Political battle brews over replacing Scalia, as high court decides on immigration, other key issues
Published February 14, 2016 FoxNews.com
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/02/14/political-battle-brews-over-replacing-scalia-as-high-court-decides-on-immigration-other-key-issues.html?intcmp=hpbt1

"The unexpected death of Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia
is sparking a political battle in Washington and on presidential
campaign trails across the country -- as Democrats and Republicans
argue about replacing Scalia while the high court decides on such
politically-charged issues as ObamaCare, immigration and abortion.

At issue is whether President Obama, in his final months of office,
will attempt to appoint a replacement for Scalia, with the court now
split between four Democratic and four Republican appointees.

The president said just hours after Scalia's death was made public
Saturday that he would fulfill his constitutional obligation by
submitting an appointment "in due time."

His announcement seemed to tamp down the passionate election-year
debate about replacing Scalia and whether Obama would try to make an
appointment while Congress is in recess.

But the calm lasted for only a matter of minutes as the GOP
presidential candidates at a debate in South Carolina appeared to argue
the next president should make the appointment.

"We are one justice away from a Supreme Court that would undermine the
religious liberty of millions of Americans," said Texas GOP Sen. Ted
Cruz. "The Senate needs to stand strong and say, 'We're not going to
give up the U.S. Supreme Court for a generation by allowing Barack
Obama to make one more liberal appointee.' "

On Sunday, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump suggested on
Fox News that Judge Diane Sykes, in the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals,
in Milwaukee, would be a "very good alternative."

Trump also is urging Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to not
allow the appointment process to proceed until the country has a new
president.

He said during the debate that it's up to Congress to "delay, delay,
delay."

McConnell, R-Ky., says the American people should have a voice in the
selection of the next justice and that the appointment should not be
filled until there is a new president.

Scalia died while on a retreat vacation at the Cibolo Creek Ranch, in
Texas, in the middle of the Chihuahua Desert. He was 79.

Democratic presidential candidates also made their case, with a new
president taking the White House in January.

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a self-proclaimed Democratic socialist,
acknowledged on "Fox News Sunday" that he had "very different points of
view" with the conservative Scalia.

"But I respect people willing to serve their country," he said.

Still, Sanders on Saturday slammed Senate Republicans for refusing to
confirm a replacement until a new president is elected.

He quipped at a party dinner in Denver that GOP senators apparently
believe that the Constitution does not allow a Democratic president to
nominate someone to replace Scalia.

In addition to cases on ObamaCare, immigration and abortion, the high
court is also hearing politically-charged cases related to affirmative
action and public labor unions.

The court is scheduled next month to hear a case -- Zubik v. Burwell --
in which a religious nonprofit is challenging the ObamaCare
contraceptive mandate.

Justices are also expected to decide soon on whether Texas' regulations
on abortion centers create an undue legal burden on women trying to
terminate a pregnancy.

The court is also reconsidering the constitutionality of college
admissions based or race. The court first heard the affirmative action
case, which came out of the University of Texas, Austin, two years ago.

Justices are also trying to decide whether Obama exceed his executive
authority in 2014 when he tried to protect roughly 4 million illegal
immigrants from being deported. And they are hearing a case on whether
labor unions can collect dues from non-member public employees.

Sanders spoke just after fellow Democratic presidential candidate
Hillary Clinton criticized Republicans on Scalia's replacement during
her speech at the dinner.

She said Republicans calling for the seat to remain vacant until the
next president enters office is a "dishonor (to) our Constitution."

Obama honored Scalia's work and said his duty to submit an appointment
to replace Scalia is about democracy and is "bigger than any one party."

Senate Democrats this weekend also made clear that they would work
vigorously to keep Republicans from trying to run out the clock on the
appointment process. They quickly offered counterarguments to
Republican statements that the decision should rest with the next
president.

"It would be unprecedented in recent history for the Supreme Court to
go a year with a vacant seat," said Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid,
D-Nevada. "Failing to fill this vacancy would be a shameful abdication
of one of the Senate's most essential constitutional responsibilities."

