‘It’s a very clear conflict of interest’

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said the upside-down flag, which briefly flew at the home of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, presented a “very clear conflict of interest.”

Raskin told MSNBC’s Jonathan Capehart. during the interview Justice Alito’s response Saturday to the New York Times’ coverage of the incident said the justice understood that turning the American flag upside down was a “political symbol,” adding that it was a sign of “a political predicament.” Ta.

“If it wasn’t a very clear political symbol with a well-understood meaning, Justice Alito wouldn’t have gone through the trouble of blaming it all on his wife,” Raskin said.

times reported last week that the national flag was flown upside down on January 17, 2021. Upside-down flags are often associated with the “Stop the Steal” movement, which is based on baseless claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election.

Alito has insisted he had “no involvement” in the hanging of an upside-down American flag at his home after the 2020 election, and that his wife was responsible.

“What we need is at least an ethics commission made up of federal circuit court judges from around the country who can file complaints of bias in the unlikely event that Judge Alito decides not to heed the request. ‘Please remove yourself from this incident,”’ Raskin said Saturday.

“But this is a very clear conflict of interest,” he added.

The reports of the upside-down flag have reignited questions about the ethical guidelines of Supreme Court justices. Raskin said the United States should have an inspector general on the Supreme Court to “review all the woefully inadequate financial disclosures.”

“If you’re a member of the U.S. House of Representatives or the U.S. Senate, your constituents don’t even go to Starbucks and accept free coffee from lobbyists. “There are members of Congress who are using private school tuition, and they are helping families pay for their estates,” he said.

“You know, billionaire sugar daddies in the Federalist Society ecosystem can get attached to certain judges,” he added.

The Supreme Court is scheduled to rule on two related cases on January 6, 2021, including one regarding former President Trump’s immunity from prosecution. Following last week’s report, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) ordered Alito to recuse himself from any lawsuits related to the 2020 election and January 6, including Trump’s lawsuit. I asked him to pull it.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York also called on Alito to apologize for “disrespecting the Star-Spangled Banner and sympathizing with right-wing violent insurrectionists.”