The Supremes

[GoCubsGo]

The disgrace continues...

Durbin: Justices hitting Supreme Court’s reputation with ‘wrecking ball’

[Vrede too]

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Expertly Mocks Nancy Mace On House Floor
The progressive Democrat zinged the Republican for reading a list of "special interests."

...



Rim shot!

Ocasio-Cortez then used the litigation-funding focus to call out the high court.

“When I first heard that the Republican side was going to be calling a hearing on third-party influence in our courts, I was so excited because I thought, finally we are going to address the biggest scandal in American democracy that we are currently having right now, which is the extraordinary corruption and wholesale purchase of members of the Supreme Court,” Ocasio-Cortez said.

“And I also find it amusing that we just heard from the Republican side, ‘Ucchh, why do we want to talk about this?’” she added. “Because women have lost the right to choose, because Indigenous people have lost rights, because minorities have lost rights, because working people across the country have lost rights due to this level of corruption.” ...

[Vrede too]

The disgrace continues...

Durbin: Justices hitting Supreme Court’s reputation with ‘wrecking ball’

Different benefactor, a healthcare executive, same old corruption:

Most of Justice Thomas' $267,000 loan for an RV seems to have been forgiven, Senate Democrats say

Also:

... ProPublica reported that Justice Samuel Alito also failed to disclose a private trip to Alaska he took in 2008 that was paid for by two wealthy Republican donors, one of whom repeatedly had interests before the court....

The disgrace continues...

[Vrede too]

After All That Pressure, Supreme Court Adopts Most Pathetic “Code of Ethics” Ever
It doesn’t seem like the court’s new code of ethics will do all that much.

... The code does not mention any enforcement mechanisms, however, and disclosures are completely voluntary.

... Yet the new set of rules fails to outline possible consequences should ethics violations persist.

“This is a long-overdue step by the justices, but a code of ethics is not binding unless there is a mechanism to investigate possible violations and enforce the rules,” said Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, noting that the court’s “honor system” holding justices accountable hasn’t worked in the past....

Disgraceful

[GoCubsGo]

After All That Pressure, Supreme Court Adopts Most Pathetic “Code of Ethics” Ever
It doesn’t seem like the court’s new code of ethics will do all that much.

... The code does not mention any enforcement mechanisms, however, and disclosures are completely voluntary.

... Yet the new set of rules fails to outline possible consequences should ethics violations persist.

“This is a long-overdue step by the justices, but a code of ethics is not binding unless there is a mechanism to investigate possible violations and enforce the rules,” said Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, noting that the court’s “honor system” holding justices accountable hasn’t worked in the past....

Disgraceful

A placebo code of ethics.

Yeah, we're all good now.

[Vrede too]

A placebo code of ethics.

Yeah, we're all good now.

It's as if getting pulled over for speeding meant a glare and a finger wag, period.

[GoCubsGo]

A placebo code of ethics.

Yeah, we're all good now.

It's as if getting pulled over for speeding meant a glare and a finger wag, period.

Not even, they have to self report themselves for speeding first.

What amazes me a bit is our government is famously recognized for checks and balances with the courts being the arbiter, yet they reject any checks on themselves.

How fundamentally unamerican and hugely egotistical. It's certainly not going to pacify their "trust factor".

[Vrede too]

It's as if getting pulled over for speeding meant a glare and a finger wag, period.

Not even, they have to self report themselves for speeding first.

What amazes me a bit is our government is famously recognized for checks and balances with the courts being the arbiter, yet they reject any checks on themselves.

How fundamentally unamerican and hugely egotistical. It's certainly not going to pacify their "trust factor".

Yup, America is screwed.

Democrats Pull Vote On Harlan Crow Subpoenas After GOP Threatens 'S**t Show'
Republicans filed dozens of last-minute amendments to stall efforts to compel the GOP Texas billionaire to produce information about Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

Senate Democrats on Thursday abruptly canceled a vote to subpoena Republican Texas billionaire Harlan Crow and conservative judicial activist Leonard Leo for more information regarding their relationships with Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas after Republicans filed a last-minute gambit to stall the proceedings.

