- According to The New York Times a leader in anti-abortion claimed that he was made aware of the Supreme Court’s Hobby Lobby decision from 2014 by The New York Times.
- Rob Schenck suggested two donors be informed of the results at a dinner hosted by Justice Samuel Alito.
- Alito denied the allegations following the June leak of Dobbs’ draft opinions.
Supreme Court Justice John Roberts was told by a former anti-abortion leader that he was aware of the outcome in the Hobby Lobby contraception case from 2014. This was weeks before the decision was made public. According to The New York Times.
The Rev. Rob Schenck stated to the jurist that the decision was known to him before the official announcement. This suggests an extraordinary violation of judicial norms. It seems similar to Leakage of the draft opinionDobbs-v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case regarding abortion in May. The court’s final decision, which OverturnedThe next month saw Roe v. Wade.
In the 2014 Hobby Lobby contraception case the justices — in a 5-4 decision — ruled that mandating family-owned corporations to pay the cost of insurance for contraception coverage under the Affordable Care Act infringed on religious freedoms. According to The Times records, Schenck used his knowledge about the decision to plan a public relations offensive.
Schenck stated that he spoke to Hobby Lobby president Steve Green shortly before the announcement was made about the case.
Schenck stated that only a small group of individuals knew the outcome of Hobby Lobby’s case.
The Dobbs and Hobby Lobby cases were significant victories for conservative activists and politicians, with Associate Justice Samuel Alito writing the majority opinions.
However, the Dobbs decision was leaked. This was the first time that Politico reported it.The nation was furious at the response. Although conservatives celebrated Roe’s overturning, some sharply criticized Roe’s leak. Pro-choice activists protested the move and rallied voters during the midterm elections, when the issue was returned to the states to regulate.
In the letterRoberts heard Schenck describe the process by which Hobby Lobby was revealed to him.
“Back in June 2014 when so many awaited Court’s decision in Burwell V. Hobby LobbyOne donor to the Capitol Hill-based nonprofit organization I headed informed me that she and her husband were going to be dining at Justice Alito’s house. He wrote that she suggested to me that she could learn about the status of the case through their conversation at the table. This was something she knew she was interested in.
I received a follow up message from her informing me that she had indeed gained the information during that visit. We spoke over the phone and she explained the revelation,” he continued. “I remember that we spoke about Hobby Lobby’s Green family and how they might be interested in the information.
Erin Schaff-Pool/Getty Images
Schenck created an explosive situation in which a religious official, who spent years building relationships with anti-abortion leaders, has now revealed a damning allegation. A sitting justice dismissed any knowledge of it and the high court is still uncertain about who leaked Dobbs’ abortion draft this year.
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After analysing emails, conversations and texts, The Times found statements that “strongly suggested” that Schenck knew of the ruling. They also discovered that the Hobby Lobby decision author was weeks before it reached the media.
Schenck stated to The Times that he had not received a response after sending the letter. This letter, which he claimed could assist Roberts’ investigation regarding the leakage of the Dobbs draft opinion was sent.
The New York Times reviewed a June 2014 email from Schenck donor Gayle Wright — who had dined alongside her spouse with Alito and his wife, Martha-Ann — where she reached out to the minister informing him that she had “interesting news” to share.
“Rob, if there is any interesting news you would like to hear please call. Wright stated that there were no emails, according to the Times report.
According to Schenck, Wright informed him that Hobby Lobby’s high court decision would be in Hobby Lobby’s favor.
Later in June, the court followed that exact path, with a majority agreeing that requiring tightly-held corporations fund contraceptives for employee insurance plans was a violation religious freedoms.
Alito stated in a statement to The Times that he had a casual and purely personal relationship with Wrights. However, he said that the “allegation” that Wrights were told about the outcome of Hobby Lobby case or that I or my wife authored the opinion of Court is false.”
Gayle Wright said to The Times she did not pass on information about Hobby Lobby’s decision in advance.
Hobby Lobby is yet to comment on The Times report.
The newspaper reported that the Supreme Court didn’t provide any further information on Schenck’s letter or its investigation into the leakage of the Dobbs draft.
