politics
Rep. Katherine Clark called on Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito to recuse himself from cases related to the Capitol revolt after an investigation found that flags carried by rioters on January 6, 2021, were flying at two of his properties.
“Judge Alito has flown flags on his homes that support insurrection against our government, promote religious nationalism, and attack free and fair elections,” Clark, a Democrat representing Massachusetts’ fifth Congressional District, wrote in a post X. Clark can be the House Minority Whip, the second-highest rating Democrat within the House of Representatives.
Alito has come under increasing scrutiny after photos emerged last week showing an upside-down American flag flying at his home in Alexandria, Virginia, in January 2021, three days before President Joe Biden's inauguration. The photos were first reported until May sixteenth.
The upside-down U.S. flag became a logo of solidarity for supporters of former President Donald Trump, who falsely claimed the 2020 election was rigged. It was a standard sight on the Capitol riots on Jan. 6, which occurred just over per week before the flag was raised outside Alito's home.
Another controversial flag flew over Alito’s home in New Jersey, reports
On Wednesday, criticism of the judge grew when the reported that an “Appeal to Heaven” flag, the identical one carried by rioters on Jan. 6, was flown at Alito's New Jersey vacation home last summer. The flag, originally used through the Revolutionary War, was adopted as an indication of support for Trump and is a logo of the “Stop the Steal” campaign, the newspaper reported.
In her statement Thursday, Clark called on Alito to recuse himself from cases involving “January 6, Donald Trump and the security of our elections.”
“This is not just another example of extremism overtaking conservatism,” Clark wrote. “This is a threat to the rule of law and a serious violation of Justice Alito's ethics, integrity, and oath of office.”
When the upside-down flag was raised, the Supreme Court was deciding whether to listen to the 2020 election case, the newspaper reported. Now the court is poised to make a choice in late June on whether Trump will be prosecuted for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Although Alito didn’t reply to a request for comment on the Appeal to Heaven flag, the judge said the upside-down U.S. flag was flown by his wife.
“I was not involved in any way in the raising of the flag,” Alito told . “Ms. Alito had raised it briefly in response to a neighbor's use of offensive and personally abusive language on his yard signs.”
Other Massachusetts lawmakers have spoken out against Alito
On Tuesday, greater than three dozen members of the House of Representatives sent a letter to Alito, asking him to recuse himself from cases involving January 6 or the 2020 election, citing reporting. Among the signatories was Representative Ayanna Pressley.
Senator Ed Markey also called on Alito to post on X-Thursday.
“Judge Alito must recuse himself from all matters related to the January 6 insurrection, and we must expand the Court to ensure that the seats stolen by Donald Trump do not destroy our democracy,” Markey wrote.
Critics have said the flags flying at Alito's homes are an indication of bias and a violation of the court's ethics guidelines. Code of Conduct states that judges must “avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety” and recuse themselves when “impartiality could reasonably be called into question”.
image credit : www.boston.com