Conservative legal activist Leonard Leo is refusing to provide Democratic lawmakers with information regarding his interactions with Justice Samuel Alito. Alito attended a luxury fishing trip with him in and took a ride on a private jet owned by a conservative hedge fund manager. ProPublica first reported the trip which Alito did not include on his financial disclosure forms. In a scathing letter Tuesday to key Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee Leos lawyer said the congressional inquiry exceeds the limits placed by the Constitution on the Committees investigative authority and is tainted by partisan politics. The committee is investigating ethics standards at the Supreme Court as a part of its oversight efforts after an array of stories have been published raising questions of transparency at the high court. Leos attorney also accused the investigation of being onesided noting that while the committee is professing interest in potential ethics violations and influencepeddling at theSupreme Court it has focused on individuals who have relationships with Justices appointed by Republican Presidents. He also noted that in the past Whitehouse has called Leo the little spider that you find at the center of the dark money web. Where as here the scrutiny of an investigation is aimed at only one side of the political spectrum it is a fair inference that politics is the motivating factor he said. Whereas Mr. Leo is now the subject of a congressional inquiry the many individuals and organizations who have facilitated travel for Democratappointed Justices or exchanged gifts or personal hospitality with those Justices are apparently immune from the Committees attention he added. He said that even if it were to produce legislation it would be unconstitutional if enacted violating separation of powers principles. The Committee Chairman Dick Durbin said that answers to these questions will help the Committees work to create reliable ethics guardrails at the Court under Congresss clearly established oversight and legislative authority. The late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg maintained a close relationship with the proabortion rights group National Organization for Women which frequently had business before the high Court. None of these incidents has resulted in inquiries from this Committee Rivkin wrote. He is a longtime player in conservative judicial circles and cochairman of the Federalist Society. A spokesperson for Durb in declined to comment. Also has reached out to Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse for comment on the letter. The letter was responding to a July letter penned by Committee ChairmanDick DurbIn of Illinois and Sen. Shelly Whitehouse a Rhode Island Democrat asking Leo to provide more information about the trip. The. letter said that Whitehouses remarks were akin to a campaign of innuendo and character assassination that have now moved beyond angry speeches and disparaging soundbites. It also said that the investigation lacks a valid legislative purpose because even if the committee were to pass a bill on the matter it would not be constitutional under separation of power principles. It was also linked to a Fox News report raising questions about an investiture celebration for Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson that the outlet reported was funded by undisclosed donors. It is not clear if the investigation will result in any legislation.
Conservative legal activist rebuffs Democratic request for information on fishing trip with Justice Samuel Alito
