Ocasio-Cortez Moves to Impeach Justices Thomas, Alito
Facts
- US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), known as AOC, introduced articles of impeachment against Supreme Court (SCOTUS) Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito on Wednesday, alleging they failed to disclose gifts from benefactors and recuse themselves from certain cases.1
- In a statement, AOC alleged that an 'unchecked corruption crisis' on SCOTUS has 'spiraled into a Constitutional crisis,' arguing that the justices' failure to disclose lavish gifts is 'explicitly against the law.'2
- She filed three articles of impeachment against Thomas for failing to disclose gifts and refusing to recuse himself in cases allegedly involving his wife's legal and financial interests.3
- Alito faces two articles of impeachment, one for not recusing himself from a case in which AOC claims he had a 'personal bias or prejudice' and a second for allegedly neglecting to disclose gifts he'd received.4
- Seven other Democratic House members co-sponsored the articles. They come a day after two Democratic senators requested a criminal investigation of Thomas by the Justice Department over possible ethics and tax violations.5
- The Republican-led House is seen as unlikely to move on an impeachment, which, if it were to be passed, would then be sent to the Senate for a conviction vote.6
Sources: 1New York Times, 2USA Today, 3FOX News, 4New York Post, 5The New Republic and 6Reuters.com.
Narratives
- Democratic narrative, as provided by Huffington Post. Thomas and Alito's acts of corruption and expression of their biases have been well-documented, and regardless of other happenings along the US political landscape, the public must pay attention to their lack of ethics. Even if these articles go nowhere, their filing — and actions taken by other lawmakers — prove Democrats are serious about holding justices on the nation's highest court accountable.
- Republican narrative, as provided by The Western Journal. AOC is drumming up bogus accusations in the hopes of kicking constitutional conservatives off the court and replacing them with left-wing activist judges. Thomas is being targeted because he went on vacation with a wealthy friend and his wife happens to work in politics, and Alito because his wife flew a conservative flag outside their house. Neither of these things is unethical, but that doesn't matter to the left in their pursuit of changing the court forever.