I had the honor of dining at the U.S. Supreme Court with my dad, then a new U.S. District judge, in the 1970s. Others attending were Chief Justice Warren Burger, Justices Sandra Day O’Connor, and Byron White, with other new federal judges. It was awe-inspiring to be among justices dedicated to being and reasonably appearing fair.

Federal judges’ families know they cannot show political or partisan bias. Our dad was a judge for more than 30 years. We respected the institution of the judiciary as independent, and free from the appearance of impropriety or bias. Justices Alito and Thomas don’t care.

It’s ludicrous that Justice Samuel Alito takes no personal responsibility for appearing biased. He blames on his wife the display of the insurrectionist, upside down flag flown for several days at his home soon after the insurrection. They flew another flag associated with the insurrection at his beach home.

Alito and fellow justice Thomas have accepted luxury trips from and gatherings with right-wing billionaire influencers. Justice Clarence Thomas’ wife, and “best friend” Ginni supported the insurrection, and MAGA election-deniers, as evidenced during the Jan. 6 hearings, via her numerous texts to the former president’s chief of staff and indicted election interference co-conspirator, Mark Meadows.

Their failure to recuse themselves from cases related to the Jan. 6 violent insurrection and former president appears blatantly unfair. They are like biased umpires in a World Series game, who display the pennant of one of the two teams in their backyards, before calling the pitches.

It’s shocking that both of these men sit on cases involving the former president’s absurd claims of total immunity. They also sat on the Colorado 14th Amendment disqualification case and ruled for the former president (shocker!)

Federal law and ethics rules require that these two Supreme Court Justices recuse themselves (or be recused) from voting on cases seeking to hold Donald Trump accountable.

Mary Tomlinson

Baker City