“It is going to be a long day and we’re going to get nothing done ... you’re gonna have a complete shit show,” warned Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, ahead of the planned vote....

Whack9 must be so proud.

Serve the fat cat donors, nothing else matters.

[GoCubsGo]

"Like erecting a dam with a chain link fence": Supreme Court refuses to get why people hate them

The funniest part of the new "ethics code" released by the Supreme Court this week is that it kicks off with laughable language that lets everyone know that the corrupt right-wing justices have no intention of following their own rules. In the very first paragraph, for instance, the justices address the public perception that they "regard themselves as unrestricted by any ethics rules," by simply shrugging it off as a "misunderstanding." To which court observers immediately responded with, "Holy gaslighting, Batman!"

[GoCubsGo]

I've gotta bad feeling about this.

The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments Wednesday that, on paper, are about a group of commercial fishermen who oppose a government fee that they consider unreasonable. But the lawyers who have helped to propel their case to the nation’s highest court have a far more powerful backer: petrochemicals billionaire Charles Koch.

The case is one of the most consequential to come before the justices in years. A victory for the fishermen would do far more than push aside the monitoring fee, part of a system meant to prevent overfishing, that they objected to. It would very likely sharply limit the power of many federal agencies to regulate not only fisheries and the environment, but also health care, finance, telecommunications and other activities, legal experts say.

“It might all sound very innocuous,” said Jody Freeman, founder and director of the Harvard Law School Environmental and Energy Law Program and a former Obama White House official. “But it’s connected to a much larger agenda, which is essentially to disable and dismantle federal regulation.”

[Vrede too]

"Like erecting a dam with a chain link fence": Supreme Court refuses to get why people hate them

The funniest part of the new "ethics code" released by the Supreme Court this week is that it kicks off with laughable language that lets everyone know that the corrupt right-wing justices have no intention of following their own rules. In the very first paragraph, for instance, the justices address the public perception that they "regard themselves as unrestricted by any ethics rules," by simply shrugging it off as a "misunderstanding." To which court observers immediately responded with, "Holy gaslighting, Batman!"

Creative partial solution:

John Oliver offers to pay Clarence Thomas $1m a year if he resigns from supreme court
Late-night host gives justice, under fire over undisclosed donations, 30 days to accept offer, which includes a tour bus

... “Lot on your plate right now, from stripping away women’s rights to hearing January 6 cases … and you deserve a break, you know, away from the meanness of Washington. So you can be surrounded by the regular folks whose lives you made demonstrably worse for decades.”

... “So that’s the offer – $1m a year, Clarence. And a brand new condo on wheels. And all you have to do … is sign the contract and get the fuck off the supreme court,” Oliver remarked. “The clock starts now – 30 days, Clarence. Let’s do this!”

The yearly salary for supreme court justices – whose appointments are for life – is $298,500....

[Vrede too]

Clarence Thomas' new law clerk brings a history of racism accusations
While working at Turning Point USA in 2015, the new clerk apparently texted another employee, "I hate Black people"

In yet another scandal involving Justice Clarence Thomas, he recently hired a new law clerk set to begin in the upcoming term who has been accused of being a racist.

Crystal Clanton, a 2022 graduate from the Antonin Scalia Law School,

Eww. Ftr:

Antonin Scalia Law School

... law school of George Mason University, a public research university in Virginia. It is located in Arlington, Virginia, roughly 4 miles (6.4 km) west of Washington, D.C., and 15 miles (24 km) east-northeast of George Mason University's main campus in Fairfax, Virginia....

The law school is known for its conservative ideological leaning in law and economics.

Shocker.

Fta:

was the subject of a 2017 feature by The New Yorker which revealed that while she was working as a field director at Turning Point USA in 2015,

Ftr:
Turning Point USA
Tea Party initiated racist RW youth indoctrination org.

Fta:

she allegedly sent a text message to a fellow employee reading, “I hate black people. Like f**k them all . . . I hate blacks. End of story.”

Oh good, a SCOTUS judge should have a clerk who reflects his own values.

