Associate Justice Clarence Thomas poses for a group photo of the Justices at the Supreme Court in Washington, April 23, 2021.
Erin Schaff | Swimming Pool | Reuters
The Democratic majority of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday called for an investigation into the conduct of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas following an investigation. report revealed he had undisclosed years of luxury rides sponsored by a Republican megadonor.
Chief Justice John Roberts should “immediately open” an investigation into “how such conduct may have taken place” under him, read a letter from Illinois Chairman Dick Durbin and 10 other Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The committee announced in the letter that it would hold a hearing “in the coming days” on “the need to restore confidence in the Supreme Court’s ethical standards.”
Democrats also warned they would “look at legislation to address” the issue if the high court did not do so on its own.
The letter came three days after Thomas said he was advised early in his tenure as a judge of the Supreme Court that “this personal hospitality from close friends, who have no business before the Court, is unreportable. “
“I have worked hard to follow that advice throughout my tenure and have always sought to adhere to the principles of disclosure,” Thomas said in a statement.
The 74-year-old judge, who has served on the nation’s highest court since 1991, responded to a ProPublica report last Thursday that he accepted expensive rides from the wealthy GOP donor. have Harlan Crow for more than two decades.
Crow told ProPublica that “the hospitality we’ve given the Thomas family over the years is no different from the hospitality we’ve given many of our other dear friends.” That hospitality includes stays on Crow’s 162-foot superyacht, flights on GOP sponsor’s private jet and stays at his exclusive resort, according to ProPublica.
The investigation, citing a series of documents and interviews, also cited ethics experts as saying Thomas appeared to have broken disclosure laws by failing to report his trips. But some judicial ethics experts have said Thomas may not have required to report trips according to the rules that were in place before they were Last month’s update.
Thomas’ statement notes that the reporting guidelines are “currently being changed, as the Judiciary Conference committee responsible for financial disclosures to the entire federal judiciary just last month published guidelines.” new guidelines. And, of course, my intention is to follow this direction for the future.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee’s letter to Roberts said that Thomas’s failure to report the trips was “clearly inconsistent with the ethical standards expected by the American people of any person in a position of authority.” trusted by the public.”
The letter comes after Durbin, who has a majority in the Senate, called for an “enforceable code of conduct” for judges, who are not bound by the rules. the same ethics as other federal judges.
