The rising Conern of jude IMPARTIALITY

The Daily recently recorded an episode about rising concerns relating to ethics within the Supreme Court. A group of legal experts, including law professors from Harvard Law School, UC Berkeley, and the University of Virginia, have been investigating whether the current Supreme Court justices have been engaging in ethical misconduct due to their relationships with lawyers, political figures, and donors. For example, Justice Clarence Thomas has a close connection with a Republican billionaire, Harlan Crow. ProPublica posted a series of articles highlighting Justice Thomas’ complex relationship with Mr. Harlan. It features three main points of interest: paying for education, buying property, and paid vacations. Harlan pays for Thomas’ grandson’s education at a private institution along with the house that his mother lives in. Additionally, Justice Thomas has received a series of undisclosed gifts which raises concern about how this affects his cases. Are these benefactions bound to influence his supposedly unbiased view? 

These revelations raise a larger point about how this is an ongoing issue not just in the Supreme Court. In a political context, it seems to be that a little hush money can go very far, but how can we make sure that the politicians and judges we trust are actually being ethical? In the case of Roe v. Wade, the justices ruled that since there is nothing in the Constitution concerning abortion, it is up to the state to decide. But how do we know that Republican donors and entities like Mr. Harlan did not unethically lobby and influence lawmakers both on the federal and state levels? This is a larger concern that needs to be brought to everyone’s attention.