memeorandum: Death, the Prosperity Gospel and Me (Kate Bowler/New York Times)

10:55 AM ET, February 14, 2016

Top Items:

Senior U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia found dead at West Texas ranch — 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 …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Mother Jones, NPR, Common Dreams, Business Insider, The Moderate Voice, The Right Scoop, Washington Post, ABC News, The Hill, USA Today, The Huffington Post, Los Angeles Times, Media Matters for America, Raw Story, TIME, The Atlantic, AOL, Yahoo Politics, Vox, Mashable, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Signal, SCOTUSblog, Guardian, Slantpoint, Power Line, The Hinterland Gazette, The Daily Caller, CNN, ImmigrationProf Blog, New York Magazine, Courthouse News Service, Taylor Marsh, Liberal Values, New York Post, CNBC, Instapundit, Washington Monthly, No More Mister Nice Blog, Shot in the Dark, Balkinization, The Week, Hit & Run, Washington Free Beacon, The Resurgent, Politicus USA, Hot Air, CANNONFIRE, Washington Blade, The Last Refuge, Friendly Atheist, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Little Green Footballs, New York's PIX11, Mediaite, Althouse, addictinginfo.org, Balloon Juice and Daily Kos

Lyle Denniston / SCOTUSblog:

Is a recess appointment to the Court an option? (UPDATED) — UPDATED Sunday 8:48 a.m. The Senate is currently in recess until February 22. It began on Friday. Whether or not this opens an opportunity for a recess appointment depends upon how Senate leaders interpret an adjournment resolution approved last Friday.

Discussion: The Resurgent and Vox

Tom Goldstein / SCOTUSblog:

What happens to this Term's close cases? (Updated) — The passing of Justice Scalia of course affects the cases now before the Court. Votes that the Justice cast in cases that have not been publicly decided are void. Of course, if Justice Scalia's vote was not necessary to the outcome …

Discussion: CNN, Outside the Beltway, Balloon Juice, The Daily Caller, Slantpoint, Washington Post, Daily Kos and Betsy's Page

New York Times:

Justice Antonin Scalia's Supreme Court Legacy — Justice Antonin Scalia, who died on Saturday at the age of 79, served on the Supreme Court for 30 years and made as big a mark on the court and on American law and politics as some of the chief justices under whom he served.

Discussion: Prairie Weather and Daily Kos

Harper Neidig / The Hill:

McConnell: Don't replace Scalia until after election — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia should not be replaced until after the presidential election. — Since McConnell sets the Senate's schedule, his remarks signal the GOP's intent …

Discussion: Politico, Washington Monthly, Washington Post, Hullabaloo, New Republic, Talking Points Memo, Vox, The Hinterland Gazette, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, RedState, Slantpoint and The Moderate Voice

Scott Lemieux / Guardian:

Antonin Scalia's legacy: blistering zingers and a more partisan America — The US supreme court justice will be remembered more for his dissents than legal opinions that changed lives. Given his analyses, that may be for the best — hen Antonin Scalia was nominated to the US supreme court …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Politico, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Vox

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:

The Simply Breathtaking Consequences Of Justice Scalia's Death — Twenty-four hours ago, Republicans were headed into what remains of the current Supreme Court term with a solid majority and a docket strewn with some of the most consequential cases in decades.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Raw Story, naked capitalism, Business Insider, FiveThirtyEight, addictinginfo.org, The Atlantic, fox13now.com, Guardian and Slantpoint

Robert Barnes / Washington Post:

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia dies at 79 — Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, the intellectual cornerstone of the court's modern conservative wing, whose elegant and acidic opinions inspired a movement of legal thinkers and ignited liberal critics, died Feb. 13 on a ranch near Marfa, Tex. He was 79.

Gabriel Malor / The Federalist:
There's Ample Precedent For Rejecting Lame Duck Supreme Court Nominees

Discussion: The Moderate Voice

Linda Hirshman / Washington Post:
If Republicans block Obama's Supreme Court nomination, he wins anyway

Discussion: Mashable

Patrick Healy / New York Times:
In Republican Debate, Jeb Bush Attacks Donald Trump

Discussion: Washington Post, Outside the Beltway and Washington Monthly

Lydia Wheeler / The Hill:
Judiciary chair: ‘Standard practice’ to not confirm SCOTUS nominee in election year

Discussion: Vox and WiredPen

Glenn Thrush / Politico:
McConnell throws down the gauntlet: No Scalia replacement under Obama

Discussion: Fox News, Unqualified Offerings, The Reality-Based Community and Vox

Peter Baker / New York Times:
Battle Begins Over Naming Next Justice

Discussion: Bloomberg Business, Politico, Los Angeles Times, CNN and alan.com

Darren Hunt / KVIA-TV:
BREAKING: Supreme Court Justice Scalia dies during hunting trip in Marfa

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, theGrio, National Review, Slantpoint, The Daily Caller, RedState, Guardian, Mediaite, Washington Post, Common Dreams, The Huffington Post, The Hill, Scared Monkeys and TPNN

New York Times:
How Long Does It Take to Confirm a Supreme Court Nominee?

