Of course, American flags fly in large numbers in America, so why not in front of the house of one of the most important judges. But why were the Stars and Stripes hanging upside down in the garden of Samuel Alito, one of nine members of the Supreme Court? The question has been plaguing the United States since this somewhat older photo of his property in Alexandria, southwest of Washington, emerged.
The recording appears to be from January 17, 2021, a few days before Joe Biden took office as the 46th President of the United States. In November 2020, Biden won the election against Donald Trump. Trump was supposed to leave the White House quickly, but he didn’t want to. On January 6, 2021, the loser called his supporters together and a mob then stormed the Capitol, where his successor’s victory was to be confirmed.
There were dead and injured people, and some attackers also had upside down US flags with them. This version was one of the symbols of “Stop the Steal” in the wake of Trump’s lie that his triumph was stolen. Meanwhile, legal attempts to overturn the result were still being examined in the Supreme Court. And today, shortly before the next duel with Biden on November 5th, the debate about Trump’s rebellion from back then is entering the next rounds.
Alito contributes to the Supreme Court’s rightward shift
The Supreme Court is currently discussing cases that have to do with the storming of Congress, including Trump’s desire for immunity. He believes that a president should remain unpunished for all actions of his era, including this type of coup attempt. If the grandees of the judiciary see it the same way, then the planned trial against Trump for alleged conspiracy would have collapsed; a special investigator had brought charges.
A key figure among the most powerful jurors is Samuel Alito, 74 years old, appointed in 2006 by then-head of state George W. Bush, a Republican. He inherited the legendary judge Sandra Day O’Connor and has since contributed to the shift to the right of this last instance. Now, almost four years after the last and just before the next presidential vote, the New York Times The picture of the strange flags from Alito’s environment was leaked.
The photo is making the rounds a little late, but in exciting times again. Previously, no one other than the local residents seemed to have noticed what the Alito couple were decorating themselves with. Observers are horrified at the thought that such an authoritative voice of the nation would dangle the 50 stars downwards, as if this were a particularly radical contribution to Trump’s MAGA round.
The affair further fuels the culture war
The suspect denies all suspicion. He was “in no way involved” in raising the flag, Judge Alito said aloud New York Times in an email. “It was briefly posted by Ms. Alito in response to a neighbor’s use of offensive and personally offensive language on yard signs.” That doesn’t sound really understandable. In any case, many interested parties are wondering why Mr. Alito was not offended by this.
He can hardly claim that there was an inconspicuous or misleading sign dangling from the pole. Nobody is likely to accidentally hang the banner upside down. It could be that his spouse or someone else was working in the house, admits law professor Amanda Frost from the University of Virginia in the newspaper that unearthed the case. But Alito “shouldn’t have something like that in his yard as a message to the world” because an equivalent of the “Stop the Steal” sign is a problem “when deciding election-related cases.”
The affair is likely to further fuel the election campaign and the culture war; the importance of the US Supreme Court can hardly be overestimated. This committee very often has the last word when other institutions, which have long had a right-wing majority, cannot agree. Several ethical conflicts accompany the chamber, including luxury trips by Justice Clarence Thomas and, above all, his wife’s support for Trump. The image of the Supreme Court is getting worse and worse.
The Alito case will not significantly increase confidence in months that will be groundbreaking for the rest of the world as well as America. There was clearly some disarray outside Alito’s residence, but even the American Veterans Affairs Rules contain this sentence: “Do not fly the flag upside down unless there is an emergency.” A Democrat-elected president probably shouldn’t be an emergency for an authoritative judge.