Ted Cruz exposes Clarence Thomas’ absolute disdain for legal scholars

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is no stranger to controversy, from the accusation of sexual harassment made by Anita Hill during his confirmation hearing to his consistent support for corporate interests and the revelation that he has accepted gifts from billionaires. Now, in a recent interview, Thomas told an interview that he has no interest in talking to legal experts before rendering his decisions.

"While [Sen. Ted] Cruz [R-TX] laments such unfair treatment, throughout the book he makes the point that Thomas is not particularly bothered by it," reported SCOTUSblog's Randy Maniloff on Wednesday. Maniloff had interviewed Cruz about his recent biography of Thomas, "Going Further." "Asked about this, Cruz told SCOTUSblog, 'He’s a strong man and he knows what he believes. He’s not looking for affirmation from others.' Cruz elaborated by sharing a story of Justice Stephen Breyer asking Thomas if he 'wants to go talk to law professors who were expressing derision toward him.' Thomas replied: 'Steve, no offense, but why would I give a d - - - what those people think.'"

Thomas' comment was particularly striking because, as a self-described constitutional originalist, he should theoretically be very concerned with what experts in the Constitution think about key legal questions. He even admitted as much to Cruz according to Maniloff.

"While Thomas was looking for an education in the law, Cruz explains that he was confronted with professors promoting a doctrine known as 'legal realism,'" Maniloff wrote. "Under this theory, laws did not have to mean what their drafters understood them to mean. Instead, laws were malleable and judges were free to change them if they believed it 'necessary' to do so."

He added, "In search of guidance, Thomas turned to older books about the origins of law and government. Cruz writes that '[w]hat struck him was how different the founders’ world looked from the abstract theories that dominated his classes.' Cruz adds: 'With every book he consumed about the United States and its founders, he became more convinced than ever that his grandfather’s ideas about the world had been correct all along.'"

In fact, Thomas has defied the will of the founding fathers on numerous occasions, most recently in a Supreme Court ruling in which he joined Justice Samuel Alito in a 7-to-2 minority opposing the majority's ruling that Trump could not suppress mail-in voting. The Constitution clearly dictates that elections are controlled by the states, despite Trump's attempts to "nationalize" them to make sure he doesn't lose the 2026 midterms.

"First of all, Clarence Thomas was just on Ted Cruz's podcast openly talking about his conservative values and his distaste and disgust at liberal society and liberal values, right?" Alex Wagner, a journalist who contributes to "The Atlantic" and wrote a book about the Supreme Court called "The Steal," told MS NOW's Chris Hayes on Monday. "That is a justice of the Supreme Court who joins Samuel Alito in this dissent. And I think the most piercing line of the dissent is when Alito writes, 'The plaintiff states invoke the practical effects of implementing the rule post-conventional elections. I take that problem very seriously, but it's not enough to convince me to deny the application.'"