And while at the time of the feature being written she claimed to "have no recollection of these messages," telling the publication in a statement that "they do not reflect what I believe or who I am and the same was true when I was a teenager," it makes her a worrisome choice none the less.

Cowardly lying, again a perfect fit with Clarence.

... According to Mediaite, who reported on her in 2018, she allegedly also shared a Snapchat photo during her time at TPUSA of a man who appears to be Arab with a caption she wrote that reads, “Just thinking about ways to do another 9/11.”

She's an eclectic bigot, just like Clarence.



Lubricating the 3-way? Nttawwt. It is wrong wrong wrong, but only because of who the swingers are, not because of their ages, races or preferred swinging style.

[GoCubsGo]

Lubricating the 3-way? Nttawwt. It is wrong wrong wrong, but only because of who the swingers are, not because of their ages, races or preferred swinging style.

She now merits her own Wiki page!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_Clanton

[Vrede too]

Lubricating the 3-way? Nttawwt. It is wrong wrong wrong, but only because of who the swingers are, not because of their ages, races or preferred swinging style.

She now merits her own Wiki page!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_Clanton

... Clanton had worked for Ginni Thomas, the Justice's wife, and had lived at the Thomas's house for a year....

Ew ew ew.

[GoCubsGo]

[Vrede too]

https://twitter.com/MeidasTouch/status/ ... 0981059839

It's a loss for Jack Smith, but silver linings?
We've been expecting this and SCOTUS probably should be the final arbiter of the presidential immunity question.
The expedited timeline is unusually rapid, best we could have hoped for.
The Appeals Court was aggressively unanimous. This may be as close to a slam dunk of any of the Dolt .45 cases.
It will be good to get SCOTUS in the habit of rejecting TRE45QN.

[GoCubsGo]

https://twitter.com/MeidasTouch/status/ ... 0981059839

It's a loss for Jack Smith, but silver linings?
We've been expecting this and SCOTUS probably should be the final arbiter of the presidential immunity question.
The expedited timeline is unusually rapid, best we could have hoped for.
The Appeals Court was aggressively unanimous. This may be as close to a slam dunk of any of the Dolt .45 cases.
It will be good to get SCOTUS in the habit of rejecting TRE45QN.

Two weeks to decide to take the case? Probably won't get a decision until June.
And if the trial is now very possibly (probably) delayed until after the election?

They're slow walking it.

If trump wins, bye bye indictments.

Not to mention that the electorate needs to know the facts and verdict before November.

[Vrede too]

Two weeks to decide to take the case?

It's supposedly fast

Probably won't get a decision until June.

Could be May.

And if the trial is now very possibly (probably) delayed until after the election?

I'm with billy.pilgrim, I blame Garland most of all.

They're slow walking it.

It's supposedly fast, according to PBS

If trump wins, bye bye indictments.

If trump wins, it'll be a disappointment, but our problems will be much bigger than this.

Not to mention that the electorate needs to know the facts and verdict before November.

Good point, but I'm with billy.pilgrim. I blame Garland most of all.

[billy.pilgrim]

Obama picked Garland for SC because he thought the republicans would accept him. That should be reason enough to stay away.

With all the good choices for AG, Biden picks a maga-man for AG
and then - sticks with him.

Imagine where we’d be right now had Biden entrusted the outgoing most unlikely Senator from Alabama with the duties of enforcing our laws.

[Vrede too]

Obama picked Garland for SC because he thought the republicans would accept him. That should be reason enough to stay away.

With all the good choices for AG, Biden picks a maga-man for AG
and then - sticks with him.

Imagine where we’d be right now had Biden entrusted the outgoing most unlikely Senator from Alabama with the duties of enforcing our laws.

It would have been nice to see a more aggressive DoJ.


Republicans will no longer get to handpick their judges when they sue Biden
The federal judiciary’s new rules target “judge shopping.” That’s terrible news for Matthew Kacsmaryk and other partisan judges.

Good, let's hope the move has the intended effect. Amarillo federal Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk is a dangerous RW asshole who lacks the integrity to recuse himself from obvious judge shopped cases.