Justice Thomas took millions in undisclosed gifts, and refused to recuse himself from Jan. 6 cases even though his wife was neck-deep in efforts to overthrow the 2020 election, even calling Trump’s chief of staff.
Justice Alito also failed to report expensive gifts, including a luxury fishing trip paid for by billionaire Paul Singer, and refused to recuse himself from Singer’s cases before the court — a clear conflict of interest that would get any other judge disciplined.
Thomas and Alito certainly don’t deserve forgiveness, especially as they’re defiant and unrepentant. But this isn’t about morals, ethics, or propriety; it’s about raw power. As Clint Eastwood’s character says in the movie The Unforgiven, “Deserve’s got nothing to do with it.”
In my preceding post about Mrs. Kennedy’s gift horse from the president of Pakistan, which was brought to the U.S. in secrecy, I mentioned a GOP congressman who lost his seat after one term because he had an affair with a secretary. Back in the 1960s, moral lapses could (and did) get people booted from politics.
On July 10, 2024, Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) introduced articles of impeachment against Thomas and Alito (read story here). They should be impeached, and removed from the bench, but this will go nowhere. Republicans will summarily block that effort. There are no moral standards in politics anymore; what matters to them is it would change the balance of power on the court.
Republicans talk about “taking our country back.” From what? Themselves? If they really want to live in the 1960s again, as this GOP congressman claims, the moral codes of that time would dictate that Thomas and Alito go — and Republicans would help usher them out.
Don’t hold your breath.