The case has been in progress for many years, with Dow losing and appealing in a number of lower courts, most recently the appeals court for the 10th Circuit based in Colorado. Recently, every Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee pledged not to hear any of President Obama’s nominees.
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Justice Scalia was a crucial fifth vote on the court, and he wrote the controlling opinions in previous cases that tightened the standards for certifying a class, allowing such cases to proceed.
Despite rumors that there as foul play involved in Scalia’s death, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has refused to investigate, citing reports from marshals that he died of natural cause. If this happens, the GOP will nationalize the issue (more than it has already) and the 2016 presidential election will become a referendum on whether the GOP is being obstructionist or rightly using its political power.
Scalia, the longest-serving member of the current court at nearly 30 years, has been the “originalist” lion, insisting that the court should interpret the U. S. Constitution exactly as written. A letter from the Supreme Court’s doctor says Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice’s sudden death.
The worst part of the regulatory schemes was that even the EPA has said the rules would not reduce global levels of heat-trapping carbon dioxide, nor would temperatures decline.
Anyway, President Obama said he plans to nominate someone soon.
Meanwhile, Obama accused Senate Republicans of giving in to election-year politics instead of focusing on their constitutional duty.
Dow has denied any wrongdoing in the case. He had been a key voice for companies in challenging group suits at the Supreme Court. Thus, Justice Scalia’s death and eventual replacement will not likely alter the Court’s thinking on these issues. Scalia was waiting, just as Justice Kennedy is waiting, for a Republican president.
The president “shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint…, Judges of the Supreme Court” (Article II, Section 2).
The most obvious events are the results of primary elections that return the inevitability of Hillary Clinton’s ascent regardless of two-thirds of voters finding her dishonest and untrustworthy. While he can still nominate someone, he can’t force the Senate to hold confirmation hearings or take a vote. Observers think he will probably choose someone like Sri Srinivasin, who was confirmed in 2013 by the Senate for a Washington, D.C., federal circuit court of appeals judgeship – 97-0.
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Clearly there is a requirement for our Constitution to be a living document – adapting and evolving to accommodate essential modern contextual needs – enabling and expanding concepts of voter rights, gay rights, racial inclusion, privacy/dignity, abortion, immigration, voter access, etc.
