tuesday morning, the naacp then, the ethics and public policy center senior fellow talked about issues beforer÷ the supreme court, including a flagged controversy surrounding justice samuel alito. c-span's washington journal. join the conversation live at 7:00 eastern tuesday morning. >> house judiciary committee voted along party lines tgarland in contemps for not providing the committee audiotapes of the special counsel interview with president biden regarding classified documents. tuesday, attorney general garland testified before that committee. our live coverage begins live tuesday at 10:00 a.m. eastern.

>> on the ci floor, dick durbin responded to supreme court justice justice sael alito's letter to congress that said he would not be recusing himself from the presidential immunity case that is still to be decided by e court. this comes after several lawmakers were calling for a cusal after an upside down american flag was seen flying at the justice's home in the days following the janry.s. capitol attack. also spoke about the issue and emphasized a need for the senate to pass slation for a binding code of conduct and recusal standards for the justices. >> when i went to college here in washington, georgetown, i used to to come into this capitol building and set up there with our -- where our visitors are now sitting and watch what was going on on the senate floor. i can remember 70 things,

particularly the day that bobby kennedy gave a speech about vietnam that was highly anticipated. came walking through that with his brother ted kennedy, both of them senat(ps, one from new york , the other from massachusetts. it was an historic moment. it was a magic moment for a college student. it was just overwhelming to be a witness to that it was a magic moment. it overwhelming to realize what this building has meant to this nation throughout our history. i will never forget what happened in this chamber on january 6, 2021. violent extremists stormed the capital to prevent certification of the 2020 presidential election. donald trump was engaged in a big lie. ry of the united states, he questioned the legal outcome of the election. madam president, you and i both know that is fundamental to a democracy to believe that we can

have a peaceful transition o decision-makers guided by the people of this country without political interference, many carried banners to show their support for president trump to overturn the election, the big lie. the stop to steal campaign on behalf of president trump were on display that day. one was an american flag flown heaven flag. while the events of january 6 were hard to imagine, reports that the same battle flag flew outside the supreme court justice samuel alito's home were nearly as shocking. in january 2021, less than two weeks after the insurrection at the capito upside down american flag flew over justice

virginia. in the summer of 2023, the appeal to heaven flag flew on the flagpole of the alitos' beach home ink# new jersey. while these flags may have once held other meanings, year 2021 they were closely associated with election deniers and extreme right-wing battle flags of trump's maga authority madam president, ultimately rests on its reputation in public confidence. the supreme court doesn't own an army. it doesn't have a vast treasury. it depends on people trusting the justices to make honest, professional reputation and pu confidence is the strength of the supreme cour that is why the supreme court's recently adopted code of conduct requires justices to avoid

impropriety and the appearance of activities. the code of conduct and federal law requires justices to recuse themselves when their impartiality might be questioned. the flying of these flags marks a in the supreme court's ongoing ethical crisis. alito has not only chosen sides in ant he's also announced his allegiance in pending legal disputes. as we speak, the supreme court is considering two critical cases relating to e 2020 presidential election and the january 6 insurrec united state the supreme court will decide whether former president trump is immune from criminal prosecution for his efforts to and in fisher vs. the united states, the court, again the supreme court, will determine whet the felony obstruction

statute applies to thean 6 rioters who tried to stop congress from exercising its constitutional duty to certify election. the court's ruling on these issues will be critical to resp for one of the darkest chapters in our histo are held accountable. but displaying the upside down american flag and appeal to heaven flag creates the peerns that justice alito has already aligned himself with the stop the steal campaign. he cannot credibly claim to be an umpire calling balls and strikes in these cases. he has donned the jersey of his avorite team. alito to recuse himself and why i urge chief justice roberts to finally step up and take what steps are necessary to ensure that justice alito does not sit on those cases and rather that he recuse justice alito refused my request. i'm going to keep this letter,

the original version that was sent to me and senator whitehouse by justice alito in which he makes an argument that the flag should not be taken seriously, that it was his wife's decision. there were complications in her decision. it's hard to accept this. it's hard to first, to believe that this man who we're asking to recuse himself from the supreme court cases has somehow stood in judgment of himself and that he did not unethical and should not recuse himself. he refused our request to come before the committee and refused our request to recuse himself¿ from these cases. in doing so, he claimed he bears no responsibility for the january 6 related flags flying over homes. instead he placed the blame his.

he went on to down play the significance of the upside down american flag display claiming it was part of a dispute with neighbors and denied -- knowing the connection between the apappeal to heaven flag and the snucks in the8sel ■pitol. the chief justice refused to take action and deferred to stalito's decision. justice alito's decision to recuse b the question, why should he have the sole power to decide whether recusal from the case is necessary. additional reporting called into question his version of the events with text messages and even recording to call the police suggesting a neighborhoo upside down american flag flew over the alito residence. and whether justice a legal tow raised these flags hself■ or stood idly by while his wife did so, the fact remains the same.

a reasonable person would question justice alito's impartiality. but the consequences of justice alito's actions go far beyond this. he needs to recuse himself from these cases. justice a as a political actor and ally of the far right. his actions suggest no matter what arguments are made and what evidence is presented at the supreme court his decisions will align with personal beliefs and policy preferences. no matter what explanatis in tht will be hard for anybody before the cou justice alito approaches their case without afford further erosion of public confidence in our our faith in the impartiality of judges is essential to the functioning of our legal system and democratic form of

government. for more than aj5ry after story has broken about ethical misconduct by the sitting justices of the supreme court. we've learned that some justices, including justiceagai travel from billionaires with interests before the court. the senate and the american people deserve to know the full extent of how immense wealth is used to buy private access to the justices. that's why the senate judiciary committee is exercising its constitutional authority to investigate what has been provided to the justices, and i will continue to push for legislation a bill sponsored primarily by senator sheldon whitehouse but many of us joined asx> cosponsors, to establish a binding code of conduct and recusal standards for the justices. why in the world should the highest court in our land have the lowest standard of ethics? if every other federal judge is held to a standard of ethics to make certain that their reputation is intact, why would that not apply to the justices

sitting on the highest court of the land? we'll continue to push for legislation to create a binding code of conduct and recusal standards that the american people can last year the judiciary committee reported to the floor the supreme court ethics recusal and transparency act. importantly, this legislation's ethical and would apply equally to every juic court regardless of the party of the president who appointed them. the supreme court has failed to crisis that has engulfed must d. madam president, it is a simple fact, there is a chief justice of the supreme court, john roberts. it is within his power to resolve this ethical issue tonight, to have it done by the morning to make it clear that the supreme court is taking a different course, one credible to the american people. justice alito cannot stand in judgment of himself. the fact that we have to