BREAKING: Antonin Scalia found dead at 79

His body was discovered  Saturday morning at a luxury resort in West Texas, where it appears he died of natural causes.

We all know what this means regarding the questions of who President Obama will choose to replace him, that Congress will accept:  Here they come!

I suspect there will be an appropriate tribute -- a moment of silence would not be advised for the bombastic stylist;  save that for Clarence Thomas, when he passes... -- at the Republican debate in South Carolina tonight.

And I hope too, that things won't get too crude in the coming days, from those people who eschewed Scalia's politics and moralizing from the Bench, objecting to what they surely will see as legal worship for the Jesuit-educated conservative.

Best you can do sometimes, is tune out...

Friends, Romans, countrymen, give me your attention. I have come here to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do is remembered after their deaths, but the good is often buried with them. It might as well be the same with Caesar.

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ADDED:  Here  they come, indeed...

U.S. District Judge Fred Biery said he was among those notified about Scalia's death.

"I was told it was this morning," Biery said of Scalia's death. "It happened on a ranch out near Marfa. As far as the details, I think it's pretty vague right now as to how," he said. "My reaction is it's very unfortunate. It's unfortunate with any death, and politically in the presidential cycle we're in, my educated guess is nothing will happen before the next president is elected."

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott released a statement Saturday afternoon, calling Scalia a man of God, a patriot and an "unwavering defender of the written Constitution."

"He was the solid rock who turned away so many attempts to depart from and distort the Constitution," Abbott said. "We mourn his passing, and we pray that his successor on the Supreme Court will take his place as a champion for the written Constitution and the Rule of Law. Cecilia and I extend our deepest condolences to his family, and we will keep them in our thoughts and prayers."