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☆ Senate Democrats accuse Justice Samuel Alito of violating Supreme Court ethics rules with WSJ interview, demand recusal in linked tax case
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Justice Samuel Alito recently blasted proposed SCOTUS ethics roles in an interview with WSJ. Senate Democrats say he violated the court's ethics rules by doing that. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Rivkin, the senators note, is representing one of the parties in a tax case currently pending before the court, Moore v. United States. Both Rivkin and a spokesperson for the Supreme Court did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Persons: Samuel Alito, SCOTUS, They're, Sen, Dick Durbin, John Roberts, Alito, Jon Ossoff, David Rivkin —, Rivkin, Alito's, Moore Organizations: Democrats, Service, Democratic, Wall Street, Committee, Wall Locations: Wall, Silicon, Georgia, United States

☆ What is Section 702? Congress is debating the controversial surveillance power
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Juhi Doshi | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, allows the government to conduct targeted surveillance of foreign nationals living outside the U.S. without needing to obtain a warrant. As recently as this month, a court opinion disclosed that FBI employees wrongly searched foreign surveillance data for the last names of a U.S. senator and a state senator. But data on U.S. citizens is still collected when they interact with a foreign surveillance target — that's known as "incidental" collection. Lawmakers from both sides have said they won't vote to renew the provision unless major changes are made in how the FBI uses foreign surveillance data to investigate Americans. "And that means first and foremost addressing the warrantless surveillance of Americans in violation of the Fourth Amendment."

Persons: Samuel Corum, Biden, they're, George Floyd, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Jon, Read, Trump, Ron DeSantis, Bush, Donald Trump, Dick Durbin, Sen, Mike Lee, they've, Patrick Toomey, Toomey, Christopher Wray, Wray Organizations: Getty, Foreign Intelligence, FISA, FBI, Social, American Civil Liberties Union, White, President's Intelligence, Board, National, NBC, Historically, Republicans, DOJ, ACLU's National Security, National Intelligence, Committee Locations: Washington , DC, reauthorize, U.S, China, Russia, Florida, Georgia, Fulton, Utah

The Credit Card Competition Act was reintroduced last month in both the House and the Senate, after not being brought up for a vote in either chamber during the previous Congress. Retailers in support of the legislation argue credit card processing costs are hurting consumers by driving up the cost of business, and, in turn, the price shoppers pay at checkout. On the other side of the fight, major credit card processing networks like Visa , Mastercard , Discover and Capital One say the bill will actually hurt consumers by diminishing popular credit card rewards programs and lessening fraud protections. Visa and Mastercard account for 80% of all credit card volume, according to data from the Nilson Report, a publication tracking the global payment industry. On average, U.S. credit card swipe fees account for 2.24% of a transaction, according to the Merchants Payments Coalition.

Persons: Doug Kantor, Sen, Dick Durbin, He's, Nilson, Durbin, Harley Finkelstein, Finkelstein Organizations: Visa Inc, Mastercard Inc, Visa, Mastercard, Kroger, Walmart, Discover, Merchants Payments Coalition, CNBC, Main, Electronic Payments Coalition Locations: Tiskilwa , Illinois, U.S, Washington, Shopify, Target, America

☆ UAW wins Democratic senators' support for joint venture battery workers
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, July 28 (Reuters) - More than half of the Senate's Democrats are backing the United Auto Workers' push for higher wages and benefits for workers at Detroit Three automakers' joint venture battery plants, they said in a letter released on Friday. UAW leaders have sought to secure support from Washington as negotiations opened earlier this month, with UAW President Shawn Fain meeting with lawmakers and President Joe Biden last week. In their letter to the CEOs of the Detroit Three and battery joint ventures, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer joined Senators Sherrod Brown, Ron Wyden, Bernie Sanders, Richard Durbin and others in urging the automakers to embrace the joint venture battery workers before the current contract expires. Stellantis said it respects the UAW's right to organize future hourly employees at its joint venture battery facilities, adding: " The joint venture intends to offer very competitive wages and benefits." Last month, the union chief criticized $9.2 billion federal loan to a Ford/South Korea's SK On joint venture.

