Ted Strickland: Scalia’s Death Came ‘at a Good Time’

New audio emerged Wednesday of U.S. Senate candidate Ted Strickland (D-OH) joking that the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s death came “at a good time” for union workers. The former Ohio governor told AFL-CIO members Monday in Cleveland that the justice’s passing prevented the Supreme Court from deciding against public-sector unions’ ability to collect fees from workers who opt out of the labor union. “The death of Scalia saved labor from a terrible decision,” he said, referring to the March 4-4 deadlock that resulted in a victory for the unions. “And I don’t wish anyone ill, but it happened at a good time because once that decision had been made, it would have been tough to reverse it.” Strickland, who currently trails incumbent Republican Sen. Rob Portman in the race, later apologized for his remarks. “That was an insensitive remark and I apologize,” he wrote in a statement to the Washington Examiner.