Reading this article they referred to Justice Scalia as an "august public official." The phrase is also used in the book "Parade's End" by Ford Madox Ford on page 423. I can't seem to find the definition anywhere online, so what does the term "august public official" mean?
As has been pointed out to me "august" can simply mean respected. In this case though, is "august public official" considered an idiom, and is the term always used for public figures? It looks like from the history of the word "august" coming potentially from the "augurs" that the answer might be yes, august has always been used to refer to public officials.