FILE – Justice Samuel Alito poses for a new group photo with other Supreme Court justices at the Supreme Court in Washington, Oct. 7, 2022. Justice Alito rejected calls from Trump and his Jan. 6 Supreme Court case to recuse himself. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito questioned whether compromise between left and right is possible in a conversation posted to social media on Monday. The conservative justice also said he agreed with a woman who said the United States should return to a “place of sanctity.”
The audio was posted to X by liberal filmmaker Lauren Windsor, who said it was recorded last week at the Supreme Court Historical Association’s annual dinner.
“One side is going to win,” Alito said. “There may be ways to cooperate, ways to peacefully coexist, but it’s going to be difficult because you disagree on fundamental points that you can’t compromise on.”
Windsor then told Alito: “I think the solution is to win the moral argument, which is that people in this country who believe in God need to continue to fight for it and bring this country back to sanctity.”
“I agree,” Alito replied.
Ms Windsor also spoke with Chief Justice John Roberts, who rejected similar arguments. When Ms Windsor suggested the Supreme Court should lead the nation down a “Christian” path, Mr Roberts replied, “I don’t know if that’s true.”
Justice Alito rejected calls to recuse himself from a Supreme Court case involving former President Donald Trump and the Jan. 6 defendants after reports surfaced that a controversial flag had been flown over his home.
In his letter to lawmakers, Alito blamed his wife, Martha Ann, for flying an upside-down flag at their home in 2021 and a “Appeal to Heaven” flag at their New Jersey beach house last year. Both flags were similar to those flown during the violent storming of the Capitol in January 2021 by rioters repeating Trump’s false claims of election fraud.
Roberts declined an invitation to meet with Democratic senators to discuss Supreme Court ethics and the flag that flies outside Alito’s home.
In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Windsor explained why she recorded her conversations with Justices Alito and Roberts, saying, “I believe I am justified in taking this step because the Supreme Court is shrouded in secrecy and has refused any accountability despite overwhelming evidence of serious ethical violations.”
