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  • 2016-02-20 (xsd:date)
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  • Did President Obama Snub Justice Anton Scalia's Funeral to Play Golf? (en)
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  • The 13 February 2016 death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia immediately sparked hot political debate and speculation, which hadn't abated by the time the White House announced that President Barack Obama would not be attending his funeral: The White House press circuit was immediately abuzz with questions about the President's decision. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest was asked whether Obama's plans include golfing: President Obama's decision to not attend the actual funeral was endorsed by people close to Scalia's family: Whelan told the New York Times that for Catholics, a funeral Mass is first and foremost a funeral, not an event of state. The article suggested that the possibility of disruption was a key factor in the White House's decision to have Vice President Joe Biden attend in his stead: The decision not to attend Scalia's funeral was not without precedent. As NBC noted, four out of the past seven funerals for a Supreme Court justice have had either the president or the vice president in attendance (which means nearly half of them didn't): Dying this suddenly on the bench is the exception, not the rule, for the justices in the twentieth century, Washington and Lee University law professor Todd Peppers told CBS: It is not out of the ordinary that President Obama decided not to attend Justice Scalia's funeral services, instead paying his respects the day before. The political rumor mill worked overtime, however: Before long, a story was circulating (without any evidence) that Obama wasn't going to the funeral because he had decided to play golf instead: In actuality, the President spent that weekend reading through lengthy dossiers and job histories of potential candidates for Scalia's replacement, according to his press secretary. President Obama did not appear to have disregarded any traditions in the way he paid his respects to Scalia. Scalia's Catholicism and the tone of the event appeared to have been a considerable factor in who attended the funeral, as the Catholic Church discourages distractions from the solemnity of Mass, and the presence of the President would undeniably have affected the ceremony. (en)
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