They pointed out that Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy was confirmed
in an election year -- 1988 -- the final year of Ronald Reagan's
presidency. Kennedy had been nominated in November 1987 after the
Senate rejected Robert Bork and Judge Douglas Ginsburg bowed out.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. "

rmstock · February 14, 2016, 11:35:37 PM

Ranch owner states that there was a pillow over Scalia's head when he was found dead
Sunday, February 14, 2016 17:23
http://beforeitsnews.com/obama-birthplace-controversy/2016/02/ranch-owner-states-that-there-was-a-pillow-over-scalias-head-when-he-was-found-dead-2499740.html
"(Before It's News)

http://www.weaselzippers.us/256810-ranch-owner-describes-scene-of-justice-scalias-death-including-pillow-over-his-head/

MARFA — A first-time guest to the Cibolo Creek Creek Ranch, U.S.
Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was animated and engaged during
dinner Friday night, as one of three dozen invitees to an event that
had nothing to do with law or politics, according to the ranch owner.

Just hours later, he would be found dead of apparent natural causes,
which media outlets reported on Sunday was a heart attack.Senior
Associate Justice Antonin Scalia Found Dead At West Texas Ranch
San Antonio Express-News

"He was seated near me and I had a chance to observe him. He was very
entertaining. But about 9 p.m. he said, 'it's been a long day and a
long week, I want to get some sleep," recalled Houston businessman John
Poindexter, who owns the 30,000-acre luxury ranch.

When Poindexter tried to awaken Scalia about 8:30 the next morning, the
judge's door was locked and he did not answer. Three hours later,
Poindexter returned after an outing, with a friend of Scalia who had
come from Washington with him.

"We discovered the judge in bed, a pillow over his head. His bed
clothes were unwrinkled," said Poindexter.

"He was lying very restfully. It looked like he had not quite awakened
from a nap," he said.
Scalia,79, did not have a pulse and his body was cold, and after
consulting with a doctor at a hospital in Alpine, Poindexter concluded
resuscitation would have been futile, He then contacted federal
authorities, at first encountering a series of answering services
because he was calling on a weekend.

"Ultimately they became available and handled it t superbly. They flew
in by helicopter. They told me to secure the ranch, which I did until
this morning," he said.

Scalia was just the latest newsworthy guest to visit the celebrity
hideaway that covers 30,000 acres near the Chinati Mountains. Mick
Jagger, Julia Roberts and Tommy Lee Jones have also partaken of its
scenic vistas and luxury accomodations.

Established in 1857 by Milton Faver, known as the first Texas cattle
baron west of the Pecos, the ranch retains 19th Century constructions,
including "El Fortin de Cibolo," a primitive fort designed to protect
settlers from Apaches.

RELATED : Body of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia arrives in El Paso

In a special guest package offered last month, rooms went for $545 to
$565 a night for two people, with a meal package and ranch tour
included. Other activities include hiking, horseback riding,
bird-watching and ATV tours.

Scalia, who was scheduled to return to Washington on Sunday, had little
time to avail himself of the ranch's offerings. Poindexter said he had
only met Scalia once before briefly, in Washington. Scalia came to the
ranch because he was friends another guest.
Poindexter said he knew the other guests.

"All the guests were friends of mine, I paid for all of them. There
were no politics, no jurisprudence in the slightest," he said.

"This was strictly a group of friends that the judge decided to join.
He was coming with his son who had to drop out for reasons I don't'
know.

"It was an honor to have him. He was widely admired. There were no
speeches. He wasn't asked any hard questions, it was all about the
outdoors and Texas, and what it's like to being a Supreme Court
Justice," he said.

RELATED: Inside the West Texas ranch where Antonin Scalia was found dead

Scalia's personal financial disclosures show no previous trips to the
ranch. The disclosures, posted on OpenSecret.Org show that the justice
made several trips to Texas since 2005 to speak at colleges and
universities, including St. Mary's University in 2008.

Poindexter, 71, said Scalia's sudden death was both a "personal
tragedy" for those at the ranch, and for the nation.

"All of us here saw him as a stalwart defender of our way of life in
Texas, in a real sense," he said.
"It's a great loss. Having made that statement, if it was his time to
go, he was surrounded by friends, in fairly nice setting, with a full
tummy too. He said he was very happy to be invited so it could have
been in worse circumstances," he said.

