Samuel Alito Displays Second Controversial Flag, Secure In The Knowledge Nothing Will Be Done About It
He just doesn't care.
via Google Street View
Yesterday, the New York Times reported that at his vacation home on Long Beach Island, NJ, Supreme Court justice Samuel Alito displayed an “Appeal to Heaven” flag, above an LBI flag and one commemorating the Phillies’ 2022 National League pennant. The flag was documented multiple times throughout 2023, with even Google Street View capturing it. It’s the one occupying the top of the Alitos’ flagpole — the spot usually reserved for the American flag — and is also known as the Pine Tree flag. It dates back to the Revolutionary War, but has seen a resurgence in popularity as a symbol of Christian nationalism and support for Donald Trump. It was favored by a religious strain of January 6th rioters.
Appeal to Heaven flag on January 6 (Photo by Brent Stirton/Getty Images)
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For those keeping track at home, that’s the second flag favored by insurrectionists flown in front of an Alito residence.
But it’s symbolism is more than *just* pro-Trump. It’s about Christian nationalism.
In 2013, Mr. [Dutch] Sheets, a prominent figure in a far-right evangelical movement that scholars have called the New Apostolic Reformation, discovered the nearly forgotten [pine tree] flag and made it the symbol of his ambitions to steep the country and the government in Christianity, he wrote in a 2015 book also titled “An Appeal to Heaven.”
“Rally to the flag,” he wrote. “God has resurrected it for such a time as this. Wave it outwardly: wear it inwardly. Appeal to heaven daily for a spiritual revolution that will knock out the Goliaths of our day.”
Samuel Alito is a man sworn to uphold the Constitution but on multiple times, in multiple locations, his homes have displayed flags preferred by insurrectionists. While a normal person might fear reprisals from the job where his promises don’t line up with his flag choices, Alito has no such issues. Alito simply does not give a fuck. He must be aware of the message he is quite literally hoisting, and even though that’s in tension with cases before the Court, he does not care that he is signaling his politics — and votes on those cases.
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As reported by the Times, this is not a backwards-looking issue, as there are cases currently before the Court where Alito is messaging his feelings.
During the period the Appeal to Heaven flag was seen flying at the justice’s New Jersey house, a key Jan. 6 case arrived at the Supreme Court, challenging whether those who stormed the Capitol could be prosecuted for obstruction.
In coming weeks, the justices will rule on that case, which could scuttle some of the charges against Mr. Trump, as well as on whether he is immune from prosecution for actions he took while president. Their decisions will shape how accountable he can be held for trying to overturn the last presidential election and his chances at regaining the White House in the next one.
As law professor Charles Geyh said, “We all have our biases, but the good judge fights against them. When a judge celebrates his predispositions by hoisting them on a flag that’s deeply disturbing.”
Disturbing, yes. But I would bet you a fried lobster dinner at LBI mainstay Howard’s Restaurant followed by an ice cream sundae at the Skipper Dipper that exactly zero will be done about it.[1] Lifetime appointments mean never having to say you’re sorry. Alito is secure in the knowledge that in these partisan times, it’s virtually impossible that 67 senators would agree to hold the justice accountable.
So we’re left with clear evidence that one of the nine unelected superlegislators is in the tank for far-right and Christian causes in a country where we are supposedly guaranteed freedom of religion. If this doesn’t scare you, it’s only because you agree with Alito.
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[1] I’m originally from Staten Island. Of course I’ve spent significant amounts of time off of exit 63 on the Garden State.
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Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Mastodon @[email protected].
