In another attempt to “reverse pack the court,” Democrats called on conservative Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito to recuse himself from two ongoing cases involving former President Donald Trump and the January 6 attacks.
Unable to expand the court with more liberal justices, Democrats casting Doubts about Justice Alito’s ability to rule impartially The New York Times Two stories published Showing Upside-down American flag and “Appeal to Heaven” flag Displayed In Justice Alito’s backyard. The pressure campaign is the latest by the left-wing media and Democrats to also target conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, demanding that he resign from similarly politically expedient cases.
“The left claims to uphold the norms, but they violate them by inventing challenges to pressure and delegitimize the courts,” said Mark Paoletta, a senior fellow at the Center for Justice and Justice Studies. “The goal is power, not ethics.” American Regeneration Center He is the top lawyer in President Trump’s White House. I have written In a rebuttal article The Wall Street Journal It was released on Wednesday.
The first story is Times Outrage was sparked in January 2021 when an upside-down American flag was flown in front of Alito’s Virginia home. Historically, the American flag is flown upside down to show “grave distress in times of extreme danger to life or property.” according to To the US Flag Code.
Some Trump supporters have used the upside-down flag to express their belief that the 2020 election was stolen. of Times In particular, he noted that left-wing activists have been flying the upside-down flag for political purposes, including to protest gun violence, following the 2022 presidential election. Dobbs The ruling overturned federally created rights to abortion and sealed the election of Donald Trump.
Justice Alito told the magazine that his wife, Martha Ann, had put up the flag during an argument with a neighbor who had used obscene language on a political sign.
“I had nothing to do with raising the flag,” Justice Alito said in an emailed statement. Times“It was posted briefly by Mrs. Alito in response to a neighbor using offensive and personally offensive language on her yard sign.”
nevertheless, Times The publication linked an upside-down flag photographed in Alito’s yard on January 17, 2021, to Trump supporters “who, some of whom were brandishing the same symbol,” rioted at the Capitol a little over a week earlier. An upside-down flag is “the equivalent of having a ‘Stop the Steal’ sign in your yard, and it’s problematic when adjudicating election-related cases.”
Second Times The article criticized Alito for flying the flag of an “appeal to heaven,” which dates back to the Revolutionary War and “means an appeal to a higher power to save the early American colonies from the domination of the British Crown.” Forbes I got it..Photo taken Times Alito allegedly flew the flag at Alito’s Long Beach Island home in July and September 2023, though it is unclear whether the flag was flown continuously during those times or for how long. Alito has not commented on the second flag.
of Times I wrote about how some of the protesters on January 6th carried “Appeal to Heaven” flags, and how this flag has recently been associated with efforts to make the US government more Christian-oriented.
“At a time when ‘Appeal to Heaven’ flags were flying over judges’ homes in New Jersey, a key case was coming before the U.S. Supreme Court on January 6th, asking whether those who stormed the Capitol could be charged with sabotage.” Times I have written.
his The Wall Street Journal In his op-ed, Paoletta outlined several instances in the past when liberal justices have refused to recuse themselves from cases even when they appeared to have a conflict of interest.
He wrote:
Judge Steven Reinhart of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals did not recuse himself from a 2011 case challenging California’s ban on same-sex marriage, but Reinhart’s wife led the chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union that joined two district court briefs in the case. “The opinions are my wife’s, not mine, and I have in no way allowed my position on any issue to influence my opinion,” Reinhart wrote. Judicial ethics experts, led by Steven Gillers, filed a brief in defense of Reinhart, arguing that Reinhart’s wife’s “opinions, views, and public statements supporting lower court decisions do not provide sufficient grounds for doubting Judge Reinhart’s ability to honor her oath of office.”
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (not her late husband) was an open anti-Trump figure in 2016. She called the Republican candidate a “fake” and criticized him for not releasing his tax returns. She has not recused herself from any litigation involving Trump. Trump vs. the Mothers (2020) was about a congressional subpoena for Ginsburg’s tax returns. And in 1998, she donated a signed copy of her brief to the National Organization for Women, which sold it at a fundraising auction. Ginsburg did not recuse herself from any of the cases in which NOW filed briefs.
D.C. Circuit Judge Nina Pillard said: Mazars Her husband is the national legal director for the ACLU, and he wrote a blog post agreeing with the district court’s decision before the appeals court, which included his wife, heard the case.
Paoletta ultimately called the left’s campaign against the Supreme Court “ludicrous” and said Alito has no obligation to recuse himself from any cases.
“The law requires recusal when a family member is involved in a case as a litigant, witness or attorney, or has an interest that would be materially affected by the decision, but none of those apply here,” he explained. “The law also says a judge must recuse himself if ‘his impartiality may be called into question.’ Whatever Mrs. Alito’s political views, do they call into question Justice Alito’s impartiality? Based on precedent, no.”
