Leaked Supreme Court memos show Roberts knows exactly how bad Alito is

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts knows that Justice Samuel Alito’s antics and ideology are spiraling out of control, so he makes sure to shield him from the public eye.

The New York Times Reports that Roberts had initially appointed Alito to write the majority opinion in a case that found prosecutors had overreached in April by charging several Jan. 6 rioters with obstruction of justice. But Roberts took over the opinion himself in May, just four days after revelations that a inverted american flaga symbol of the “Stop the Steal” movement, was displayed outside Alito’s home shortly after the January 6 attack.

It is unusual to change authors in a Supreme Court ruling, Times reported, citing experts on the court, and Roberts had already written majority opinions in seven of the high court’s decisions during the term. It is unclear whether Roberts’ decision was related to the flag incident, and none of the nine Supreme Court justices responded to the newspaper for comment.

Such an unusual occurrence on the court, however, will raise suspicions, especially since Roberts continues to reject attempts to reform the Supreme Court’s ethics. Despite Roberts’ conservatism, he is a more moderate voice compared to his right-wing colleagues, and has expressed concerns about the legacy and image of the Supreme Court. But that didn’t stop him from ruling in Donald Trump’s favor on the issue of presidential immunitythereby dramatically expanding the privileges of the presidency and limiting its accountability.

In the Times‘ Roberts may have thought his immunity decision would be seen as persuasive and impartial. But the backlash to the decision had the opposite effect, with criticism of the Supreme Court effectively shielding Trump from facing any consequences for his actions.

Roberts’ move could signal cracks in the solidarity among the Supreme Court’s six conservative justices. Or it could simply be the chief justice rushing to protect the public image of the court, which has taken a huge hit from several ethical scandals as well as unpopular statements, such as the presidential immunity case and the to overthrow Roe vs. Wade. In any case, at some level even the Chief Justice has to realise that the Supreme Court is not functioning properly and that changes need to be made.