Dick Durbin Finally Does Something After Jaw-Dropping Alito Scandal
Democratic Senator Dick Durbin, the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is calling for Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito to recuse himself from cases related to the 2020 election and the January 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection.
Durbin’s call comes after reports that an upside-down U.S. flag flew outside of Alito’s home in Alexandria, Virginia, as rioters stormed the Capitol in effort to overturn the 2020 election.
“Flying an upside-down American flag—a symbol of the so-called ‘Stop the Steal’ movement—clearly creates the appearance of bias,” Durbin said to The Hill. “Justice Alito should recuse himself immediately from cases related to the 2020 election and the January 6th insurrection, including the question of the former President’s immunity in U.S. v. Donald Trump, which the Supreme Court is currently considering.”
The U.S. flag is usually flown upside down in times of distress, like in the case of an SOS. In recent years, it has been adopted by the far right, as well as Trump supporters, to say “Stop the Steal” regarding the 2020 election. While Alito blamed his wife for putting up the flag, such an act in January 2021 would still appear to violate the Supreme Court’s new judicial code of ethics, adopted last November, which recommends avoiding political statements and avoiding the appearance of bias. Durbin mentioned the code in his statement.
“The Court is in an ethical crisis of its own making, and Justice Alito and the rest of the Court should be doing everything in their power to regain public trust,” Durbin said. “Supreme Court justices should be held to the highest ethical standards, not the lowest.”
The senator from Illinois was slow to respond to recent ethics scandals on the Supreme Court, despite having subpoena power. In November, Durbin backed off a vote to subpoena Harlan Crow and Leonard Leo, two major conservative donors connected to Justices Alito and Clarence Thomas. This time, will Durbin’s call be backed up with action?