"It's caused all of us here to stop and think about life, how precious
it is, and how it is so unexpectedly lost," he added.

The body of the Supreme Court justice was moved to an El Paso funeral
home early Sunday.
The body was driven from Marfa and arrived around 2:30 a.m. at Sunset
Funeral Homes, according to spokesman Chris Lujan.

Lujan said the funeral home was chosen by family of the justice, and at
the advice of a family friend.
The El Paso County medical examiner's office said they hadn't received
any infomration regarding the possibility of performing an autopsy.

Staff Writer David Saleh Rauf contributed to this report.
jmaccormack@express-news.net

Please support ALIPAC right away and circulate if you agree....
http://www.alipac.us/donations/

Release
ALIPAC Calls for Immediate Autopsy of Judge Scalia
http://www.alipac.us/f8/alipac-calls-immediate-autopsy-judge-scalia-328790/

Breaking Article
Urgent calls begin for Scalia autopsy
http://www.wnd.com/2016/02/urgent-calls-begin-for-scalia-autopsy/

Concerns go viral on Social media
https://www.facebook.com/william.gheen/ "

Are you freakin us out ? John "Total Information Awarenes System" Poindexter ?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Total_Information_Awareness

Thats like having a party in the private home of the head chief of staff of the Illuminati.
The composition was 4 Democrat and 5 Republican Supreme Justices ...
With the death of Scalia it's now 4 to 4. If Obama can appoint a Judge
who is well disposed, then Hitlery can attend the 2016 Presidential
Elections without any pending legal troubles, i.e. no indictment over
the Benghazi case. In case bitch Hitlery is indicted by the FBI, she
will immediately drop the hammer for Obama as well, because he is even
more deeper involved in that same Benghazi plot.

So was Scalia murdered ? The cause of death was reported as a heart
attack. Not at home though, but at a private party with at least 40
guests at some Ranch in Texas in the middle of nowhere .... Sounds very
shady to me.

rmstock · February 15, 2016, 12:39:25 AM

A man guards the entrance to Cibolo Creek Ranch Saturday Feb. 13, 2016 on U.S. 67 near Shafter, Tx. Photo: Edward A. Ornelas, San Antonio Express-News / © 2016 San Antonio Express-News
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia found dead at West Texas ranch
By Gary Martin and Guillermo Contreras Updated 7:38 pm, Saturday, February 13, 2016
http://www.sfgate.com/news/us-world/article/Senior-Associate-Justice-Antonin-Scalia-found-6828930.php
WMR : (Scalia found dead at West Texas ranch after he failed to turn up for
breakfast. Scalia nominated to SCOTUS by Ronald Reagan. The 27 people
who watched Reagan's movies surpassed by one the number of people who
agreed with Scalia's Supreme Court decisions. In other news, DC medical
examiner discovered, to his amazement, that Clarence Thomas is actually
conscious. )

"Associate Justice Antonin Scalia was found dead of apparent natural
causes Saturday on a luxury resort in West Texas, federal officials
said.

Scalia, 79, was a guest at the Cibolo Creek Ranch, a resort in the Big
Bend region south of Marfa.

Scalia arrived at the 30,000-acre ranch on Friday and attended a
private party with about 40 people that night, according to a federal
official.

He left the party and retired to bed earlier than others, according to
Donna Sellers, a spokeswoman with the U.S. Marshals Service.

When he failed to appear at breakfast, a person involved with the ranch
went to his room, where he discovered his body. A priest was called to
administer last rites.

A federal official, who asked not to be named, said there was no
evidence of foul play and it appeared that Scalia died of natural
causes.

RELATED: Inside the West Texas ranch where Antonin Scalia was found dead

Chief U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia, of the Western Judicial
District of Texas, was notified about the death from the U.S. Marshals
Service.

U.S. District Judge Fred Biery said he was among those notified about
Scalia's death.

"I was told it was this morning," Biery said of Scalia's death. "It
happened on a ranch out near Marfa. As far as the details, I think it's
pretty vague right now as to how," he said. "My reaction is it's very
unfortunate. It's unfortunate with any death, and politically in the
presidential cycle we're in, my educated guess is nothing will happen
before the next president is elected."

