Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez filed articles of impeachment Wednesday against Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr.
The New York Democrat said the Constitution demands a higher standard than what the two high court jurists have exhibited.
“The unchecked corruption crisis on the Supreme Court has now spiraled into a Constitutional crisis threatening American democracy writ large,” Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said in a press statement. “Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito’s pattern of refusal to recuse from consequential matters before the court in which they hold widely documented financial and personal entanglements constitutes a grave threat to American rule of law, the integrity of our democracy, and one of the clearest cases for which the tool of impeachment was designed.”
The progressive lawmaker said the two justices have failed to disclose financial gifts and hospitality from billionaires and have not recused themselves from cases in which their spouses have had an interest. The charges in the articles of impeachment for each justice were failure to recuse and failure to disclose.
“These failures alone would amount to a deep transgression worthy of standard removal in any lower court, and would disqualify any nominee to the highest court from confirmation in the first place,” she said. “Given the court’s demonstrated inability to preserve its own legitimate conduct, it is incumbent upon Congress to contain the threat this poses to our democracy and the hundreds of millions of Americans harmed by the crisis of corruption unfurling within the court. Congress has a legal, moral, and democratic obligation to impeach.”
Co-sponsoring the legislation are Democratic Reps. Barbara Lee of California, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey, Delia Ramirez of Illinois, Maxwell Frost of Florida, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Jamaal Bowman of New York and Jasmine Crockett of Texas. With Republicans holding a narrow majority in the House, the legislation is unlikely to advance.
The move comes as Democrats have criticized Justice Thomas’ friendship with GOP megadonor Harlan Crow.
Last year, ProPublica published a series of articles critical of the justices — mainly Justice Thomas — accepting hospitality without disclosures.
At the time, there was no requirement to disclose certain hospitality and gifts for the justices, but that changed in 2023 after the Judicial Conference updated its rules, extending them to the high court.
Justice Thomas and Mr. Crow have defended their friendship, and Mr. Crow has said he has not discussed Supreme Court business with Justice Thomas. Both have denied any wrongdoing.
Democratic lawmakers have called for the two GOP-appointed justices to recuse themselves from major disputes before the court this term involving Jan. 6 defendants and former President Donald Trump’s immunity.
They said Justice Thomas’ wife attended the pro-Trump Stop the Steal rally and had contact with Trump allies. Ginni Thomas said she left the rally before it got violent at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The Democratic lawmakers have been displeased with Justice Alito over an expensive fishing trip he took with a billionaire but failed to disclose, and then for flying flags they say are sympathetic to Jan. 6 defendants outside his homes in New Jersey and in Virginia.
Justice Alito rejected the suggestion he should recuse and said his wife, Martha-Ann Alito, flew the flags.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
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