Alito Refuses to Recuse Himself from Supreme Court Cases Amid Flag Controversies

Justice Samuel Alito is refusing to recuse himself from Supreme Court cases involving former President Donald Trump and Jan. 6 defendants despite the controversy surrounding flags flown at his residences.

In letters to members of Congress on Wednesday, Alito explained that his wife was responsible for flying an upside-down American flag at their home in 2021 and an “Appeal to Heaven” flag at their New Jersey beach house last year.

He stated that neither incident warrants his recusal from the cases.

“As soon as I saw it, I asked my wife to take it down, but for several days, she refused,” Alito wrote.

The Supreme Court is currently reviewing two significant cases related to the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters, including the charges against the rioters and Trump’s potential immunity from prosecution for election interference.

Alito has previously dismissed calls from Democrats to recuse himself from other matters.

According to The New York Times, an inverted American flag was observed at Alito’s home in Alexandria, Virginia, shortly after the Capitol attack. The newspaper also reported that an “Appeal to Heaven” flag was displayed at the justice’s beach house in New Jersey last summer. Both flags were carried by rioters during the Capitol insurrection in January 2021, echoing Trump’s baseless claims of election fraud.

Alito stated that he was not aware of the upside-down flag above his home until it was brought to his attention. He wrote in nearly identical letters to House and Senate Democrats, “As soon as I saw it, I asked my wife to take it down, but for several days, she refused.”