Hillary Clinton Comments On Alito
In a recent interview, Hillary Clinton criticized Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito for his Christian faith, describing the conservative justice as “scary” and “a fanatic.”
The former secretary of state and 2016 Democratic presidential nominee made these remarks in April during a podcast interview with Democracy Docket’s Marc Elias. A clip from that discussion has resurfaced on social media over the weekend.
“You know, I was in the Senate when both John Roberts and Alito were nominated to the court by George W. Bush. Therefore, I had a chance, as you rightly say, to interview both of them,” Clinton said. She elaborated on her view of John Roberts, describing him as a conservative, corporate-oriented lawyer with a narrow life experience, which led her to vote against his nomination.
However, Clinton’s comments on Alito were notably harsher. She described him as a “radical” due to his Christian faith, stating, “Alito struck me almost immediately upon sitting down to talk with him as a radical, as a fanatic about his views of culture and the role of religion in our society, and his religion, not maybe yours or mine, Marc, but his religion. And I found him scary, and I said so on the floor of the Senate when I voted against him.” Clinton further noted that both Roberts and Alito were groomed for their roles to advance a specific agenda.
"Alito struck me almost immediately...as a radical, as a fanatic, about his views of culture and the role of religion in our society and his religion...And I found him scary."@HillaryClinton explains how she views the current Supreme Court. Watch here: https://t.co/v3VJj3YOYh pic.twitter.com/KQu1ThNdFZ
— Democracy Docket (@DemocracyDocket) June 15, 2024
Alito, a lifelong Catholic like Roberts, often votes with the Supreme Court’s conservative majority, while Roberts is seen as a swing vote on many cases. Alito has recently been in the spotlight for various reasons.
Reports from The New York Times indicated that his homes displayed an upside-down American flag and an “Appeal to Heaven” flag, symbols associated with the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. This led several Democratic senators to demand his recusal from cases involving the 2020 presidential election, a request Alito refused.
Additionally, Alito was secretly recorded by a liberal activist pretending to be a religious conservative. During this conversation, Alito allegedly remarked, “One side or the other is going to win,” suggesting that while peaceful coexistence is possible, fundamental differences might be irreconcilable.
Alito has been a significant focus for the Left since he authored the court’s opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 abortion case. This decision has intensified scrutiny and criticism from those opposed to the court's conservative shift.