Time For Some Washington Housecleaning

It seems that ethics are a hot topic in Washington these days. The focus has been on the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court. It seems that at least two justices have been getting personal benefits and failing to disclose them on their annual filings. While we are on the subject of ethics, it is worth mentioning that the House and the Senate also needs an ethics lecture.

The controversy about the Supreme Court started when it was revealed that Justice Clarence Thomas had taken numerous luxury trips around the world paid for by a billionaire, who may or may not have business in front of the court. Whether he does or does not have cases that affect his benefactor, there is no doubt that Justice Thomas has failed to disclose any information about the trips and other lavish perks

Inside Politics

that he and his wife have been enjoying.

The Clarence Thomas situation got even worse when it turned out that the billionaire purchased the house that had been occupied by the Justice’s mother. In addition, since the purchase, the house has been renovated with the addition of carport and other new features. The purchaser money bags stated that he wanted to turn the house into a museum, but museums don’t need carports.

The issue in this case is that all of the other judges in the federal courts are obligated to file a conflict disclosure report, but the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court states that they don’t have to file similar forms. Because of the sensitivity of this whole matter, a Senate Committee held a public hearing on the ethics mess and took testimony from a number of legal scholars who stated that the Supreme Court should follow the same rules as the other federal judges.

In time, the Supreme Court will be forced to come up with a new

Karl V. Anton, Jr., Publisher, Anton Community Newspapers, 1984-2000

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For circulation inquiries, email: subscribe@antonmediagroup.com disclosure process and the sacred nine members will have new rules to follow. Which brings us to the issue of members of Congress trading in stocks connected to issues before them. For the past five plus years, legislation has been introduced that would ban members from trading in stocks based on inside information. That happened during the pandemic when some members were buying stock in vaccine companies such as Moderna and Pfizer.

Every time the media asks any Congress member about the need for a ban on such transactions they all say they favor such a ban and blame it on the leadership for not bringing the bills to the floor. I recall the old expression “what is good for the goose is good for the gander.” Both the Court and the Congress should do the right thing and clean up their act.

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