CNN anchor Fareed Zakaria on Sunday blasted Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito for what he called a “disgusting” and “scandalous” speech last week criticizing foreign leaders who disagreed with his Roe v. Wade ruling.
Zaccaria told CNN’s Jim Acosta that Supreme Court justices should at least conduct themselves in a manner that is above politics, given that they are unelected members with lifetime terms who can make crucial decisions that shape the lives of millions of Americans.
“The reason they have that legitimacy is, to put it very simply, they behave themselves, they behave in accordance with the kind of dignity and majesty of the court,” said Zakaria, who hosts CNN’s “Fareed Zakaria GPS.”
“What Alito did, acting like a cheap commentator, not a very good one at that, was downright disgusting. I mean I thought it was the most disrespectful performance of a Supreme Court judge I’ve ever seen in my life,” he said. “I don’t think any of his predecessors would have. I think it’s outrageous.”
Zakaria added that he doesn’t expect formal punishment, but added, “If John Roberts wants to fulfill his role as chief justice, I think he should call Justice Alito and try to explain to him why this hurts not only Alito — who seems like an idiot – but prejudice to the court.
Alito mocked British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Prince Harry during a speech at the Notre Dame Law School’s religious freedom meeting in Rome. He also mentioned Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and French President Emmanuel Macron.
All four leaders sharply criticized the Supreme Court for striking down a nearly 50-year-old constitutional right to abortion, which Alito seemed to find amusing.
Manchin defends climate and tax deal with Schumer in multi-pronged blitz. Why Democrats are excited for Biden after a big week
“In the last few weeks, since I’ve had the honor of writing, I think this is the only Supreme Court decision in the history of this institution that has been criticized by a whole series of foreign leaders who felt it was a perfectly fine commentary on American law,” Alito said. during his speech.
The Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade paved the way for many GOP-led states to ban or severely restrict access to abortion nationwide, even though about two-thirds of Americans support the right to abortion in some cases.
Confidence in the Supreme Court has never been lower, according to a survey earlier this month that found only a quarter of Americans trust the Supreme Court.
Add Comment