Democrats Turn the Screws on the Supreme Court

Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse is putting pressure on the Supreme Court amid renewed ethics concerns.

Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, filed an ethics complaint against Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito on Monday over remarks he made during a Wall Street Journal interview in July. The complaint comes amid a tumultuous time for the court. Several justices have faced allegations of skirting ethics rules, and Whitehouse has authored legislation aimed at implementing a code of conduct for Supreme Court justices.

During that Wall Street Journal interview, Alito dismissed the idea that Congress could pass an ethics code for the Court, saying, "No provision in the Constitution gives them the authority to regulate the Supreme Court—period."

Whitehouse alleged in his ethics complaint that these remarks "indisputably" violated the Code of Conduct for United States Judges.

He pointed to several measures in that code that state that judges must "act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary" and "should not make public comment on the merits of a matter pending or impending in any court."

"Making public comments assessing the merits of a legal issue that could come before the Court undoubtedly creates the very appearance of impropriety these rules are meant to protect against," Whitehouse wrote.

Whitehouse wrote that he believed Alito's remarks were "worse" because it was "in relation to a specific ongoing dispute" and directly followed a mention of his judicial ethics bill.

"Justice Alito's decision to opine publicly on the constitutionality of that bill may well embolden legal challenges to the bill should it become law. Indeed, his comments encourage challenges to all manner of judicial ethics laws already on the books," he wrote.

He also warned that his remarks "will also fuel obstruction of our Senate investigations" into judicial ethics, including reports that justices have accepted "lavish gifts from billionaire benefactors" without disclosure" and a Senate Finance Committee probe into the federal tax considerations surrounding these undisclosed gifts.

Meanwhile, Whitehouse raised concerns that Alito made the comments to conservative attorney David Rivkin, who represents Leonard Leo, who was allegedly Alito's "companion" on a 2008 fishing trip in Alaska along with hedge fund manager Paul Singer that drew ethics concerns.

He also warned that "further investigation may reveal additional information that Justice Alito would prefer not come to light."

"The facts as already reported suggest that Justice Alito likely violated the financial disclosure requirements of the Ethics in Government Act. Perhaps Justice Alito should also have recused himself as required by the recusal statute in a 2014 case involving a company owned by Paul Singer, one of the billionaires who attended and paid for his Alaskan fishing vacation," he wrote.

Alito has defended himself amid criticism over the Alaska trip, saying that the flight to Alaska was the "only occasion" where he accepted transportation to a social event.

Newsweek reached out to the Supreme Court's public information office for comment.

Several justices have faced ethics scandals in recent months, fueling record-low approval ratings, according to Gallup.

Justice Clarence Thomas, for instance, has faced scrutiny after news outlet ProPublica released several reports alleging that he accepted luxury vacations, including from GOP donor Harlan Crow. Thomas responded to the ProPublica report by saying he has "always sought to comply with the disclosure guidelines" and that it is his "intent to follow this guidance in the future."