Washington (CNN) -- The dinner was billed as a "Celebration of Service." The honorees: Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. The hosts: the Federalist Society, an influential conservative legal group whose membership includes judges, lawmakers and government officials. Little news was made at the society's recent three-day convention, but the appearance of perhaps the Supreme Court's most right-leaning members was buzzworthy and just the latest chapter in what can be read as both drama and farce: the future of health care reform in the U.S. and the sideline war over who will be on hand to decide it. The high-stakes legal fight will be argued by the nine-member bench in March, with a ruling expected by June. And if advocates on both sides of the debate have their way, perhaps only seven, even six justices could decide what shapes up to be the biggest constitutional fight in a decade.
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Thomas, Kagan and Scalia are at center of legal, political battle over case
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Many have called for them to recuse themselves or step aside during ruling
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Opponents cite previous litigation, political ties to key stakeholders
For Thomas and @placeholder, that will probably be enough to keep them participating in the health care scrum.