In the wake of questionable actions by justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, Vermont’s junior Senator is calling for a stronger ethics code at the high court.
In April, ProPublica published a report detailing Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ receipt of lavish vacation travel from Republican billionaire Harlan Crowe. Since then, other alleged indiscretions have come to light, including property deals involving Justice Neil Gorsuch. Gorsuch and Justice Sonia Sotomayor have also been criticized for not recusing themselves from cases involving a publishing company that handled their book deals.
Vermont Senator Peter Welch, a Democrat who sits on the Judiciary Committee, says there are about 850 federal judges in the federal system and a code of conduct applies to all but the nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court.
“With the questions raised about the gifts to Justice Thomas my hope is that Chief Justice (John) Roberts and the members of the court will take it upon themselves to adopt that same code of conduct that applies to all other courts,” Welch said. “Now I do believe that if the court doesn’t adhere to that code of conduct the legislative branch does have authority to require it. On the other hand, if it’s done in the political system through the legislature it’s going to be very divisive.”
Vermont Supreme Court retired Associate Justice Marilyn Skoglund said the U.S. Supreme Court not adhering to a code of judicial conduct or ethics is incomprehensible, arrogant and undermines public confidence.
“That there’s even a debate about whether the nine justices of the Supreme Court should be subject to an ethical code amazes me,” Skoglund said. “Every federal judge is governed by a code of judicial conduct except for these nine. By what logic are nine politically appointed judges claiming to have free reign over their behaviors?”
Vermont Bar Association President Andrew Manitsky says the rule of law will not be respected without confidence in the integrity of the courts.
“This is not a partisan or political issue and it’s not a recent issue,” Manitsky said. “It’s been discussed for years and years. What we’re talking about is protecting and enhancing respect for our courts and therefore respect for the rule of law. We need every one of our federal judges, including every justice on the U.S. Supreme Court, to be governed by a clear code of ethical conduct. We cannot continue to allow the highest court in the land to officially have the lowest ethical standards.”
Despite growing calls, Senator Welch says he doesn’t think Conservative Justice Clarence Thomas should step down following the revelation he had accepted gifts over a number of years.
“I don’t. I mean we’ve seen some other reports about a land deal involving another judge. It’s not about who is on the Supreme Court at any given time,” Welch said. “It’s about the Supreme Court all of the time adhering to a code of conduct that’s transparent and open and where they accept the same responsibility that every other federal judge has.”
Chief Justice Roberts refused an invitation from the Senate Judiciary Committee to testify on ethics citing judicial independence.
