Most Chief Justices of the Supreme Court craft a code of ethics, but after nearly 20 years the Court has operated without any rules. According to the Washington Post, it's because he wants all of the other justices to agree.
The nine justices haven't formulated a consensus, for the rules and they continue to discuss it, sources told the Post.
"The court’s legal counsel Ethan Torrey prepared a working document of issues for them to consider," the report said. "There is no timeline for the justices to act, however. Those familiar with the matter spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the situation."
Radio host and columnist Thom Hartman compared the Court with the European Parliament which is also ensnared in a major corruption scandal. Both of them are due to the groups not having any legal checks on their power. The Constitution requires checks and balances on all branches of government, but that has been ignored when it comes to the Supreme Court.
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A Dec. 2022 report revealed that Justice Brett Kavanaugh was partying with right-wing activists even being photographed with those pushing conservative rulings of laws the Court would decide.
It has raised the disapproval rating of the body, which has caused an increase in protests and threats against justices. To make matters worse, the justices have spent the past several months in speaking engagements where they express confusion about why Americans. hate them so much.
This week, the American Bar Association urged action, with a statement saying, “the absence of a clearly articulated, binding code of ethics for the justices of the Court imperils the legitimacy of the Court.” They assured justices that it wasn't motivated by “any particular conduct by any one or more current or former members of the Court."
“This is a break-the-glass moment on Supreme Court ethics,” the Post cited Gabe Roth of the group Fix the Court. They've long called for greater transparency in the Court. “I don’t think an ethics code is a panacea, but I think there is a perception that the justices are not taking their ethical responsibilities seriously enough.”
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The report noted that in 2019, Justice Elena Kagan promised a congressional committee that Roberts was "seriously" studying the issue. Yet, nothing has happened.
Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA) sponsored a bill that would mandate a code of conduct for the justices.
“I do not understand why there has not been a conclusion reached on this so-called study,” he said. “It just seems like it has been quietly dropped, hoping the public will turn its attention to other matters and never come back to this issue.”
Given his wife's involvement in politics, those on both sides of the aisle believe that Justice Clarence Thomas should recuse himself from a number of cases. Mrs. Thomas was pressuring lawmakers to break the law and make Donald Trump the winner of the 2020 election. Her husband was part of cases involving that same election.
Two dozen congressional Democrats called on Thomas to recuse himself from anything involving the Jan. 6 attack on Congress and the 2020 election during one 2022 case.