Persons: Shawn Fain, Joe Biden, Chuck Schumer, Sherrod Brown, Ron Wyden, Bernie Sanders, Richard Durbin, Ford, Stellantis, Jim Farley, Bill Ford, Biden, Biden's, Fain, David Shepardson, Susan Heavey Organizations: United Auto Workers, Detroit, automakers, General Motors, Ford Motor, Chrysler, UAW, Workers, EVs, SK On, South Korea's SK Innovation, Reuters, Ford, Korea's SK, LG Energy, Thomson Locations: United States, Washington, South, KS, Ohio

☆ Senate Panel Approves Supreme Court Ethics Bill With Dim Prospects
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Carl Hulse | More About Carl Hulse | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved legislation that would impose strict new ethics rules on justices, moving over fierce objections from Republicans to address a string of revelations about Supreme Court justices taking free luxury trips and receiving other financial benefits from wealthy benefactors. The legislation, which stands little chance of advancing given the strong G.O.P. opposition, would require the Supreme Court to, at a minimum, adopt and adhere to ethics and disclosure rules equivalent to those applied to members of Congress. It would also impose new transparency requirements and create a panel of appellate judges to review misconduct complaints made against the justices. Democratic members of the committee said the action was necessary because the court has refused to police itself.

Persons: Richard J, Durbin Organizations: Democratic Locations: Illinois

☆ US Senate Democrats pursue Supreme Court ethics legislation
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( John Kruzel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Unlike other members of the federal judiciary, the Supreme Court's nine life-tenured justices have no binding ethics code of conduct. "The Supreme Court does a good job of that on their own," Republican Senator Mike Lee of Utah, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, told Reuters, referring to ethics rules. Senator John Kennedy, another Republican panel member, questioned whether lawmakers possess the power to impose ethics standards on the court. The Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Supreme Court ethics concerns in May, but conservative Chief Justice John Roberts rebuffed Durbin's invitation to testify, citing "the importance of preserving judicial independence." That code, binding to lower federal court judges but not the justices, requires judges to avoid even the "appearance of impropriety."

Persons: Sheldon Whitehouse, Whitehouse, Dick Durbin, Clarence Thomas, Harlan Crow, ProPublica, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Mike Lee of, John Kennedy, I'm, Kennedy, John Roberts, Roberts, they're, John Kruzel, Will Dunham Organizations: Democrats, U.S, Democratic, Republican, Representatives, Dallas, Politico, Reuters, Republicans, Thomson Locations: Alaska, Colorado, Mike Lee of Utah

☆ The Supreme Court Control Act
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com. https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-supreme-court-control-act-whitehouse-durbin-recusal-ethics-1b2e9bd3

Persons: Dow Jones, whitehouse, durbin

☆ Dick Durbin slams Roberts for failing to make sure SCOTUS doesn't have the 'lowest ethical standards'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin slammed Chief Justice John Roberts for failing to impose stronger ethical requirements. Durbin, who chairs the powerful Judiciary Committee, vowed his panel will move forward on proposals. The Judiciary Committee, Durbin added, will continue with its previously announced plans to consider legislation that would impose greater ethical requirements on the high court after lawmakers return to Washington following their July 4th holiday recess. "The highest court in the land should not have the lowest ethical standards." Critics of the court seized on the reporting about ethical concerns also a way to further question its legitimacy.

Persons: Democratic Sen, Dick Durbin, John Roberts, Durbin, —, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Roberts, Joe Biden's, Neil Gorsuch, ProPublica, Thomas, Harlan Crow, Crow, Alito, Paul Singer, Singer Organizations: Democratic, Committee, Service, Republicans, GOP Locations: Washington

☆ AOC urges Congress to consider 'subpoenas' if Chief Justice Roberts won't testify about SCOTUS gift scandal
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez floated a possible subpoena for Chief Justice John Roberts. Roberts has declined to testify before the Senate about ethical issues surrounding the court. "And so I believe that ... if Chief John Roberts will not come before Congress for an investigation voluntarily, I believe that we should be considering subpoenas," Ocasio-Cortez told CNN's Dana Bash on "State of the Nation" on Sunday. "This SCOTUS' corruption undercuts its own legitimacy by putting its rulings up for sale," Ocasio-Cortez wrote on Twitter after the decision. While Republicans control the House, Ocasio-Cortez pointed out that Senate Democrats are investigating the numerous reports about unreported gifts to the justices through the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee.

