Maddow: Scalia’s an Offensive 'Troll'

MSNBC commentator Rachel Maddow called Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia a “troll” on Thursday in response to his remark in Wednesday’s court hearing about the Voting Rights Act case.

Scalia said the Act represents evidence of the “perpetuation of racial entitlement.” Maddow viewed Scalia’s words as suggesting that voting is something citizens are entitled to based on their race.



“I think he knows how that sounds, and that’s the neat thing about being there in person,” Maddow told host Jon Stewart on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show.” She said she was at the court for the arguments. “You can see: Oh, actually, he’s a troll, he’s saying this for effect.”

Maddow said Scalia knew exactly what he was doing. “He knows it’s offensive. He knows he’s going to get a gasp from the courtroom, which he got. And he loves it.”

She compared Scalia to people who respond to blogs. “He’s like the guy on your blog comment thread who is using the N-word — ‘Oh, did I make you mad?’” Maddow said. “When we’re all shocked that he said something so blatantly offensive about the cornerstone of the Civil Rights Act, he’s thinking, ‘Oh yeah, I did.’”

Urgent: Spending Cuts – Obama to Blame? Vote in Urgent Poll

Other liberals are on the attack against Scalia, too. Filmmaker Michael Moore tweeted Thursday that Scalia should be fitted for a KKK hood.