Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island filed an ethics complaint against Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito concerning gifts he received from right-wing donors.
Whitehouse argued that Alito's recent public comments violated several canons of judicial ethics. These include standards that the Supreme Court has long applied to itself. The Democratic senator filed the complaint letter to the Chief Justice, John Roberts.
Ethics Complaint Against Supreme Court Justice
The situation comes as Alito is seen as an acerbic voice in the conservative bloc that dominates the highest court. He was the subject of a report earlier this year that detailed an undeclared fishing holiday with billionaire Paul Singer.
Clarence Thomas, another conservative justice on the Supreme Court, has been the subject of several reports about undeclared gifts. The two conservative justices have denied any wrongdoing, but Alito, in particular, has been much more assertive in striking back at his critics, as per Newsbreak.
Whitehouse's complaint letter to Roberts cited an interview held on July 28, 2023, between Justice Alito, David Rivkin, and James Taranto. The Democratic senator argued that the justice's comments at the time gave rise to the complaint.
The Democrat continued to say that the interview had the effect to bear both on legislation that he authored and on investigations in which he participates. He argued that Alito stated that "no provision in the Constitution gives [Congress] the authority to regulate the Supreme Court" during the interview.
Despite the allegations, Whitehouse's bill, the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act, has little chance of succeeding due to Republican opposition. The Democrat said that he is bringing his complaint as the only senator who was part of the majorities on the judiciary and finance committees.
On the other hand, Chief Justice Roberts rejected calls to testify on the subject as Whitehouse argues that Alito expressed an opinion on a matter that should have been dealt with before the court, according to The Guardian.
Justice Alito's Controversy
Whitehouse has argued that Alito breached the code of conduct for U.S. federal judges to which Supreme Court justices are notionally subject. However, in practice, Supreme Court justices, in effect, govern themselves.
Additionally, the Democratic senator said that Justice Alito exacerbated the matter when he intruded into a specific matter. He said that Alito targeted his work and that it was more than just misguided or accidental general opining.
In his letter, Whitehouse said that making public comments assessing the merits of a legal issue that could come before the court can create the very appearance of impropriety that the rules were designed to protect against.
Whitehouse also highlighted Rivkin's role in the matter, saying that he represents the conservative legal activist Leonard Leo, whose testimony was sought by the Judiciary Committee regarding ethics questions.
The senator added that the timing of Justice Alito's opening suggests that he intervened to give his friend and political ally support in his effort to block Congressional inquiries. NBC News said a spokeswoman for the Supreme Court did not immediately respond to a request for comments from Roberts and Alito amid the controversy.
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