Persons: Alexandria Ocasio, Cortez, John Roberts, Roberts, —, CNN's Dana Bash, Samuel Alito's, Paul Singer, Singer, Alito, Dick Durbin's Organizations: Service, Privacy, Democratic Rep, New York Democrat, Biden, Manhattan Institute, . Nebraska, Twitter Locations: Alexandria, . Nebraska, Alaska, ., Ocasio, United States

☆ Takeaways from the latest controversial and contentious Supreme Court term
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Ariane De Vogue | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

In his opinion blocking the student debt program, Roberts insisted he is concerned about criticisms of the court. “Make no mistake: Supreme Court ethics reform must happen whether the Court participates in the process or not,” he warned. In June, the court sided with a cement mixing company that sought to bypass federal labor law and sue a union in state court for the destruction of property caused by striking workers. On Tuesday, when Roberts announced the court’s opinion in Moore v. Harper, liberals and even some conservatives exhaled, relieved that the court was rejecting a controversial Trump-backed election law theory. “Justice Jackson has a different view,” he said at one point.

Persons: John Roberts, Roe, Wade, ” Roberts, Roberts, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, he’d, Joe Biden’s, Roberts –, –, It’s, Donald Trump’s, ”, Gorsuch, Neil Gorsuch, Bostock, Lorie Smith, ” Alito, Alito, Dobbs, Jackson, Brett Kavanaugh’s, hadn’t, Paul Singer, Singer, ProPublica, “ we’d, “, ” ProPublica, Thomas, Dick Durbin, Elena Kagan, KBJ, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Dr, Adam Feldman, ” Feldman, Sonia Sotomayor, Kagan, Barrett, Thomas couldn’t, ” Jenny Hunter, ” Jackson, ‘, Harper, exhaled, Barack Obama, Rick Hasen –, Hasen, Moore, Thomas Long, Kevin Merida, Michael Fletcher, “ Justice Jackson, Thomas ’ “, ” Thomas Organizations: CNN, Civil, Creative, Politico, Wall Street Journal, Street, GOP, Illinois Democrat, pounced, University of North, National Labor Relations, Independent, Trump, Federal, “, UNC Locations: Colorado, Washington , DC, United States, “, Rome, Illinois, American, Moore, North Carolina

☆ U.S. senators write to Zuckerberg after report on Instagram algorithm
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

June 30 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin and ranking Republican member Lindsey Graham said on Friday they wrote to Meta (META.O) CEO Mark Zuckerberg regarding reports that Instagram's algorithm facilitates child sexual abuse material. Earlier this month, CNBC reported that Instagram's recommendation algorithms have been connecting and promoting accounts that facilitate and sell such content, according to an investigation. In the article, CNBC quoted a Meta spokesperson as saying the company had taken several steps to address the issues and that it had set up an internal task force. Reporting by Rami Ayyub and Costas Pitas; Editing by Tim AhmannOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Dick Durbin, Lindsey Graham, Mark Zuckerberg, Rami Ayyub, Costas Pitas, Tim Ahmann Organizations: U.S, Senate, Republican, Meta, CNBC, Thomson

☆ Democratic lawmakers seek Supreme Court investigation into Clarence Thomas
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, left, talks to Chief Justice John Roberts during the formal group photograph at the Supreme Court in Washington, DC, US, on Friday, Oct. 7, 2022. A group of 18 House Democrats wrote a letter to Chief Justice John Roberts Tuesday urging him to establish an independent investigative arm within the Supreme Court — and pressing for that office to probe Justice Clarence Thomas' relationship with a wealthy GOP donor. The Goldman letter recommends the establishment within the court of an "independent investigative body" that can provide transparency and accountability by probing "alleged ethical improprieties." After the Thomas story broke in April, Roberts declined Senate Judiciary Chairman Richard Durbin's request for him to appear before the panel to discuss Supreme Court ethics. Roberts is under no obligation to respond to the Goldman letter, much less create new institutions within the court.

