For years now, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has been a lightning rod for criticism, in part for his right-wing rulings and controversial past which nearly derailed his nomination when he was accused of sexually harassing Anita Hill while both worked at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
Now Thomas is once again in hot water thanks to two blatant conflicts of interest that have some legal experts saying the justice could well face impeachment.
The first controversy stems from a dissent made by Thomas regarding documents sought by the House Select Committee on the January 6 Capitol insurrection. He was the only member of the high court to rule that former President Donald Trump could keep documents hidden from the committee.
At the same time Thomas made his ruling, his wife, Ginni, was actively engaged in activism against the Jan. 6 investigation, which led University of Texas Law Professor Steve Vladeck to note during an appearance on CNN:
“There are surely substantive reasons, consistent with his jurisprudence, why Justice Thomas dissented from the Court’s decision to not help President Trump in that case. But for folks who are already skeptical of the Court, for folks who already view it as a deeply partisan, political institution, the fact that he is the sole dissenter, given what we know about Ginni Thomas’s involvement, sets off alarm bells.”
Pamela Brown of CNN fleshed out exactly how deeply involved Justice Thomas’ wife has been in trying to derail a full investigation of the Jan. 6 riots:
“The debate has continued because of Ginni Thomas’s ties to another issue before the court she sits on the advisory board of a conservative group, the National Association of Scholars. They submitted two legal briefs to the Supreme Court in favor of plaintiffs challenging affirmative action and admissions at two universities. Peter Wood is president of the organization, and said that she played no role in the legal briefs.”
The other conflict for Thomas is the revelation that he’s been in “regular contact” with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) via email, which was reported by Politico on Friday:
Emails handed over to American Oversight, a group that bills itself as a government watchdog, suggest that DeSantis is in regular contact with Justice Clarence Thomas. In June 2021, Thomas’ wife, Ginni, who runs her own consulting firm, worked with the DeSantis administration to have the governor talk to a coalition of groups, including people affiliated with Judicial Watch, the conservative organization that uses information requests and lawsuits to investigate public officials.
Why is a potential 2024 Republican presidential contender communicating with a sitting Supreme Court justice? Even if they’re only discussing the weather or the Super Bowl, the appearance suggests something less than kosher. And that alone could lead to calls for Thomas to be impeached.
Are there enough Republican senators willing to cross the aisle and remove Justice Thomas from the court? Probably not, but an impeachment trial might convince Thomas that the time has come for him to step down.
Clarence Thomas has always been an illegitimate member of the highest court in the land. And his actions since he joined the Supreme Court are proof that he doesn’t belong there.
