Judge Alito says he spoke with Trump the day before regarding former clerk’s hush-money request
Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito confirmed to Fox News on Wednesday that he spoke with President-elect Donald Trump the day before Trump’s court appearance but said they did not discuss a delay in sentencing that the former president’s legal team plans to file emergency application.
Alito told Fox News’ Shannon Bream that he was asked if he would accept a call from Trump about the position that former staffer William Levy was being considered for, and praised Levy’s “wonderful work.” CV”.
“One of my former legal assistants, William Levi, asked me to take a call from President-elect Trump regarding his qualifications for a government position. I agreed to discuss the matter with President-elect Trump, who contacted me yesterday afternoon Call,” Alito said.
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Associate Justice Samuel Alito joins other members of the Supreme Court for a new group photo in October 2022. (AP/J. Scott Applewhite)
Alito said he had not spoken with Trump about the emergency application and that he “didn’t even know that such an application would be filed at the time we spoke.”
“We also did not discuss any other matters that are pending or that may come before the Supreme Court in the future, nor any past Supreme Court decisions involving the president-elect,” Alito said.
Alito told Fox News that he is often asked to advise potential employers of former staffers, which is common practice.
Levy served at the Justice Department during the president-elect’s first term and served as Alito’s clerk from 2011 to 2012.
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President-elect Trump meets with lawmakers. (Getty Images)
Alito spoke to Trump the day before Trump was to appear in court in the New York hush-money case, prompting criticism from some who called the conversation a “clear violation of the agreement.”
“No one, no matter who they are, should have out-of-court communications with the judge or justice who is hearing that person’s case,” Gabe Ross, executive director of the nonpartisan group Fix the Courts, said in a statement.
Alito said he was not aware that Trump’s legal team was preparing an emergency request in the New York state case and had not discussed it.
Associate Justice Samuel Alito Jr. poses for a formal photo op at the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Friday, October 7, 2022. (Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
He confirmed to Fox News that the call was only about Levy and did not discuss anything involving Trump’s legal issues – past, present or future.
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He also said there were no issues discussed or likely to be discussed in court.
ABC News first reported the call between Trump and Alito.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
