Sam Alito's trip to Rome funded by group that has filed briefs before SCOTUS: CNN

A new report from CNN reveals that Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito's trip to Rome last year was funded by a religious group that has filed briefs before the court in recent years.

According to CNN, Notre Dame’s Religious Liberty Initiative paid for Alito's trip to Rome shortly after he authored the opinion that overturned five decades of precedent on abortion rights established by Roe v. Wade.

Stephanie Barclay, the Religious Liberty Initiative’s director, told CNN that there was nothing improper about funding Alito's trip to speak at one of its galas in the Italian capital city.

“Like the other speakers and panelists at the summit, Justice Alito’s transportation and lodging were covered and of course, he had meals provided like all attendees,” she said. “Unlike other speakers, no honorarium was given.”

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However, CNN notes that Alito "joined the majority in ruling in favor of the Religious Liberty Initiative’s position in several of the cases for which it submitted briefs, including the one that reversed Roe, which he authored, and a 2022 decision that said a high school football coach had the right to pray on the 50-yard line after games."

Alito came under scrutiny earlier this week when Pro Publica revealed that he accepted a luxury trip to Alaska paid for by billionaire GOP donor Paul Singer.