Persons: Clarence Thomas, John Roberts, Dan Goldman, Roberts, ProPublica, Thomas, Harlan Crow's, Samuel Alito, Paul Singer, Neil Gorsuch, Greenberg Traurig, Goldman, Alito, Mitch McConnell, Justice Thomas, Richard Durbin's Organizations: Democrats, Rep, NBC, GOP, Politico, Democratic, Republican Locations: Washington , DC, Alaska, Ky

☆ Senators press Google, Meta and Twitter on whether their layoffs could imperil 2024 election
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Three US senators are pressing Facebook-parent Meta, Google-parent Alphabet and Twitter about whether their layoffs may have hindered the companies’ ability to fight the spread of misinformation ahead of the 2024 elections. “This is particularly troubling given the emerging use of artificial intelligence to mislead voters,” wrote Minnesota Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Vermont Democratic Sen. Peter Welch and Illinois Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, according to a copy of the letter reviewed by CNN. Since purchasing Twitter in October, Elon Musk has slashed headcount by more than 80%, in some cases eliminating entire teams. Meta has previously said it would eliminate about 21,000 jobs over two rounds of layoffs, hitting across teams devoted to policy, user experience and well-being, among others. Tuesday’s letter asked Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai and Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino how each company is preparing for the 2024 elections and for mis- and disinformation surrounding the campaigns.

Persons: ”, Minnesota Democratic Sen, Amy Klobuchar, Vermont Democratic Sen, Peter Welch, Illinois Democratic Sen, Dick Durbin, Elon Musk, headwinds, Peers, Mark Zuckerberg, Sundar Pichai, Linda Yaccarino, Ron DeSantis Organizations: CNN, Google, Minnesota Democratic, Vermont Democratic, Illinois Democratic, Twitter, Meta, Microsoft, YouTube, Florida Gov Locations: Vermont, Florida

☆ Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito takes heat for trip on private jet owned by hedge-fund billionaire
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Dan Mangan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Senate Democrats on Wednesday blasted Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito for failing to disclose as a gift his trip on a private plane owned by hedge-fund billionaire Paul Singer to travel with Singer to a luxury fishing excursion. "He allowed me to occupy what would have otherwise been an unoccupied seat on a private flight to Alaska," Alito wrote. But ProPublica said that Alito appears to have broken the financial disclosure law because the law requires disclosure of gifts of private jet flights. "I will tell you this defense offered by Justice Alito is laughable, laughable," Durbin said, referring to Alito's op-ed, according to NBC News. Durbin called on Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to issue a code of ethics for the high court, which lacks one.

Persons: Samuel Alito, Paul Singer, Singer, Alito, ProPublica, Sen, Dick Durbin, Justice Alito, Durbin, John Roberts Organizations: Wednesday, Management, Street, Supreme, Illinois Democrat, NBC News Locations: Argentina, Alaska

The Democratic-led Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the subject in May. Crow, a major Republican donor, last month, rejected the panel's request for a meeting. Separately, Bopp declined to provide another Democratic-led Senate panel, the Finance Committee, any personal financial information about Crow, it said. In a statement, the panel accused Crow of "stonewalling" and "doubling down on bogus legal theories." The news outlet ProPublica has detailed the ties between Thomas and Crow.

