Samuel Alito: Contentious flags and court decisions, a look at controversies surrounding Supreme Court justice

A look at Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito's controversies

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Samuel Alito declined to recuse himself from cases related to the 2020 election and the January 6, 2021, Capitol Hill insurrection on Wednesday, May 29. The conservative jurist faced heavy criticism after The New York Times reported that an upside-down US flag and an "Appeal To Heaven" flag were displayed outside his residences. These are only the most recent of many scandals that have plagued him over the years. On that note, let's take a look at the biggest controversies surrounding Alito. 

1. The American Civil Liberties Union objected to Samuel Alito's nomination

Alito's Supreme Court tenure began in controversy in January 2006 when the American Civil Liberties Union objected to his nomination because he supported policies that "abridge individual freedom." His wife, Martha Bomgardner, was in tears while leaving the confirmation hearing as the Democrats brought up his affiliation to a Princeton University alumni group that excluded women and minorities.

2. Samuel Alito opposed Barack Obama during his 2010 State of the Union address

Alito openly disagreed with Barack Obama as the then-POTUS criticized the court's January 2010 campaign finance ruling during his State of the Union speech. Atypical to Supreme Court justices, Alito shook his head and mouthed, "Not true," as the president spoke.

3. Samuel Alito wrote a dissenting opinion in the Obergefell v Hodges case

Concerned that the decision in the Obergefell v Hodges case, which legalized same-sex marriage, would be "used to vilify Americans who are unwilling to assent to the new orthodoxy," Alito wrote a dissenting opinion in June 2015. Since then, the jurist has intensified his efforts, and most recently denied a sex discrimination case in a February order.

4. Samuel Alito delivered a controversial speech at a 2020 Federalist Society convention

In a contentious speech given in November 2020 at a Federalist Society convention, Alito denounced Covid-19 restrictions for violating individual liberties, attacked Democratic lawmakers' calls to reorganize the court, and implied that the left was a danger to free speech and the right to practice one's religion.

5. Samuel Alito penned the majority opinion in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization

Alito wrote the majority opinion in Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Organization in June 2022. The decision, which reversed Roe v Wade, sparked widespread demonstrations and threats against the justices as Politico leaked a draft of the document in May 2022. 

6. Samuel Alito's contentious Notre Dame Law School speech

In a July 2022 address at the Notre Dame Law School, Alito criticized foreign critics who attacked the court's abortion decision. The jurist claimed to have "had the honor this term of writing I think the only Supreme Court decision in the history of that institution that has been lambasted by a whole string of foreign leaders" and said they felt "perfectly fine commenting on American law."

7. Samuel Alito was accused of leaking the Burwell v Hobby Lobby ruling

The New York Times reported in November 2022 that a conservative activist was aware of the Burwell v Hobby Lobby ruling in 2014 before it was made public. The activist alleged that he learned of the ruling from his donors who had dined with Alito, prompting a congressional hearing before the House Judiciary Committee. Alito refuted the allegations, telling The Times that the suggestion that he or his wife disclosed the ruling was "completely false."

8. The controversial upside-down flag

On May 16, The New York Times reported that in January 2021, when supporters of the "Stop the Steal" campaign were using the upside-down American flag to protest the results of the 2020 presidential election, Alito flew an upside-down flag outside his home. This apparently "alarmed" his neighbors, who then reported the flag to the court. Experts in ethics think that the action probably went against the laws prohibiting judges from exhibiting any political prejudice.

9. Samuel Alito apparently participated in a right-wing boycott against Bud Light

In a May 20 report, Law Dork uncovered that Alito apparently sold shares of Anheuser-Busch, the parent company of Bud Light, after the beer brand came under fire for working with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in August 2023. This raised concerns about whether the justice took part in a right-wing boycott against Bud Light.

10. 'Appeal To Heaven' flag spotted outside Samuel Alito's vacation home

An "Appeal To Heaven" flag, a Revolutionary War-era symbol currently popular among religious conservatives and Donald Trump supporters, was spotted outside the justice's vacation home in New Jersey in 2023, according to a report by The New York Times.