In the latest episode of the conspiracy theory that Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was murdered in a case of unprecedented political intrigue, Donald Trump appeared on the radio show of fringe “shock jock” Michael Savage and seemed to play along as Savage made the case that Scalia’s death was a homicide.
In a brief exchange, Trump was asked about the speculation of Scalia’s passing, and the Republican frontrunner did not flinch in passively validating Savage’s wild comments. Savage, who could only be described charitably as a far-right radio host, has insisted that an investigation is needed similar to the post-John Kennedy assassination scrutiny provided by the Warren Commission.
Trump responded that, while he doesn’t have enough information to comment on whether Scalia was a murder victim, he found it “pretty unusual” that the justice died in his sleep with “a pillow on his face.”
A Texas judge, a Scalia friend, who ruled out an autopsy told the Associated Press that the SCOTUS justice had several health problems, including a history of heart trouble and high blood pressure. The local judge also said Scalia had been too weak to go through with surgery for a shoulder injury.
So, over the past 48 hours, we have witnessed a new label in our increasingly hyper-partisan political lexicon: A Scalia Truther.
As this story goes further off the rails, it’s important to point out that, with the help of the Drudge Report, the conspiracies include allegations that Scalia’s death was arranged by Dick Cheney or Mr. Spock (the late Leonard Nimoy) or the Clintons.