Persons: Harlan Crow's, Clarence Thomas, Thomas, Crow, Crow's, Michael Bopp, Dick Durbin, Sheldon Whitehouse, Bopp, Ron Wyden, Neil Gorsuch, Susan Heavey, Kanishka Singh, Will Dunham Organizations: U.S, Supreme, Republican, Democratic, Finance Committee, Finance, Politico, Thomson Locations: Texas, Colorado

The House Rules Committee late on Tuesday, in the first procedural vote on the contentious legislation, cleared the measure for debate in the full House on Wednesday. The solid Democratic opposition is not necessarily indicative of how the party would vote on the bill itself. "We are certainly punching above our weight," she told her fellow House Republicans. [1/4] U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) returns to his office from the House floor at the U.S. Capitol ahead of an expected vote in the U.S. House of Representatives on a bill raising the federal government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, in Washington, U.S., May 31, 2023. White House Budget Director Shalanda Young, who was one of Biden's lead negotiators, urged Congress to pass the bill.

Persons: Kevin McCarthy's, Joe Biden's, McCarthy, Biden, Chip Roy, Roy, Erin Houchin, Kevin McCarthy, Julia Nikhinson, Republican Mitt Romney, Dick Durbin, Shalanda Young, Biden's, Young, White, David Morgan, Richard Cowan, Moira Warburton, Julio, Cesar Chavez, Scott Malone, Rosalba O'Brien, Alistair Bell Organizations: U.S . House, Kevin McCarthy's Republicans, Twitter, Democratic, Treasury, Republican, White, Senate, Republicans, Office, ., U.S, Capitol, REUTERS, Senators, National Institutes of Health, Internal Revenue Service, Thomson Locations: U.S, Washington , U.S, Washington

The House Rules Committee late on Tuesday, in the first procedural vote on the contentious legislation, cleared the measure for debate in the full House on Wednesday. The solid Democratic opposition is not necessarily indicative of how the party would vote on the bill itself. "We are certainly punching above our weight," she told her fellow House Republicans. A successful House vote would send the bill to the Senate, where debate and voting could stretch into the weekend, especially if any one of the 100 senators try to slow its passage. White House Budget Director Shalanda Young, who was one of Biden's lead negotiators, urged Congress to pass the bill.

Persons: Kevin McCarthy's, Joe Biden's, McCarthy, Biden, Chip Roy, Roy, Erin Houchin, Republican Mitt Romney, Dick Durbin, Shalanda Young, Biden's, Young, White, David Morgan, Richard Cowan, Moira Warburton, Julio, Cesar Chavez, Scott Malone, Himani Sarkar, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: U.S . House, Kevin McCarthy's Republicans, Twitter, Democratic, Treasury, Republican, White, Senate, Republicans, Office, Senators, National Institutes of Health, Internal Revenue Service, Thomson Locations: U.S, Washington

The solid Democratic opposition is not necessarily indicative of how the 213-member party caucus would vote on the bill itself. But reflecting party divisions, Representative Erin Houchin countered that despite Democratic control of the White House and Senate, the bill would achieve significant Republican spending cuts. "We are certainly punching above our weight," she told her fellow House Republicans. White House Budget Director Shalanda Young, who was one of Biden's lead negotiators, urged Congress to pass the bill. A successful House vote would send the bill to the Senate, where debate and voting could stretch into the weekend, especially if any one of the 100 senators try to slow its passage.

Persons: Kevin McCarthy's, Joe Biden's, Biden, Chip Roy, Roy, Erin Houchin, Republican Mitt Romney, McCarthy, Dick Durbin, Shalanda Young, Biden's, Young, White, Richard Cowan, Moira Warburton, David Morgan, Scott Malone, Himani Organizations: U.S . House, Kevin McCarthy's Republicans, Democratic, Treasury, Republican, White, Senate, Republicans, Office, National Institutes of Health, Internal Revenue Service, Thomson Locations: U.S, Washington

☆ How the CEO behind ChatGPT won over Congress
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

It was a pivotal moment for the AI industry. He agreed that large-scale manipulation and deception using AI tools are among the technology’s biggest potential flaws. On Tuesday, they seemed ready — or even relieved — to be dealing with another area of the technology industry. The AI industry’s biggest players and aspirants include some of the same tech giants Congress has sharply criticized, including Google and Meta. Here too, Altman deftly seized an opportunity to curry favor with lawmakers by emphasizing distinctions between his industry and the social media industry.

