Judges have a responsibility not to vote on an issue in public before they are asked to decide it in court. I'm reminded of a small dinner party I was lucky to attend a few years ago. Present were an orchestra conductor, a violinist, a journalist, and the chief justice of a state's supreme court. The guests engagingly chatted about details regarding the wonderful dinner, the hard work of musicians, and my own efforts in preventing nuclear weapons from being used. A school shooting had just occurred, and so I asked the judge for an opinion. The justice fell silent. And then I realized my gaffe. The justice, who was a possible nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, would not discuss any issue tonight that was likely to appear before the State Court in the future. She did not want to vote twice.
Consider, on the other hand, in case you missed it, the recent report that in 2021 when a flag of sedition flew on the front lawn of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito. The inverted American flag was adopted to symbolize the so-called "Stop the Steal" protests which culminated in a mob attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6 2020. The mob was allegedly instigated by the president at the time, which is currently being prosecuted in the Federal case of the United States v. Donald Trump. Mr. Alito's explanation for his flag is that it was not he, but his wife, who put in there during a dispute with their neighbors, and that it wasn’t there all that long in any case. It’s hard not to conclude that these seems to be pathetic excuses for a dishonorable act. What homeowner permits a political statement on his front lawn without his consent, let alone one symbolizing sedition? In the matter of the United States v. Donald Trump it appears that Mr. Alito has already voted in the court of public opinion, a case that's likely to appear before the Supreme Court in the future. As my dinner guest the justice said with her silence, you don't get to vote twice on the same issue. If the case of the United States v. Donald Trump comes before Justice Alito, he should remember that he expressed an opinion in 2021 which even though reprehensible, was his Constitutionally protected right. It's also his responsibility to admit that he did, and recuse himself from ever hearing the case. Justice Alito, like the rest of us, should not be permitted to vote twice.