‘Fix the Court’ Should Fix Itself

It would be nice if the progressives attacking Supreme Court Justices for alleged ethical lapses practiced what that they preach. Consider the outfit Fix the Court, which is working with Democrats to pass ethics and disclosure rules for Justices while ignoring a requirement to disclose its own lobbying.

Fix the Court is leading the campaign targeting Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito for the supposed offense of associating with billionaires. The nonprofit is an offshoot of the New Venture Fund, which is among a web of progressive groups backed by the left-wing for-profit Arabella Advisors.

“We’re the only group in the nation working to open up the most powerful, least accountable part of government—the Supreme Court—by advocating for a few simple ‘fixes,’” Fix the Court’s website says. By “fix,” it means diminish conservative influence on the Court.

One such fix is Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse’s Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act. Last month Fix the Court executive director Gabe Roth appeared on Mr. Whitehouse’s podcast to “discuss ways to strengthen ethical guardrails at the Court” via legislation.

Mr. Whitehouse’s bill would set disclosure rules for the Court for “gifts, income, and reimbursements” according to Congress’s standing rules. It would also charge a five-member panel of chief judges from the circuit courts of appeal with hearing ethics complaints against Justices from groups like Fix the Court. A three-judge panel would review “motions” by parties for recusal.

The purpose is to weaponize ethics and disclosures. Progressives want to level ethics charges, however meritless, against conservative Justices to damage their reputation and force their recusal from important cases.

Yet Fix the Court hasn’t followed the disclosure rules it is supposed to adhere to, as the Washington Examiner recently reported. As a 501(c)(3) public charity, the outfit can shield the names of its donors. Donations are also tax deductible. But charities must abide by limits on political activities.

The Internal Revenue Service website states that “no organization may qualify for section 501(c)(3) status if a substantial part of its activities is attempting to influence legislation (commonly known as lobbying),” which includes urging “the public to contact, members or employees of a legislative body” and advocating “the adoption or rejection of legislation.” The IRS defines a “substantial part” as more than 20% of spending.

Charities are required to disclose whether they engage in political lobbying on their tax return Form 990. Fix the Court claimed it didn’t lobby on its 2022 public disclosure. Yet its website includes a long list of judicial bills that it has supported or opposed.

It also says it’s working with Members “in the 118th Congress to urge the judiciary to adopt the same exacting travel, gift and personal hospitality rules that members of Congress and top executive branch officials must follow” and that it supports Congress using its statutory authority “to compel acceptance of the [ethics] code.” This sure looks like political lobbying under the IRS definition.

Fix the Court didn’t respond when the Examiner asked for comment. In response to our query, it issued a statement from Josh Cohen, president of its board of directors:

“Gabe [Roth] and Fix the Court have always acted in good faith, and the moment we realized our 990 was incomplete, we started working to correct it. Fix the Court is fiercely non-partisan in a moment when partisanship dominates and it continues to demand the highest ethical standard for justices nominated by both Democratic and Republican presidents—the same standard we demand from the other two branches.”

In other words, the outfit denounces Justices for disclosure mistakes, but when it gets called out for the same thing it claims to be acting “in good faith.” Maybe Fix the Court should first “heal itself,” to quote Democratic Senators, before Congress or the IRS demands that it be restructured.