'Fundamental challenge to our democracy': Dems call for 'active investigations' into Alito
After the New York Times published photos of a second insurrectionist flag flying outside of a home owned by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, some leading Democrats are pushing for him to be investigated.
Between June and September of last year, the "Appeal to Heaven" flag (also known as the Pine Tree Flag) was seen on a flagpole outside of the conservative justice's vacation home in Long Beach Township, New Jersey. While its history traces back to 1775, the symbol has since been co-opted by Christian nationalists using the flag as an icon for its cause of remaking the U.S. government to be explicitly pro-Christian. It was seen prominently at the deadly January 6, 2021 siege of the U.S. Capitol.
According to the Guardian, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) said the U.S. Senate — which is controlled by Democrats — should publicly investigate Alito. She said "active investigations" were needed in response to his displaying of an insurrectionist symbol, which she called "an extraordinary breach of not just the trust and the stature of the Supreme Court" but also a "fundamental challenge to our democracy."
READ MORE: Flag outside Alito's home 'literally carried by insurrectionists': J6 investigator
"Samuel Alito has identified himself with the same people who raided the Capitol on January 6 and is now going to be presiding over court cases that have deep implications over the participants of that rally," she said. "And while this is the threat to our democracy, Democrats have a responsibility for defending our democracy."
Alito's display of the Pine Tree flag is the second such known instance of the justice displaying an open affiliation with far-right causes outside of one of his homes. In 2021, the same week President Joe Biden was to be inaugurated, an inverted American flag was seen flying on the flagpole outside of his Alexandria, Virginia home. He blamed that flag's display on his wife, Martha-Ann, who he said displayed the upside-down flag in response to a neighbor who put up lawn signs with an expletive directed at former President Donald Trump.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island), who chairs the Senate Budget Committee, also called for action to be taken in response to Alito's latest flag controversy. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Whitehouse asked: "Did another neighbor make Alito's wife mad?
"How many MAGA battle flags does Alito need to fly for the Court or the Judicial Conference to see there’s a problem?" Whitehouse tweeted.
READ MORE: Why Alito's response to inverted flag controversy is as troubling as symbol itself: analysis
In a tweet of his own, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) — the chair of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee — called for Alito to recuse himself from cases related to the 2020 presidential election and the January 6, 2021 insurrection.
"This incident is yet another example of apparent ethical misconduct by a sitting justice, and it adds to the Court’s ongoing ethical crisis," Durbin wrote.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) joined calls for Alito's recusal from cases the Court is reviewing pertaining to January 6. In a post to his official X account, he argued that displaying the Pine Tree flag was "a political statement" and grounds for recusal under the argument that Alito would not be able to issue an impartial ruling.
"He cannot responsibly sit on Trump-related cases when he has already signaled his sympathy with January 6th rioters," Blumenthal wrote. "He owes the American people an explanation."
READ MORE: Lindsey Graham slams Samuel Alito: 'You are still a Supreme Court justice'
