A report by Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee has detailed new allegations about the “large gifts” that US Supreme Court justices have received from donors.
The 93-page reportreleased Saturday, culminating a nearly 20-month investigation led by outgoing Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin.
He is building on it previous statement from the ProPublica news outlet that raised questions about a possible conflict of interest on the nation's highest court.
The report, however, says it was found previously unreported visits it was reportedly built by Justice Clarence Thomas at the expense of real estate developer Harlan Crow, a prominent supporter of the Republican Party.
While other judges are also mentioned in the report, it singles out Thomas for particular criticism.
“The number, value and immutability of the gifts accepted by Justice Thomas are unmatched in modern American history,” the report reads.
Judge Thomas has yet to publicly respond to the report's allegations.
Prominent Senate Democrats like Durbin have long pushed for the Supreme Court to establish a strict ethics code to prevent conflicts of interest and ensure compliance with disclosure orders.
In their report, the Democrats blasted the Supreme Court's chief justice, conservative John Roberts, for not taking stronger measures to overcome the apparent ethical responsibilities.
“Chief Justice Roberts' continued distaste for the only viable solution to the Court's ethical crisis—an enforceable code of conduct—requires Congress to act to restore public confidence in the Supreme Court.” country,” the report said.
She accused the court of failing to deal with an “ethical crisis of her own making”.
As a result of ProPublica's investigation, Roberts took steps to apply to the Supreme Court code of ethics.
The court has never had such a code before. But critics pointed out that the new code, which was unanimously approved by the judges in November 2023, did not include any way to enforce or check its holdings. potential violations.
That has led to further public outcry. The polling company Gallup reported on December 17 that confidence in the US judicial system had sunk to its lowest point, leaving it behind in other relatively wealthy countries.
Gallup found that 55 percent of residents of countries in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) expressed confidence in their courts, as a medium.
In the US, however, that number was only 35 percent.
Saturday's report is likely to add to that sentiment. The report itself recognizes the crisis of public faith.
“The public is now much more aware of how much some judges have gotten and how these judges and their billionaire supporters continue to work without permission,” he said.
The report specifies that “corrections appointed by presidents of both parties” have engaged in questionable ethical behavior. He criticizes left-leaning Justice Sonia Sotomayor for not first disclosing travel and accommodation from the University of Rhode Island while on a book tour.
However, the report reserves some of its harshest criticism for Justice Thomas and his conservative colleagues, Samuel Alito and the late Antonin Scalia.
Many of the events have been described elsewhere before. For example, the report reveals that Justice Thomas failed to recuse himself in cases where his wife, conservative activist Ginni Thomas, played a role in the outcome. The report says this is a violation of federal law.
ProPublica had previously reported on Thomas' trips aboard Crow's yacht and private jet, which could fetch thousands of dollars. But Saturday's report also reveals two newly announced trips in October 2021 to Saranac, New York and New York.
In previous public statements, Thomas maintained he “always tried to adhere to the publication guidelines”. He has also characterized his trips with Crow as “family trips” made with some of his “dearest friends”.
Another friend of Justice Thomas, attorney Mark Paoletta, answered to the Democrats' report on social media.
He accused the Democratic Senators of “smearing” Justice Thomas and attacking the court, which currently has a conservative six-to-three majority.
“This whole investigation was never about 'ethics' but about trying to undermine the Supreme Court,” Paoletta wrote.
“The left has created standards of denial to attack the judges (and) try to get things removed. It didn't work.”
Earlier this year, in June, Republican senators blocked a Democratic-led bill designed to create an enforcement mechanism for ethics violations on the court, called the Ethics, Repeal and Transparency Act. – High Court.
But Republicans like Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina questioned the constitutionality of the bill and called it an overreach.
In January, Republicans are expected to hold a majority in the Senate, which is currently controlled by Democrats. Once they do that, they will control both chambers of Congress.
