Senate v. SCOTUS

Democratic senators say it’s time to hold the Supreme Court to account. The Senate Judiciary Committee on July 20 advanced the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act, a bill that would force the court to adopt an official and enforceable code of ethics. But Republicans see a ­constitutional conflict.

ProPublica and the Associated Press this year published reports that combed through thousands of documents to uncover details about some justices’ purported improprieties. Included were private luxury vacations with political donors, financial entanglements, and forced book purchases from speaking venues.

“The more information that comes out about the mischief going on at the Supreme Court, the more inevitable it becomes that … we have to do something,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.

The justices have pushed back. Justice Clarence Thomas defended regular vacations with conservative donor Harlan Crow because the latter is a personal friend. Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s staffers said they did not force colleges to purchase book copies as a condition of a speaking engagement.

The U.S. Supreme Court does not have a code of ethics, unlike lower courts. In June, Chief Justice John Roberts clarified some of the high court’s voluntary ethical ­principles and guidelines.

Regardless, the code of ethics bill has little chance of passing. Republicans worry that forcing the judicial branch to adopt an ethics code could violate the separation of powers principle outlined in the Constitution. They say the bill is trying to punish the justices for decisions like Dobbs v. Jackson, which overturned Roe v. Wade.

Surveillance law deadline looms

A key section of the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act expires Dec. 31, but Congress appears to have soured on it ahead of reauthorization.

FISA allows the FBI to install pen registers, taps, traces, and more. Section 702 of the act allows agents to spy on Americans flagged in international investigations. But some Democratic and Republican lawmakers worry the FBI has taken FISA too far.

A court order released in May revealed the FBI violated its own policies by ­executing FISA warrants against people suspected of involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and George Floyd protests in 2020.

“At a minimum, I will be allowing FISA to sunset if we don’t see significant reforms in the administration,” Rep. Thomas Tiffany, R-Wis., said at a recent House committee hearing. FBI Director Christopher Wray admitted that the agency has made mistakes but promised to address them. —C.L.