The real 'DEI hire': Historian slams Justice Clarence Thomas

Historian Jonathan Zimmerman has argued in an article for The Hill that Justice Clarence Thomas, a conservative associate justice of the Supreme Court, is "the real DEI [Diversity, Equity and Inclusion] hire on the Supreme Court."

Thomas was nominated to the court by former President George H.W. Bush in 1991. Zimmerman wrote in the article, published on Tuesday, that the real reason Bush selected Thomas was because he is Black.

"Thomas knew it, too. Ten years before he joined the court, while serving as assistant secretary for civil rights in the Department of Education, he reportedly told a colleague that he had set his sights on Marshall’s seat," Zimmerman wrote.

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"In 1981, the Yale-educated Thomas was already the highest-ranking Black attorney in the federal government. Marshall 'wouldn’t last forever,' Thomas said, and no one was in 'as good a position' to replace him as Thomas was,' the article adds.

Zimmerman's assertion was a reaction to MAGA supporters' claim Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who has challenged President Donald Trump, was a "DEI hire" to the Supreme Court.

The author noted that following his appointment as chairman of the U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission by former President Ronald Reagan, Thomas earned praise from conservatives for his opposition to affirmative action. He asserted that such policies were, in his words, "belittling to minorities."

He recounted that during his time at Yale, there was a prevailing assumption that his admission was based on his race rather than his qualifications. Thomas contended that as long as Black individuals were granted special consideration, they would be perceived as "second rate," the article noted.

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Justice Thomas has formally sworn in new members of the Trump administration's Cabinet. He administered the oaths of office for Doug Collins as Veterans Affairs Secretary, Pam Bondi as Attorney General, and Scott Turner as Housing and Urban Development Secretary. His wife, Ginni Thomas, was present at some of these ceremonies, and Trump specifically acknowledged her.

Last year, Justice Thomas, an ultraconservative justice prevented Trump's criminal prosecution for retaining classified documents. Other decisions he made include overturning abortion rights, ending affirmative action, and weakening federal regulations.