RELATED: Ted Cruz, Donald Trump among those to react to Scalia's death
on social media

The U.S. Marshal Service, the Presidio County sheriff and the FBI were
involved in the investigation.

Officials with the law enforcement agencies declined to comment.

A gray Cadillac hearse pulled into the ranch Saturday afternoon and
left about 5 p.m. The hearse came from Alpine Memorial Funeral Home.

Scalia's body was taken to El Paso, where it will be escorted back the
nation's capital by U.S. marshals and U.S. Supreme Court Police.

RELATED: Scalia 'respected and idealized' by St. Mary's law students

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott released a statement Saturday afternoon, calling
Scalia a man of God, a patriot and an "unwavering defender of the
written Constitution."

"He was the solid rock who turned away so many attempts to depart from
and distort the Constitution," Abbott said. "We mourn his passing, and
we pray that his successor on the Supreme Court will take his place as
a champion for the written Constitution and the Rule of Law. Cecilia
and I extend our deepest condolences to his family, and we will keep
them in our thoughts and prayers."

Scalia's death has far-reaching implications for the Supreme Court and
a round of major cases the justices are set to decide this summer,
including Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, which challenges the
university's affirmative action policy, plus a case that contests
Obama's immigration policy and another that reexamines the meaning of
"one person, one vote," said former U.S. Rep. Charlie Gonzalez.

RELATED: Key opinions by Justice Antonin Scalia

President Barack Obama is unlikely to successfully name a new justice
to replace Scalia before his second presidential term ends, Gonzalez
said, because Congress will block any appointment he tries to make.

"I don't see that the Republican-led Senate would confirm anybody
chosen by President Obama," Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez only met Scalia once, when he spotted the justice walking in
the U.S. Capital to view a Supreme Court exhibit. Gonzalez asked him
how Scalia was doing; Scalia said, "Fine."

"I prevailed in my only exchange with the Supreme Court," Gonzalez said.

The death immediately became an issue in the presidential race as
during a GOP debate Saturday night, five of the six candidates taking
part urged Republicans to block any attempt by the president to get his
third nominee on the court.

Only Jeb Bush said Obama had "every right" to nominate a justice during
his final year in office.

President Obama, in remarks to the nation, praised Scalia as a
brilliant legal mind who influenced a generation of lawyers and
students.

The President also announced his intentions to nominate a successor,
saying he plans to fulfill his constitutional responsibility to fill
the vacancy.

Scalia was nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1986 by President
Ronald Reagan.

Staff writers Vianna Davila, Tyler White, Richard A. Marini and John
MacCormack and the Associated Press contributed to this report. "

A man guards the entrance to Cibolo Creek Ranch Saturday Feb. 13, 2016 on U.S. 67 near Shafter, Tx. Photo: Edward A. Ornelas, San Antonio Express-News / © 2016 San Antonio Express-News

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The "El Presidente" suite where Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was found dead at Cibolo Creek Ranch the day following his passing at the West Texas Resort ranch that stretches over 30,000 acres, February 14 , 2016 in Shafter, Texas. Justice Scalia was 79. Photo: Matthew Busch, Getty Images / 2016 Getty Images

The road leading out of Cibolo Creek Ranch where Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia spent time the night before he was found dead in his room at the West Texas Resort ranch that stretches over 30,000 acres, February 14 , 2016 in Shafter, Texas. Justice Scalia was 79. Photo: Matthew Busch, Getty Images / 2016 Getty Images

One of the ponds outside the "El Presidente" suite where Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was found dead at Cibolo Creek Ranch the day following his passing at the West Texas Resort ranch that stretches over 30,000 acres, February 14 , 2016 in Shafter, Texas. Justice Scalia was 79. Photo: Matthew Busch, Getty Images / 2016 Getty Images

Three geese walk the grounds at Cibolo Creek Ranch where Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia spent time the night before he was found dead in his room at the West Texas Resort ranch that stretches over 30,000 acres, February 14 , 2016 in Shafter, Texas. Justice Scalia was 79. Photo: Matthew Busch, Getty Images / 2016 Getty Images

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Political battle brews over replacing Scalia

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