Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Congressman Hank Johnson (D-GA) today released their correspondence with Michael Chertoff, Executive Chairman of The Chertoff Group, regarding the Supreme Court’s internal investigation into the leak of the draft opinion in the Dobbs case. The Chertoff Group, a security firm that had previously been hired as a contractor for the Supreme Court, was again brought on by the Court to assess the quality of the Court’s internal investigation into the source of the Dobbs leak.
In January, the Supreme Court released a report from the Marshal of the Court documenting her inconclusive investigation into the leak. Along with that report, the Court released a statement by Michael Chertoff explaining that he was “asked by the Chief Justice to independently review and assess the thoroughness” of the Marshal’s investigation. Later that month, a CNN report revealed that Chertoff had previous financial ties to the Court.
In February, Whitehouse and Johnson requested information about Chertoff’s role in providing an affirming statement. Chertoff responded in a letter last week.
“We thank The Chertoff Group for the timely and forthcoming reply to our initial questions,” said Whitehouse and Johnson. “We may have further inquiries about the role of this private entity in validating the Supreme Court’s investigation, which reflects the Court’s lack of investigative capability to look into ethics inquiries and other internal matters. We will continue working together to pursue oversight and legislation to bring much-needed transparency and accountability to the Court.”
Whitehouse and Johnson are Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate and House Judiciary Courts Subcommittees respectively.
Whitehouse and Johnson’s letter is available HERE, and Chertoff’s response can be found HERE.
Meaghan McCabe, (202) 224-2921
