Analyst lays out 8 of Clarence Thomas’ worst scandals: 'Undisclosed largesse'

15 January 2024

Justice Clarence Thomas has been controversial throughout his 32 years on the U.S. Supreme Court, from law professor Anita Hill's sexual harassment allegations in 1991 to his call for the Court to "reconsider" landmark decisions like New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) and Griswold v. Connecticut (1965). And ProPublica's in-depth reporting on the gifts he received from billionaire Harlan Crow has inspired some of his most vocal detractors, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York), to call for his impeachment.

In a listicle published on January 12, The Week's Peter Weber describes eight of the scandals that Thomas has faced.

"Most of the recent disclosures about Thomas involve undisclosed largesse from Harlan Crow and other conservative billionaire friends," Weber notes. "But Thomas faced calls for investigation or impeachment even before the new reports."

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The scandals Weber describes include: (1) "the Ginni Thomas texts non-recusal," (2) "luxury vacations from billionaire benefactors," (3) "selling" his "mother's home to Crow," (4) "reporting of income from defunct real estate firm," and (5) "private school tuition" for his grandnephew Mark Martin "from Crow."

Also on Weber's list: (6) "secret contracting payments for Ginni Thomas," (7) "the mysterious luxury RV loan," and (8) "Thomas hinted he would quit as largesse began."

Justice Thomas' wife, far-right GOP activist Ginni Thomas, has been a major promoter of former President Donald Trump's false claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

"Her partisan activism was always a discomfiting situation, since the spouses of Supreme Court justices typically aim for apolitical," Weber explains. "But it became especially awkward after former President Donald Trump lost in 2020 and Ginni Thomas sent GOP state lawmakers and Trump's White House chief of staff Mark Meadows e-mails and text messages imploring them to fight to overturn President Biden's victory. She also attended — briefly, she said — Trump's rally outside the White House on January 6, 2021, that bled into the Capitol riot."

Weber continues, "Ginni Thomas' involvement in efforts to overturn Trump's loss, including pushing top White House officials to fight the defeat, constituted an evident conflict of interest for her husband when those legal challenges inevitably ended up at the Supreme Court. But Justice Thomas did not recuse himself."

Read Peter Weber's full listicle for The Week at this link.

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