One year after the ruling - could the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision soon be overturned? The progressive organization Common Cause is asking the Department of Justice to look into possible "conflict of interest" behind the scenes of the Citizens United ruling. In the petition to the DOJ - Common Cause argues that Justices Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia should have recused themselves from the Citizens United case since they were actively involved in political strategy sessions hosted by the billionaire Koch Brothers - two men who benefited considerably from the Supreme Court's ruling.
The allegation is based on documents obtained by ThinkProgress and the New York Times that suggest the two Justices attended a Palm Springs event hosted by the Koch brothers around the same time the high court was hearing arguments in the case. If the petition is successful - the DOJ could disqualify Justices Scalia and Thomas from the ruling - and thus overturn the decision altogether. Of course this wouldn't be the first time Scalia and Thomas demonstrated a "conflict of interest". Thomas didn't recuse himself from the Bush v. Gore decision in 2000 that handed the presidency over to George W. Bush even though Thomas's wife was working on the Bush transition team. And Scalia went on a hunting trip with former Vice President Dick Cheney right before he ruled in favor of Cheney in a case before the high court. Overturning Citizen's United based on these guys' impropriety should be just a start - they should also be impeached for corruption.
-Thom
(What rights do you think corporations will have in future? Tell us here.)
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