Sheldon Whitehouse requests information about 'improper' WSJ interview on Supreme Court ethics

Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democratic member of the Senate judiciary committee, requested information on Monday from Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito regarding an interview he gave last year on Supreme Court ethics.

The Supreme Court has been in the middle of multiple ethical scandals over the past year, most recently regarding two controversial flags flying outside of Alito's homes that are connected to supporting former President Donald Trump. Democratic lawmakers have asked Alito to recuse himself from Trump and January 6 cases over a perceived conflict of interest, but he has declined to do so.

Whitehouse's most recent letter to the justice found fault in Alito's comment to the Wall Street Journal last July that “no provision in the Constitution gives [Congress] the authority to regulate the Supreme Court—period."

Whitehouse countered in a news release on Monday that Congress does have oversight of the judiciary branch, including the Supreme Court, and including updating ethics laws.

“The interview raised several problems,” Whitehouse said in the letter. “It thus appears that you offered an improper opinion regarding a question that might come before the Court, [and] did so in the context of a known ongoing legal dispute involving that precise question ... I note that the Supreme Court is the only place in all of government where issues of this nature have no place or means of investigation or resolution ... So far, my questions regarding these events seem to have disappeared into a black hole of indifference.”

The letter comes after the Senate advanced a legislation last July that would impose a code of ethics on the Supreme Court, which would create more transparency in the disclosure of gifts or connections to people appearing before the court. The bill also would have created a mechanism to investigate any alleged violations of the code.

The Supreme Court adopted a code of ethics in November, following public and congressional scrutiny about undisclosed trips and gifts to some justices.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.