Rachel Maddow Calls Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, ‘A Troll’

On The Daily Show, Rachel Maddow had a classic line when she labeled Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, “a troll.”

Video:

Maddow discussed the irony of the Supreme Court hearing the challenge to the Voting Rights Act on the same day that the Rosa Parks statue was unveiled. She talked about Scalia, and his idea that voting is a racial entitlement. She said, Do you know how that sounds? I think he actually knows how that sounds.” She said that was the neat thing about being there. You realize that he is just a troll. In her view, Scalia trolls the Supreme Court looking for a gasp and a reaction. She said that Sotomayor goes after Scalia, and says things that would embarrass him if he wasn’t a troll.

Maddow and Stewart discussed the Violence Against Women Act, before moving on to the sequester. Stewart ran out of time, so the sequester talk will be included in the extended interview on The Daily Show website.

Rachel Maddow painting Antonin Scalia as a man who trolls the Supreme Court with his questions, because he is looking for attention feels like a fitting description. Maddow’s take on Scalia is what makes her fun and unique. Who else could watch a Supreme Court argument in person, and come away with the observation that Justice Scalia might be the world’s most famous Internet troll?

The scary idea behind Maddow’s observation is that this Koch fueled troll is one of nine justices sitting on the Supreme Court. It would be easy to dismiss Scalia if he was just trolling for attention, but he legislates from the bench and is driven by an extreme right wing ideology. Scalia’s opinions are more known for their extremely conservative ideological tilt than their solid legal reasoning.

Justice Scalia is a definitely a troll, but he is a very powerful troll who is living the conservative dream of getting reshape policy without having to be accountable to either the people or the constitution.

Rachel Maddow has given the world the perfect description of Antonin Scalia: The World’s Most Dangerous Troll.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association