Scalia’s funeral: The White House fended off criticism Thursday for President Obama’s decision not to attend Justice Antonin Scalia’s funeral on Saturday. Obama instead plans to pay his respects by visiting the Supreme Court today, when Scalia will lie in repose in the Great Hall. The president’s press secretary, Josh Earnest, did not give a direct answer on why Obama has decided not to attend the funeral, but he implied that one reason was the potential for the extensive presidential security detail to be disruptive. “For Catholics, a funeral Mass is first and foremost a funeral, not an event of state,” a former Scalia clerk said. The New York Times has the story here.