Supreme Court justices need to act more ethically

Forget for a moment the decisions they make on the bench. It is the decisions they make off the bench that has some Supreme Court justices in hot water. Justice Clearance Thomas has been criticized for failing to disclose the gifts and luxury travel he got from a wealthy Republican donor. There are reports he also made money in a deal to sell property to a man named Harlan Crow, who also reportedly paid tuition payments for Thomas’ grandson. Now we are learning that fellow Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito did not disclose on his financial forms the trip he took on a private jet to Alaska to do some fishing with a man named Paul Singer, a conservative hedge fund manager. Alito also did not recuse himself when hearing a case involving the man. Last year, Alito took a trip to Rome to speak to Notre Dame’s Religious Liberty Initiative, where he was treated to a stay at a posh hotel. Alito heard court cases in which the group submitted briefs, including the one that reversed Roe, which he authored, and a decision that said a high school football coach had the right to pray on the 50-yard line. With public perception of the high court at an all-time low, it is time for our justices to act more ethically, instead of being showered with gifts from those whose cases appear before the court.