Looks like the nation's highest court is continuing to circle the wagons in the wake of revelations about Associate Justice Clarence Thomas failing to reports gifts of pricey vacations and other financial benefits from Texas billionaire Harlan Crow.
On Tuesday, Chief Justice John Roberts spoke at the American Law Institute's annual dinner. He told those assembled that the court is considering setting standards for "the highest standards of conduct," but gave no details.
Instead, he basically said Congress should stay out of the court's business and let the justices handle ethics matters on their own.
"I want to assure people that I am committed to making certain that we as a court adhere to the highest standards of conduct," the chief justice said in his speech. "We are continuing to look at things we can do to give practical effect to that commitment. And I am confident there are ways to do that that are consistent with our status as an independent branch of government under the Constitution's separation of powers."
Roberts highlights the court's independence and the separation of powers between the three branches of government, but he seems to have forgotten another part of the equation -- our system of checks and balances. It's meant to ensure no one branch of government gains too much power over the others.
According to Article 3 of the Constitution, federal judges hold their positions "during good behavior." As a check on the judicial system, Congress has the power to impeach a federal judge, from the Supreme Court or a lower court.
But how does one know what "during good behavior" means without a clear definition of bad behavior?
Roberts would have us trust the court to police itself. Unfortunately, the revelations about Thomas have eroded that trust. And all of the chief justice's good intentions won't change that. Not unless he -- or Congress -- takes real, substantive action.