The financial ties of Judge Henry E. Hudson to Republican groups and to Virginia AG Ken Cuccinelli have been well-documented. So it was not entirely surprising that Hudson ruled that Cuccinelli's challenge to the Affordable Care Act could proceed.
But those ties have led the progressive group Americans United for Change to call for Hudson's recusal in the case.
Tom McMahon, executive director of the progressive group Americans United for Change, called Hudson's stock ownership -- first reported by the Huffington Post --"troubling."
"In a case that could have potentially sweeping national implications for the American people, Judge Hudson should address this appearance of conflict head on by immediately recusing himself," McMahon said in a statement. "Anything less would cast a shadow of doubt over the objectivity and fairness of further proceedings."
The Justice Department declined comment on the story, as did Hudson. Both Campaign Solutions and Cuccinelli dismiss any issues of conflict, ignoring the fact that Campaign Solutions isn't just any private firm in which a judge might have holdings--it's a partisan, political company that works to get Republicans, including Ken Cuccinelli, elected.