The Supreme Court Historical Society (SCHS) has condemned the secret audio recording that took place at its recent annual dinner, during which a liberal filmmaker presented herself as a conservative supporter to Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Samuel Alito, and his wife Martha-Ann Alito. The filmmaker, Lauren Windsor, recorded the justices without their knowledge and engaged Alito in conversation about ideological differences. The audio files were later published by Rolling Stone. The SCHS executive director James Duff stated that discussion of current cases, cases decided by the Court, or a Justice’s jurisprudence is strictly prohibited at the event.
During the recording, Alito expressed that there are differences on fundamental things that cannot be compromised. In response to Windsor’s assertion about returning the country to “godliness,” Alito agreed with her. The article highlighted the justice’s remarks on ideology and compromise, as well as his agreement on the notion of returning the country to “godliness.” In response to Windsor’s prompting, Roberts pushed back at the undercover filmmaker, stating that the court being in the midst of tumultuous situations is nothing new. Duff emphasized that the Annual Dinner is meant to recognize and support the educational and historical work of the Society over the past year, and that all attendees, including the Justices, are expected to be treated with respect.
While the recordings were viewed as non-controversial by conservatives on social media, they fueled additional criticism against Alito from Senate Judiciary Democrats, who have revived efforts to force his recusal from cases related to the 2020 election. Scrutiny was renewed when flags were flown at Alito’s homes in the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot. One of his homes briefly flew an upside-down American flag, which he claimed was his wife’s doing and unrelated to January 6, while his beach home was seen flying an “Appeal to Heaven” flag. Despite ongoing calls for recusal ahead of a decision on former President Trump’s immunity claim in his federal election interference case, Alito has refused to do so. A decision on the Trump immunity matter is expected from the court this month.
The SCHS condemned the surreptitious recording of the Justices at the annual dinner, stating that it was inconsistent with the spirit of the evening. Attendees are prohibited from discussing certain topics such as current cases, cases decided by the Court, or a Justice’s jurisprudence under the Society’s rules, and violating these rules may result in forfeiture of membership. The recordings made by Windsor, who presented herself as a conservative supporter to engage the Justices in conversation, were later published by Rolling Stone. Despite the recordings being brushed off by conservatives as non-controversial, they fueled additional criticism against Alito from Senate Judiciary Democrats, who are pushing for his recusal from cases related to the 2020 election.
Renewed scrutiny was brought upon Alito when flags were flown at his homes in the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot. While Alito claimed that the upside-down American flag flown at one of his homes was his wife’s doing and unrelated to the events of January 6, he also flew an “Appeal to Heaven” flag at his beach home. The ongoing calls for recusal ahead of a decision on Trump’s immunity claim in his federal election interference case have been met with Alito’s refusal to step down from the case. A decision on the Trump immunity matter is expected from the court later this month, further heightening tensions and scrutiny surrounding the Justice’s actions and decisions.
