Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. got a call on his cellphone Tuesday. This newly elected President Donald J. There was Trump, who was speaking from Florida.
Hours later, Mr Trump’s legal team asked Justice Alito and eight of his colleagues at the Supreme Court to commute his conviction in New York for falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments to a pornographic film actress before the 2016 election. Will ask you to stop. And the next day, the existence of the call was leaked to ABC News — leading to an uproar about Mr. Trump talking to a judge before whom he had to do business with substantial political and legal consequences.
Justice Alito said in a statement on Wednesday that the pending filing was never mentioned in his conversation with Mr. Trump and that at the time of the call he was not aware that the Trump team planned to file it. People familiar with the call confirmed her account.
But the fact of the call and its timing showed no regard for the appearance of a conflict of interest, at a time when the Supreme Court has come under intense scrutiny over the judges’ refusal to adopt a more rigorous and enforceable ethics code. Has gone.
The circumstances were extraordinary for another reason: According to six people with knowledge of the situation, Justice Alito was given a highly personal charge to prevent Republicans deemed insufficiently loyal to Mr. Trump from entering the administration by some of Trump’s allies. Was being included in the effort. A condition of anonymity for describing private conversations.
The phone call focused on Justice Alito’s former law clerk William Levy, who has impeccable conservative legal credentials. But in the eyes of the Trump team, there is a black spot in front of Mr. Levy’s name. Earlier in the Trump administration, he served as chief of staff to Attorney General William P. Barr, who is now denounced by Mr. Trump as a “traitor” for his refusal to go along with efforts to overturn his loss in the 2020 election. Is seen in. ,
Mr. Levy is being considered for several jobs in the new administration, including Pentagon general counsel. He is also working for the Trump transition on Justice Department-related issues. But his bid for the permanent post has been stymied by Mr. Trump’s advisers, who are vetting staffers for loyalty, according to three people with knowledge of the situation.
As Mr Trump forms his second administration, Mr Barr is among a handful of prominent Republicans who are viewed with such skepticism that others associated with him will not be given jobs in the administration, given the dynamics. According to people familiar. Republicans in that category include Mr. Trump’s former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley. In Mr. Trump’s inner circle, being called the “Pompeo guy” or the “Haley guy” is considered the kiss of death. Opposition from such people can usually be overcome only if Mr Trump himself signs off on their appointment.
Tuesday’s phone call took place against that backdrop. Several people close to the Trump transition team said Thursday that it was their understanding that Justice Alito had requested the call. But a statement by Justice Alito made the case such that the Justices passively agreed to decide on the orders of their former clerks. The disconnect appears to stem from Mr. Levy’s role in laying the groundwork for calls in both directions.
Mr. Levy did not respond to a request for comment. The Supreme Court press office said it had nothing to add to Justice Alito’s statement Wednesday. In that statement, Justice Alito said that Mr. Levy “asked me to speak to President-elect Trump regarding his qualifications to serve in government office. I agree to discuss this matter with President-elect Trump.” It happened and he called me yesterday afternoon.
He said: “We did not discuss the emergency application he filed today, and in fact, at the time of our conversation I was not even aware that such an application would be filed. We also did not discuss any other cases that are pending or may come before the Supreme Court in the future or any previous Supreme Court decisions involving the President-elect.”
During the call, according to information provided by multiple people, Mr. Trump initially seemed confused as to why he was talking to Justice Alito, seeming to think he was answering Justice Alito’s call. Are giving. The judge, the two people said, told the president-elect that he understood Mr. Trump wanted to talk about Mr. Levy, and Mr. Trump then came across the aisle and the two discussed him.
A spokesman for Mr. Trump did not respond to an email seeking comment.
Although it is unusual for an incoming president to talk to a Supreme Court justice about job references, it is routine for judges to serve as references for their former clerks. Judges traditionally regard their clerks as a network of disciples whose continued success they wish to foster as part of their legacy.
Seemingly or not, there is a long history of interaction between presidents and other senior executive branch officials and Supreme Court justices, who sometimes voice their opinions on the fate of administration policies.
In 2004, a controversy arose when a lawsuit was filed demanding the disclosure of records of Vice President Dick Cheney’s energy task force meetings. One of the plaintiffs, the Sierra Club, asked Justice Antonin Scalia to recuse himself from participating in the case because he had recently gone duck hunting with Mr. Cheney. Justice Scalia declined, issuing a 21 page memorandum This made it clear why he believed it was inappropriate to step aside.
Part of Justice Scalia’s reasoning was that Mr. Cheney was being prosecuted over an official action. This makes Mr. Trump’s pending effort to block his sentencing for crimes he was convicted of committing in his private capacity somewhat different, although the basis of Mr. Trump’s argument is that after sentencing and then Fighting the appeal would interfere with his competence. Outside his official duties.
In trying to justify his decision not to recuse himself, Justice Scalia noted that the justices have had personal friendships with presidents over the years, including some who have served with Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Played poker with Truman, but did not recuse himself from challenging cases. Policies and actions of the administration.
Mr Trump has long been trying to pressure the Supreme Court, in some cases publicly criticizing judges on social media for decisions with which he disagrees. According to a person who discussed the matter with Mr. Trump, Mr. Trump has often complained privately that the three judges he appointed in his first term — Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett — have done little for him. Didn’t do anything”.
A week after the 2018 midterm elections, Mr. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump had lunch with Justice Clarence Thomas and his wife Virginia Thomas. Ms. Thomas, a longtime conservative activist, made suggestions to Mr. Trump about personnel changes and later supported his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.
In December 2020, Mr. Trump attacked the Supreme Court as “incompetent and weak” for refusing to address his legal team’s efforts to challenge the 2020 election. Two years later, he attacked the court again to give Congress access to his tax returns.
The Supreme Court saved itself in the eyes of Mr. Trump last summer when six Republican-appointed justices ruled that former presidents enjoy broad immunity from prosecution over actions taken in their official capacity. That ruling raised doubts about how much of the indictment brought against Mr. Trump for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election might actually survive to go to trial — with prosecutors seeking a revised version of the court’s ruling. Even after trying to file.
The Supreme Court’s intervention also seriously delayed the progress of the case, making it effectively impossible to deliver the charges to a jury before the election. And once Trump wins the 2024 race, he will not face prosecution under Justice Department policy.
Kirsten Noyes Contributed research from New York.