Supreme Court justices appointed by Republicans can do nothing right. Former President Donald Trump‘s nominations of Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett to the high court set off a frenzy amid the legacy media.
Democrats subjected Kavanaugh to unsubstantiated eleventh-hour rape claims and character assassinations during his hearing. The media lambasted Barrett, whose nomination came less than two months before the 2020 election, for her faith and family. The recent attacks on Justice Samuel Alito for flags flown at his private residences are a whole new brand of hysteria.
There is every reason to make sure justices have the impartiality necessary to do their job, but the leftist media wish to hold conservative justices to impossible standards. Democrats demand that Alito recuse himself from cases involving Trump and Jan. 6 defendants. For his part, Alito refuses to entertain a recusal; this is the correct response.
In March 2022, Justice Clarence Thomas faced criticism for his wife’s actions. Ginni Thomas ardently believes the 2020 election was stolen, Vice President Mike Pence acted wrongly, and at the time, supported attorney Sydney Powell and her mission to “release the Kraken.” But Thomas is not his wife, and he is not responsible for her words or actions, then or now, no matter how delusional.
The same thing goes for Alito, who says he had no idea an upside-down American flag was flown at his Virginia home. Neither this flag nor the “Appeal to Heaven” flag at his New Jersey vacation home crosses a line of decorum when it comes to Alito and his position on the court.
One can make a case for whether or not the wife of a sitting Supreme Court justice should send inflammatory texts that cause her spouse grief or display a flag in a non-traditional manner. But even arguments against those kinds of behavior do not reflect poorly on either Thomas or Alito. Leftists are eager to convict both men of guilt by association.
The real “crimes” committed by Thomas and Alito have to do with things over which they have no control. First of all, these two men made the mistake of being appointed by Republican presidents, Thomas by George H.W. Bush and Alito by George W. Bush. According to the leftist media, that makes both men troublesome from the start.
Second, and worst of all, they both dare to hold conservative opinions while the court considers anything to do with Trump. The 45th president is the bane of the Left’s existence. The mere idea that Thomas or Alito might rule in favor of Trump or Jan. 6 defendants has Democrats seeing red. Add to that the fact that both justices voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, and these men are threats to the country itself.
Never mind the fact that neither Clarence nor Alito is responsible for the actions of others. Partisanship is the basis for the hysteria surrounding the display of flags, though the Left may never admit it.
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The legacy media are notorious for their inability to accept that personal opinions of leading figures on the Right go against their own beliefs. Even if unconfirmed private leanings don’t in any way affect the ability to do one’s job, the mere fact that they appear to exist is enough.
The only way for Thomas, Alito, or any other conservative member of the Supreme Court to find favor with leftists is to rule as they wish. The hypocritical press and its devoted followers aren’t about to recognize any of their own failings.
Kimberly Ross (@SouthernKeeks) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog and a columnist at Arc Digital.