Should Justices Dine with Senators?

The newest justice to the Supreme Court, Neil Gorsuch, is doing his part to keep Twitter rolling. A few days ago he attended a private dinner with Republican Senators Cornyn, Alexander, McConnell, and Secretary of Transportation, Elaine Chao, who is married to McConnell. How do we know this? Senator Alexander tweeted about it saying,

I enjoyed having dinner tonight at the home of Senator John Cornyn and his wife Sandy with our newest Supreme Court Justice, Neil Gorsuch, Transportation Secretary Chao and a few of my other Senate colleagues to talk about important issues facing our country.

The Tweet did not go unnoticed and drew criticism ranging from charges of fraternization to ethical impairment. The action of dining together is not actually against any judicial code of conduct. According to the Code:

Canon 5: A Judge Should Refrain from Political Activity

(A) General Prohibitions. A judge should not:

(1) act as a leader or hold any office in a political organization;

(2) make speeches for a political organization or candidate, or publicly endorse or oppose a candidate for public office; or

(3) solicit funds for, pay an assessment to, or make a contribution to a political organization or candidate, or attend or purchase a ticket for a dinner or other event sponsored by a political organization or candidate.

Sharing a meal would not fall under these restrictions, but could there still be a problem with it? Yes, and the problem is with perception. Justice Gorsuch, by all accounts, seems to be a very even-tempered judge, not subject to whim. He writes thoughtful opinions and might even be called predictable in his votes. Not everyone will like his decisions, but he does not seem susceptible to political pressure.

However, in light of the current state of the public discourse and political climate, dining privately with politicians of only one political party certainly looks bad, and is not a suggested way to build a public perception of impartiality. Based on what I perceive to be Justice Gorsuch’s respect for the judiciary and public perception, I doubt we will see anymore tweets documenting his attendance at dinners like this again.