June is approaching, signaling the time for the Supreme Court to release its most crucial decisions before its summer break. Concurrently, the Democrats’ persistent efforts to undermine the nation’s justice system mean it’s also time for media to target conservative Supreme Court justices and their families.
On cue, the New York Times published a provocative article last week, reviving a story about an inverted American flag displayed at Justice Samuel Alito’s home—three years ago! Democrats imply that Alito displayed the flag in support of the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, and President Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” movement.
They also argue this constitutes an “ethics” violation because the Supreme Court was considering two Trump-related cases at the time. Democrats, including Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-IL), have suggested that due to this flag display, “Alito must recuse himself immediately from cases related to the 2020 election and the January 6th insurrection.”
This recusal is neither happening nor is it warranted. The senator’s insinuation is characteristically vicious. The claim about the inverted flag’s significance unravels upon closer inspection. Trump had already conceded by the time the flag was displayed. Of the two 2020 election cases under consideration, one would not have changed the election outcome, and Alito specifically indicated he would not grant any relief in the other.
The flag was hung amidst a dispute with foul-mouthed neighbors. The New York Times provides no evidence that an upside-down American flag was ever known as a symbol of the Stop the Steal movement. Traditionally, it is a distress signal, reflecting the Alitos’ situation with their expletive-spewing neighbors.
Any hope for the Democrats to abandon their weak attack was, predictably, dashed, as the party and its leftist movement do not embarrass easily. The New York Times recently circulated a second flag photo, this time from a year ago at the Alito beach house where, next to a Philadelphia Phillies flag, hung an “Appeal to Heaven” flag. The outlet claimed it was another Jan. 6 riot symbol. CBS Evening News began its broadcast with the story, noting that “dozens” of Democratic lawmakers were urging Alito to recuse himself from Trump-related cases.
This is reprehensible. While some rioters carried Appeal to Heaven flags on Jan. 6, many also carried regular American flags and Gadsden “Don’t Tread on Me” flags. Are all these, including our national flag, to be seen as signs of political extremism?
The Appeal to Heaven flag was first commissioned by George Washington in 1775. In one sense, Democrats are correct; it is a symbol of insurrection—but not the insurrection they aim to connect it to. The phrase “an appeal to heaven” originates from the 17th-century philosopher John Locke, whose writings, including Two Treatises of Government, were frequently cited by the Constitution’s authors. This is a flag flown by patriots since before the nation’s founding. Associating it with treason is pure demagoguery.
The fact that Democrats resort to using years-old flag photos to attack the Supreme Court’s legitimacy is pitiful. Does the party have nothing more substantial to discuss in this presidential election year? Are President Joe Biden’s economic poll numbers so dismal that pictures of flags at judges’ beach houses must be unearthed from history? Will we next hear that Justice Clarence Thomas flying a Betsy Ross flag on his RV signifies support for returning to slavery? Democrats are grasping at straws.
With Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) and Joe Manchin (D-WV) retiring, if Biden wins reelection and Democrats maintain control of the Senate, they will abolish the filibuster to pass legislation for court-packing, appointing the youngest, most radical far-left justices possible. This is the essence of these absurd flag stories.
