Chief Justice Humiliated as Protesters Hit His Private Island
John Roberts, whose fortune is estimated at $25 million, saw protesters target his secluded island retreat.
Chip Somodevilla/Chip Somodevilla/Pool via REUTERS
Chief Justice John Roberts’ island escape was interrupted by protesters who arrived by kayak to stage a demonstration.
The 71-year-old Supreme Court justice, who has pleaded with critics of his ultra-conservative court to back off, learned earlier this month that even his private island retreat off Port Clyde, Maine, wasn’t beyond the reach of protesters.
Arriving by kayak, canoe, and rowboat, the protesters staged a one-hour “floating vigil” in the waters between Port Clyde and Hupper Island, where Roberts has a home, the Midcoast Villager reported.
The Aug. 15 protest at Roberts’ house was organized by The Audacity: Creative Action Together, a local progressive group, which said on its website that it aimed “to bring attention to Chief Justice John Roberts’ transformation of the Supreme Court into a rubber stamp for authoritarianism.”
Courtesy of James Cook
The protesters’ signs declared “The Roberts Court: Rubber Stamp for Fascism” and “Roberts Benched the Constitution,” according to photos published in the Midcoast Villager. More than 20 people paddled out for the protest, while another 20 demonstrated on land, according to the Midcoast Villager.
Roberts and his wife, Jane Roberts, bought a 1,344-square-foot home on Hupper Island, a private island accessible only by water, in 2006. They bought a second 1,560-square-foot home sitting on two waterfront acres in 2016, according to the Bangor Daily News.
The group slammed Roberts’ role in the Supreme Court’s sharp rightward turn, citing among other decisions the overturning of the constitutional right to abortion, the ruling granting presidents immunity for official acts, and the gutting of the Voting Rights Act.
Courtesy of James Cook
Last month, the couple—whose wealth is estimated at roughly $25 million—sold their longtime home in Chevy Chase, Maryland, for $3.44 million, Realtor.com reported. They had bought the seven-bedroom house for $1.23 million in 2003.
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Once he retires, Roberts will continue to collect his Supreme Court salary, currently set at $320,700, every year for the rest of his life, according to Forbes.
Dozens turned out for the protest in Port Clyde, a coastal community of just a few hundred people.
Courtesy of James Cook
The Aug. 15 protest at Roberts’ house was organized by The Audacity: Creative Action Together, a local progressive group, which said on its website that it aimed “to bring attention to Chief Justice John Roberts’ transformation of the Supreme Court into a rubber stamp for authoritarianism.”
The group pointed to Roberts’ role in the Supreme Court’s sharp rightward turn with decisions such as Dobbs v. Jackson, which overturned the constitutional right to abortion; Trump v. United States, which granted presidential immunity for acts that take place in office; and Louisiana v. Callais, which gutted the landmark 1965 Voting Rights Act.
The Audacity: Creative Action Together said the purpose of the protest was to “remind the community of the ways John Roberts has repeatedly used his elite power to mislead the nation, undermine the rule of law, erode judicial standards, harm workers, eviscerate women’s rights, and place President Trump above the law.”
Kevin Lamarque/REUTERS
The group also criticized Roberts, a conservative who was appointed by George W. Bush, for the court’s use of the “shadow docket”—orders and summary decisions with little to no explanation or public deliberation—which have allowed President Donald Trump to implement his sweeping agenda despite lower-court rulings blocking it.
The group said the purpose of the protest was to “remind the community of the ways John Roberts has repeatedly used his elite power to mislead the nation, undermine the rule of law, erode judicial standards, harm workers, eviscerate women’s rights, and place President Trump above the law.”
The Supreme Court’s Public Information Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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