As my colleague Ward Clark reported, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito sat for a fireside chat Thursday with Mollie Hemingway at the 2026 Federalist Society's Antonin Scalia Memorial Dinner. He warned that an overreaching Congress could effectively neuter the court simply by stripping its funding.
See: Lights Out at SCOTUS? Alito Sounds the Alarm Over Congress' Power of the Purse
Alito added that kneecapping one of the three branches of government would endanger everything the Founders fought for:
"So, it is important to preserve the independence of the judiciary," he reportedly said. "If that is eliminated, then the Constitution as adopted in 1789 will no longer be the same."
Note: The event was not televised or recorded for public consumption, so what we know is from reporters and attendees in the room.
Alito had plenty more to say and reportedly laid out three principles that must endure for the U.S. to survive — no matter which side prevails in this or that election. "I'm not saying we're entering the dark age,” he said, “but these are things that we have to preserve no matter what the atmosphere is in the country or the world at the time."
The three principles are, according to the 76-year-old:
- Freedom of speech
- Religious liberty
- Racial equality
Justice Samuel Alito lays out three principles he says Americans must preserve "no matter what the atmosphere is in the country or the world at the time": freedom of speech, religious liberty and racial equality.
— Fox News Politics (@foxnewspolitics) November 14, 2026
During a fireside chat with the Federalist's Mollie Hemingway at… pic.twitter.com/j1PwSWHOUC
Justice Samuel Alito lays out three principles he says Americans must preserve "no matter what the atmosphere is in the country or the world at the time": freedom of speech, religious liberty and racial equality.
During a fireside chat with the Federalist's Mollie Hemingway at the Antonin Scalia Memorial Dinner during the 2026 National Lawyer's Convention in Washington D.C., Alito warned that democratic self-fulfillment is impossible without robust free speech, including "speech that is hurtful to some of the people who hear what is being said." He called religious liberty "central to human dignity" and invoked Dr. Martin Luther King's vision of judging people by the content of their character.
"If we don't hold to that principle, then I think the society is going to start to come apart," Alito said.
Let’s discuss those principles one at a time:
Freedom of Speech
Alito argued that protecting free speech is crucial and warned that "you cannot have Democratic self-fulfillment if you cannot have robust free speech."
"Even speech that is hurtful to some of the people who hear what is being said," he added.
Without free speech, outlets like RedState probably wouldn't even be around.
Had the pleasure of interviewing Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito about America250 and his jurisprudence tonight at the Federalist Society’s Scalia dinner. pic.twitter.com/5Fjr8AfBL2
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) November 13, 2026
Freedom of Religion
Alito said that religious liberty is on firmer footing than it was two decades ago, but cautioned that if we don’t respect each other, things could get very dark:
Religious liberty is central to human dignity, and in a society that is as religiously diverse as this country, we've got people who adhere to practically every religion that exists in the world.
We are not going to be able to get along, I think, amicably, productively, if we don't respect everybody's right to follow whatever religion they want, or for people of faith, they're also free to do that.
That's essential.
While I agree that we should all be allowed to practice our faith as we so desire, I also believe that the Sharia law promulgated by all too many of our lawmakers is incompatible with our society. So yes — believe what you want, but when it comes to forcing your beliefs on others, that's crossing a red line.
Racial Equality
Alito, the George W. Bush appointee who’s been on the bench since 2006, invoked one of the most famous speeches of all time: Martin Luther King’s inspiring 1963 “I Have a Dream” oration from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. It changed race relations forever.
Unfortunately, all too many have forgotten or bastardized the profound vision that MLK brought. Alito:
"That [equality] is the principle that Dr. Martin Luther King famously articulated in his speech at the Lincoln Memorial, where he said he looked forward to the day when children would be judged by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin," Alito said.
"If we don't hold to that principle, then I think the society is going to start to come apart," Alito said.
Note that MLK Jr. never once used the word "equity" in his seminal speech. Just sayin'.
You may agree or disagree with some or all of Alito’s concepts, but one thing is for sure: The Supreme Court is under attack by the Democrats. Many have openly said that they aim to pack the Court, introduce term limits, and do anything in their power to try to sway rulings in their favor.
Alito announced earlier in November that he had no intention of resigning this term (which ends in June 2027). That’s good. I hope he sticks around longer.
We’re going to need him.
