Judge Michael Ponsor, a sitting federal judge appointed by Bill Clinton, weighed in on the inverted flag flying over Judge Samuel Alito's home in an op-ed for The New York Times on Friday, saying it was unethical.
“Regardless of its legality, displaying the flag in that manner, at that time, should not have happened. To put it bluntly, any judge with reasonable ethical instincts would have immediately realized that flying the flag at that time and in that manner It was inappropriate. And stupid,” Ponsor said.
An inverted American flag, a symbol used by Donald Trump supporters who claim President Biden did not win the 2020 election, was seen flying at Alito's home in the weeks after the Jan. 6 riot, it was first reported. the New York Times.
“Courts work because people trust judges. Taking sides in this way erodes that trust,” Ponsor, chief judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, continued, criticizing the Supreme Court.
Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito Jr., left, and his wife Martha-Ann Alito, pay their respects at the casket of the Rev. Billy Graham in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, Feb. 28, 2018. (AP Photo/Pablo Martínez Monsiváis)
ALITO SAYS HIS WIFE SHOWED THE FLAG BACKWARDS AFTER AN ARGUMENT WITH AN INSULTING NEIGHBOR
Alito previously told Fox News that his wife was the one who hung the flag in response to insults from a neighbor.
“You just don't do that kind of thing, whether it's considered crossing the line or just going over the edge. Flying those flags was the equivalent of putting a bumper sticker on your car that said 'Stop the Steal.' Just don't do it,” Ponsor wrote.
Ponsor also weighed in on the fact that it was Alito's wife who raised the flag.
“Being the spouse of a judge is not easy. On the one hand, a person should not have to give up the right to free expression at the altar of marriage. On the other hand, it is not unreasonable to expect a spouse to avoid embarrassing a being or complicate your professional life,” Ponsor continued.
Associate Justice Samuel Alito joins other members of the Supreme Court as they pose for a new group portrait, Oct. 7, 2022, at the Supreme Court Building in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
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Another symbol carried by Trump supporters, an “Appeal to Heaven” flag, was seen flying at a beach house owned by Alito in New Jersey, the Times reported days later. The flag, also known as the Pine Flag, dates back to the Revolutionary War and is also associated with the desire for a Christian government, according to the New York Times.
“Basic ethical behavior should not depend on laws or regulations. It should be built into a judge's DNA. That did not happen here. The display of the flag may or may not have been illegal, but as far as public perception goes about the integrity of the court, was certainly not helpful,” Ponsor wrote.
Ponsor previously criticized the Supreme Court in a New York Times op-ed in July 2023 as a federal judge. He questioned their ethical standards and called on judges to establish a “formal ethical apparatus.”
Another sitting federal judge, Reggie Walton, criticized the former president on CNN. Former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg also regularly hit Trump while he was a presidential candidate, as a sitting justice.
“He's a phony,” Ginsburg said in 2016, according to CNN. “He has no coherence. He says whatever comes into his head at any given moment. He really has an ego… How did he manage to not turn in his tax returns? The press seems to be very kind to him in that regard.”
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Alito is facing several calls from members of the media, as well as Democratic lawmakers, to recuse himself from cases involving Trump over the flag controversy.
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez demanded during an interview on MSNBC that the Senate investigate Alito.
“Samuel Alito has identified himself with the same people who stormed the Capitol on January 6 and will now preside over court cases that have profound implications for the participants of that demonstration,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “And while this is a threat to our democracy, Democrats have a responsibility to defend our democracy. And in the Senate we have gavels.”
