The days when it was taboo to criticize the lives of Supreme Court Justices are over. And it turns out there’s plenty hiding in their closets. Whether it’s Justice Clarence Thomas sending his relative to school on a Republican megadonor’s dime or Justice Samuel Alito reportedly taking a lavish trip with a billionaire with cases before the court, the Supreme Court is rife with ethics scandals.
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At the Root, we aim to keep our readers informed, so here’s a guide to the court’s shenanigans.
Earlier this year, ProPublica blew the lid off this decades-long relationship between Republican megadonor Harlan Crow and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. The Republican billionaire paid for expensive vacations on private jets and mega yachts, paid for Thomas’ relative’s private school tuition, and even bought a house from the Supreme Court justice and his mother.
All of this might be fine (the Supreme Court has relatively weak ethics rules) except for the fact that Thomas failed to disclose these gifts. Both sides deny wrongdoing. But Thomas’ explanation that he didn’t think he needed to disclose anything because they were “close personal friends” rings a tad flat.
It’s worth noting that Crow isn’t the only mega-rich conservative in Thomas’ circle. Last week, The New York Times reported on his relationship with the Horatio Alger Association, a group of wealthy conservatives who reportedly lavished Thomas with gifts and access to V.I.P. sporting events and parties.
Thomas isn’t the only Supreme Court Justice with some explaining to do. Last month, ProPublica reported that in 2008, Justice Samuel Alito rode on hedge fund billionaire Paul Singer’s private jet for a luxury Alaskan fishing trip. According to their reporting, Alito didn’t disclose the trip, and even more scandalous, Singer later had cases before the Supreme Court.
Alito never recused himself from Singer’s cases and, in fact-sided with the billionaire in a 7-1 case that won his hedge fund billions of dollars. In case it wasn’t clear, this is all a big ethics no-no.
“If you were good friends, what were you doing ruling on his case?” said Charles Geyh, an Indiana University law professor and leading expert on recusals, told ProPublica. “And if you weren’t good friends, what were you doing accepting this?”
Alito responded to the allegations by penning an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal. He claimed that he didn’t know about Singer’s connection to the case. And that he did not believe he had to disclose “accommodations and transportation.”
Neil Gorsuch is also on the hook for his own potential ethics breach. Earlier this year, Politico reported that a law firm head, whose firm had multiple cases before the Supreme Court, purchased property co-owned by Gorsuch.
It looks worse because, according to Politico, Gorsuch didn’t disclose the purchaser’s identity. Instead, he reportedly left the box blank on the federal disclosure form.
This scandal doesn’t involve mega-rich billionaires or law firm partners, but it’s still worth a mention. According to reporting from the Associated Press, Sotomayor’s staff “prodded” schools and libraries to purchase her books. Her extensive literary career has reportedly earned her $3.7 million since she joined the court. The Supreme Court responded to the reporting, saying her staffers were merely recommending an appropriate number of books for the audience size at her speaking engagements so that no one would be disappointed.
The calls to place stricter ethics limits have been growing in the wake of these ethics scandals. Some lawmakers and groups like Take Back The Court, have joined forces to demand accountability from the court. But as it stands, while a lot of these scandals may feel icky, unless we see a real shift in Congress’ willingness to act, there’s little reason to expect change.
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