☆ Here's what happened during OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's first hearing on artificial intelligence
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Lauren Feiner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman testifies before a Senate Judiciary Privacy, Technology & the Law Subcommittee hearing titled 'Oversight of A.I. : Rules for Artificial Intelligence' on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 16, 2023. The hearing came after Altman met with a receptive group of House lawmakers at a private dinner Monday, where the CEO walked through risks and opportunities in the technology. After the hearing, Blumenthal told reporters that comparing Altman's testimony to those of other CEOs was like "night and day." "Some of the Big Tech companies are under consent decrees, which they have violated.

☆ Trump is weaponizing the Russia report he demanded -- even though it lacks bombshells
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Another Trump ally, South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, argued the report showed the “rule of law in America is subservient to political outcomes. In another politically sensitive part of his report, Durham found that the FBI did not pursue allegations against Clinton with the same vigor with which they acted against Trump. He pointed out that the Trump investigation was launched at a time when Russia was attacking Democratic National Committee servers and had used stolen information to attack Clinton. The investigation was only launched after the bureau received evidence from a friendly foreign government that the Trump campaign had been offered help by the Russians. But all Trump needed from the report was a headline and a general narrative of suspicion against the FBI.

☆ Dozens of Democrats defend CFPB at Supreme Court as case threatens its existence
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON — Over 140 current and former Democratic lawmakers filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court on Monday to defend the country's leading consumer protection agency from challenges to its regulatory authority. Brown chairs the Senate Banking Committee while Waters is the ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee. The Supreme Court agreed to hear arguments in the case in February, four months after a federal appeals court panel unanimously ruled that the CFPB's funding method was unconstitutional. The Biden administration appealed the 5th Circuit's decision to the Supreme Court, but a final decision could be delayed until June 2024 to hear other arguments in the case. In the brief, lawmakers said succinctly that "the judgment should be reversed."

☆ Senate Democrats ask billionaire Harlan Crow to list gifts to Clarence Thomas and any other justices
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Summer Concepcion | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

They also asked Crow to provide a full list of real estate transactions, transportation, lodging and admission to private clubs he might have provided. All 11 Democrats, including Sen. Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., who has been absent from the Senate due to health issues, signed the letter. Republicans on the committee and the Supreme Court did not immediately respond to NBC News' requests for comment. Wyden asked for answers by May 8, the same day Durbin issued his latest letter to Crow. The Supreme Court in March tightened some of its rules on what judges and justices need to include in annual financial disclosure statements.

Washington CNN —Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee have asked Harlan Crow, the GOP megadonor and friend of Clarence Thomas whose gifts to the Supreme Court justice have prompted fresh criticism about the ethical standards of the nation’s highest court, for more information about the expenditures. The letters also state that the recent revelations come amid a lack of American confidence in the Supreme Court, pointing to recent polling. Thomas had not financially disclosed the hospitality from or the deal with the Texas billionaire. Democrats have vowed to keep investigating the ethics of the nation’s highest court, and Chief Justice John Roberts declined an invitation to testify at a hearing on Supreme Court ethics. Speaking to CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday, Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin said “everything is on the table” as the panel scrutinizes new ethics concerns around Thomas.

☆ Feinstein Returning to Senate, Bringing Democrats Back to Full Majority
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Annie Karni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It was not clear if Ms. Feinstein, 89, would make it back in time for a vote scheduled for Tuesday night, a spokesman said. But her return to the chamber would restore a Democratic majority to the Judiciary Committee, where Democrats were becoming increasingly concerned about their limited ability to move forward with judicial nominations. Ms. Feinstein, who was hospitalized in February for shingles, for weeks gave no detailed updates about her health as she recovered in San Francisco, and provided no timeline for her planned return to the Senate. Her prolonged absence left her colleagues in the Senate fearing that they would be short a vote not only on the Judiciary Committee but also on other crucial matters. “The bottom line is the business of the committee and the Senate is affected by her absence,” Senator Richard J. Durbin, Democrat of Illinois and chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

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