https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/justice-alito-speech-polarizing-issues-prompts-calls-reform/story?id=74194553&cid=clicksource_4380645_1_heads_hero_live_twopack_hed
Justice Alito speech on polarizing issues prompts calls to reform Supreme Court
Justices typically don't talk about issues actively before the Supreme Court.
ByDevin Dwyer
November 13, 2020
Justice Samuel Alito set off fresh calls for Supreme Court reform on Friday after delivering a highly opinionated speech to a conservative legal group that touched on polarizing issues currently under review by the court.
"If there were enforceable recusal standards at the high court, this would be a ripe opportunity for a motion to disqualify," said Gabe Roth, executive director of Fix the Court, a nonpartisan independent watchdog group that has lobbied for a formal code of conduct for the justices.
"It would encourage them to think twice before making political speeches to partisan organizations and further eroding the public's trust in their impartiality," Roth said.
Alito's remarks, delivered virtually on Thursday night to a conference hosted by the Federalist Society, focused on what he called the "unimaginable restrictions on individual liberty" imposed during the coronavirus pandemic. He also spoke about abortion rights, same-sex marriage and the Second Amendment.
The justice criticized state governors who have exercised broad discretion in setting policies aimed at taming the virus's spread. He singled out capacity restrictions on houses of worship, lamenting Nevada's 50-person cap on religious gatherings, which the Supreme Court refused to strike down by a 5-4 vote in July.
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Alito's remarks, delivered virtually on Thursday night to a conference hosted by the Federalist Society, focused on what he called the "unimaginable restrictions on individual liberty" imposed during the coronavirus pandemic. He also spoke about abortion rights, same-sex marriage and the Second Amendment.
The justice criticized state governors who have exercised broad discretion in setting policies aimed at taming the virus's spread. He singled out capacity restrictions on houses of worship, lamenting Nevada's 50-person cap on religious gatherings, which the Supreme Court refused to strike down by a 5-4 vote in July.
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Some progressive Democrats, who have been calling for an expansion of the Supreme Court to counter the rushed confirmation of Barrett, said Alito's comments added urgency to their cause.
"Justice Alito's wildly inappropriate speech is a reminder that Republicans have packed the Supreme Court with extremist politicians in robes -- and they're planning a partisan revenge tour," said Aaron Belkin, director of Take Back the Court, a progressive group advocating court expansion.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., called Alito's speech "nakedly partisan" and said she wants to enact legislation to "force justices to follow the ethics rules other federal judges follow."
Supreme Court justices are not currently bound by any formal code of conduct and largely answer only to themselves on matters of ethics and recusal.
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