In a horrifying reminder of a crumbling US Supreme Court, beer-loving Justice Brett Kavanaugh went to a holiday party at the home of right-wing activist Matt Schlapp Friday night, where he hung up with alleged sex trafficker Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), Stephen Miller —a longtime ally to former President Donald Trump— and other MAGA figures, Politico reported. The news also comes as the Supreme Court has come under renewed scrutiny over ethics concerns.
The appearance has sparked questions about possible conflicts of interest with a sitting Supreme Court justice attending a private party of right-wing leaders. The most troubling, if not the most salacious, fellow reveler was Stephen Miller of the America First Legal Foundation because Miller has matters before the Supreme Court… RIGHT NOW!
Then there’s Matt Gaetz. As previously reported by Daily Boulder, prosecutors declined to bring sex trafficking charges against Gaetz earlier in the fall, citing a lack of reliable evidence. However, now that his longtime associate Joel Greenberg received an 11-year sentence for sex trafficking a minor, there’s a heightened chance that Greenberg could offer testimony strengthening a future case against the Florida legislator.
In other words, one way or the other, this isn’t a great time to publicly jump on the Gaetz bandwagon.
So it comes as zero shock that an accused rapist jurist with deeply suspect views on women is right there to join Gaetz at the frat party.
But politics aren’t even necessary to see the problem with the appearance of buddying up to Gaetz.
Brett Kavanaugh sits on the bench amid a cloud of credible sexual assault allegations that were never really investigated because Kavanaugh threw a fit about it and the majority of the Senate just shrugged.
Needless to say, rubbing elbows with someone very recently involved in a probe into the sex trafficking of minors — and who might end up being investigated again — sends a very specific message about the justice and the legitimacy of the Court as a whole and it’s not a great one.