Discussion: Trail Blazers Blog and The Scoop Blog

Adam Liptak / New York Times:
Antonin Scalia, Justice on the Supreme Court, Dies at 79

Discussion: Guardian, Eduwonk, Crooked Timber, Business Insider, Politico, AOL, New York Daily News, Discourse.net, Outside the Beltway, RH Reality Check, alan.com and New York Magazine

Ross Douthat / New York Times:
Antonin Scalia, Conservative Legal Giant

Discussion: The Atlantic and Slate

Josh Blackman / Josh Blackman's Blog:
Nominations to Supreme Court in Election Year with Divided and Unified Governments

Discussion: USA Today, Washington Post, BizPac Review, The Gateway Pundit and Trail Blazers Blog

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
How Scalia's Death Will Change the Supreme Court, America, and the Planet

Discussion: Slantpoint, The Daily Beast, The Hill, Weekly Standard and Politicus USA

Washington Post:
Why the death of a Supreme Court justice in office is unusual

Discussion: ABC News, New York Times, Trail Blazers Blog, BuzzFeed, abc11.com and Marginal REVOLUTION

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia dead at 79

Discussion: ABC News, The Hill, Talking Points Memo, ThinkProgress, electionlawblog.org, Mother Jones and Vox Popoli

Robert Barnes / Washington Post:
Scalia's death plunges court, national politics into turmoil

Discussion: ABC News, BuzzFeed and The Agonist

Liz Goodwin / Yahoo Politics:
GOP candidates urge Senate to block Obama's Supreme Court pick

Discussion: Politico, ABC News and The Hill

Stephen Dinan / Washington Times:
Mitch McConnell rules out replacing Antonin Scalia until new president is elected

Discussion: RedState and JustOneMinute

Office Of The Governor:
[Press Release] Governor Abbott Statement On The Passing Of Justice Scalia

Discussion: Washington Post, ABC News, Wall Street Journal, Vox, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Signal, CBS New York and National Review

Tom Goldstein / SCOTUSblog:
First reactions on the passing of Justice Scalia (UPDATED)

Discussion: Yahoo Politics, Mashable and Talking Points Memo

Tierney Sneed / Talking Points Memo:
GOP Moves To Block Obama From Naming Scalia Successor

Discussion: TIME

Jonathan H. Adler / Washington Post: The passing of a legal giant — Antonin Scalia, R.I.P.

Jason Noble / Des Moines Register:
Grassley joins call to delay Supreme Court nomination

Discussion: Washington Post and KXAN-TV

Michael C. Bender / Bloomberg Business:

The ‘You Lie’ Debate: Republicans Running Out of Time to Stop Trump in South Carolina — A Republican slugfest in South Carolina Saturday night pitted Marco Rubio against Ted Cruz, Jeb Bush against John Kasich and Donald Trump against just about all of them.

Jesse Byrnes / The Hill:

Cruz starts speaking Spanish after Rubio says he doesn't know the language … Sens. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio clashed vigorously on illegal immigration during the Republican presidential debate Saturday night, with the candidates at one point tussling over who speaks Spanish.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Washington Post, Trail Blazers Blog and U.S. News

Noah Weiland / Politico:

Trump dominates talking time at Republican debate — With the Republican field down to six candidates and the race for South Carolina hanging in the balance, Republicans were desperate to call attention to their campaigns tonight in South Carolina. — Last time around, Ted Cruz …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, The Hill, CNN, Hot Air, The Hinterland Gazette and Yahoo Politics

Katie Glueck / Politico:
Trump blames George W. Bush for 9/11

Discussion: Yahoo Politics and Raw Story

Kate Bowler / New York Times:

Death, the Prosperity Gospel and Me — Durham, N.C. — ON a Thursday morning a few months ago, I got a call from my doctor's assistant telling me that I have Stage 4 cancer. The stomach cramps I was suffering from were not caused by a faulty gallbladder, but by a massive tumor. — I am 35.

Kira Lerner / ThinkProgress:

Republican Debate Descends Into Total Chaos, Moderator Threatens To ‘Turn This Car Around’ — During the second hour of the GOP debate in South Carolina on Saturday, the conversation went beyond anything ever seen in a Republican debate. — After the six men hurled insults back and forth …

Discussion: TIME and alan.com

Matthew Boyle / Breitbart:

Exclusive — Donald Trump, Ted Cruz Campaigns Bash RNC for Stacking Audience with Pro-Amnesty Donor Class — GREENVILLE, South Carolina — Corey Lewandowski, the campaign manager for 2016 GOP frontrunner billionaire Donald Trump, bashed the Republican National Committee (RNC) …