A new message from your friends at People For the American Way.
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Supporter,
The January 6 Select Committee has announced today that they will formally
seek to interview Ginni Thomas, Justice Clarence Thomas’s wife, regarding
her actions related to the Trump insurrection, following the bombshell
news last week that she was texting with Trump’s former chief of staff,
Mark Meadows, to overturn the election.
With Ginni Thomas's extreme right-wing activism so close to home, Justice
Thomas should have recused himself from any and all cases related to the
January 6 insurrection that come before the Supreme Court, but so far he
hasn't.
Examples like this underscore the need for ensuring that our nation's
highest court adheres to a strict code of ethics (as is required for other
federal courts) so that any conflict of interest doesn't influence their
judgement.
[ [link removed] ]Sign our petition today urging Congress to pass the Supreme Court
Ethics Act to implement a binding code of ethics for our nation's highest
court and prevent future conflicts of interest >>
Thanks,
– The People For Digital Team
----[original message below]----
Dear People For supporter,
We need to fix a glaring loophole in the rules under which the court
operates: the nine justices on the Supreme Court are the ONLY U.S. judges
not covered by a binding ethical code of conduct.
It’s a not-infrequent situation where a federal judge has some type of
personal or financial conflicting interest in a case that’s been brought
before them. The ethics codes that govern the U.S. judicial system will
typically require those judges to recuse themselves from the case in order
to preserve impartiality. Not so for the Supreme Court. The ethics rules
that apply to the rest of the federal judges do not apply to justices of
the Supreme Court, who make their own decisions about whether they should
recuse themselves from any case.
Troubling examples that have come to light recently give us ample reason
to doubt the impartiality and fairness of a court without those ethical
guidelines in place.
[ [link removed] ]Click here to ask Congress to support the Supreme Court Ethics Act to
develop a binding code of ethical conduct for Supreme Court Justices. >>
For example, Ginni Thomas – the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence
Thomas – signed on to a letter in December from conservative leaders
blasting the work of the House Select Committee investigating the events
of January 6th. Just weeks later, Justice Thomas failed to recuse himself
from a case in which the former president was trying to shield White House
records from the committee ... and then was the sole vote in support of
Trump’s request. ^[2]
In another case decided last year, Justice Amy Coney Barrett – whose
confirmation was supported by a “seven-figure” ad-buying campaign from
Americans for Prosperity – failed to recuse herself from a case in which
that organization’s linked foundation appeared before the Court,
attempting to shield its donor records from the state of California.
Justice Barrett then voted with the majority to keep those records hidden,
in a decision that Justice Sotomayor warned would open the gates for more
anonymous money to flow into political donations.^[ [link removed] ]
In response to this ethical crisis, Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) and
Representative Hank Johnson (D-GA) have introduced the Supreme Court
Ethics Act, which would require the U.S. Judicial Conference to develop an
ethical code of conduct that would apply to the Supreme Court.
[3]Tell Congress: the Supreme Court MUST be held to common-sense ethical
standards in order to restore faith in the integrity and impartiality of
our nation’s highest court. >>
Numerous recent cases decided along partisan lines – as well as the
longstanding, dark-money-fueled efforts from groups like the Federalist
Society to tilt our judicial system and produce rulings favoring corporate
and right-wing interests – have given Americans ample reasons to doubt the
integrity of the Supreme Court. Passage of the Supreme Court Ethics Act
would be a big step in the right direction to reverse this trend and hold
the justices to basic ethical standards.
Thanks in advance for taking action on this issue!
Sincerely,
Paul Gordon, People For the American Way
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[ [link removed] ]donate:
Sources:
1. "[ [link removed] ]Gorsuch’s Speech at Federalist Society Event Is Only One to Bar
Media," Bloomberg.com, 02/02/22
2. "[ [link removed] ]Critics say Ginni Thomas’s activism is a Supreme Court conflict.
Under court rules, only her husband can decide if that’s true.,"
Washington Post, 01/31/22
3. "[ [link removed] ]Amy Coney Barrett Rebuffs Demands To Recuse From Dark Money Case
Involving Group That Supported Her Confirmation," Forbes, 04/26/21
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