Alito faces growing flak from Democrats over 2nd flag controversy
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Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito. Photo: Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito is facing growing calls from Democratic lawmakers to recuse himself from Jan. 6-related cases after news emerged that a second controversial flag was flown at one of his homes.
Why it matters: To many Democrats, the news reinforces their suspicions about conservative justices' sympathy for former President Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
What's happening: The New York Times reported on Wednesday that an "Appeal to Heaven" flag, a Revolutionary War symbol embraced by right-wing groups and some Jan. 6 rioters, was hung outside Alito's vacation home in New Jersey in July and September of 2023.
- It comes after the Times reported earlier that an upside-down flag, another symbol adopted by the "Stop the Steal" movement, was hung outside Alito's home just weeks after the Jan. 6 attack.
- Alito told the Times he had "no involvement" with the upside-down flag and that it was "briefly placed" by his wife "in response to a neighbor's use of objectionable and personally insulting language on yard signs."
- A Supreme Court spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The latest: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) joined many of his Democratic colleagues on Thursday in calling for Alito to recuse himself from several Jan. 6-related cases related to Jan. 6.
- Alito and fellow conservative Justice Clarence Thomas are "totally out of control," Jeffries said in a press conference on Thursday, saying they "continue to detonate the credibility of the United States Supreme Court."
- Jeffries said Alito "definitively needs to recuse himself from any matter ... that has to do with the Jan. 6 violent insurrection."
- House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) also said in a statement on Thursday that "at minimum, he must recuse himself from any cases involving January 6th."
Zoom out: A group of 45 House Democrats sent Alito a letter on Tuesday urging him to recuse himself from the cases, and Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) introduced a resolution to censure the justice.
- Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.), who was trapped in the House gallery on Jan. 6, told Axios: "The fact that a justice of the United States Supreme Court holds out publicly symbols of insurrection, that to me hits very close to home."
- "I have the expectation of an impartial judiciary hearing about the day I almost lost my life," Kuster added, calling for Alito to recuse himself.
Yes, but: Democrats aren't going as far as to call for Alito to be impeached – yet.
- Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who floated impeaching Thomas in 2022 over his wife's involvement in the "Stop the Steal" efforts, told Axios on Tuesday that Alito's case is "something we're certainly taking a look at ... but we still have to dig into that."
- Kuster said Democrats "are at a disadvantage here because we respect the institutions and we respect the separation of powers ... we have a decision to make whether to try to engage in a way that could move the needle."
- On impeachment, Kuster said, "I'll give him the opportunity to recuse himself, and then we'll cross that bridge."
