The Democratic chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee vowed his panel will take action after a report published Thursday alleged Justice Clarence Thomas accepted millions from a GOP donor in luxury travel experiences.
Sen. Richard Durbin, Illinois Democrat, said the report in ProPublica showcases the need for a code of conduct for the Supreme Court justices.
“The highest court in the land shouldn’t have the lowest ethical standards,” Mr. Durbin said.
The ProPublica article details travel by Justice Thomas and his wife with Harlan Crow, a GOP megadonor and real estate mogul, on the businessman’s private yacht and jet to places like Indonesia. That trip, ProPublica claims, would have cost $500,000.
“Today’s Pro Publica report reveals that Justice Thomas has for years accepted luxury travel on private yachts and jets and a litany of other gifts that he failed to disclose. This behavior is simply inconsistent with the ethical standards the American people expect of any public servant, let alone a justice on the Supreme Court,” Mr. Durbin said. The report, he said, demonstrates, “that Supreme Court justices must be held to an enforceable code of conduct, just like every other federal judge. The Pro Publica report is a call to action, and the Senate Judiciary Committee will act.”
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Rhode Island Democrat and also a member of the committee, said they should take a look at who traveled with Justice Thomas and Mr. Crow on the trips.
“It’s not just the undisclosed gifts of hospitality, it’s the undisclosed company of political operatives — particularly Leonard Leo, the operative who helped the billionaires capture the court,” he said, referencing conservative operative Leonard Leo, who previously led the Federalist Society.
Mr. Whitehouse has pushed for ethics reforms for the Supreme Court. While lower court judges have a code of ethics that covers recusals and disclosures, the Supreme Court has not — itself — imposed strict standards on the justices.
The allegations prompted liberal organizations to renew calls for Justice Thomas’ resignation.
Rakim H.D. Brooks, president of Alliance for Justice, said Justice Thomas can’t be trusted to protect the law.
“Justice Thomas should resign. If he fails to do so, Congress is required by its oath to protect and defend the Constitution to hold robust hearings to determine just how far this rot goes and how badly it has compromised the fair administration of justice,” Mr. Brooks said.
Liberal groups have targeted Justice Thomas in the past.
Last year, they argued he should be recused from all election-related cases since his wife attended the Jan. 6 rally supporting former President Trump, and spoke to former White House officials about the 2020 election results. Virginia Thomas, his wife who is a conservative activist, stated she did go to the Jan. 6 rally, but did not march to the U.S. Capitol where the rioting occurred.
One former federal judge also echoed concerns over the most recent allegations.
“It’s incomprehensible to me that someone would do this,” said Nancy Gertner, a Clinton appointee who has since retired.
“It was a question of not wanting to use the office for anything other than what it was intended,” she told ProPublica.
A spokesperson from the Supreme Court did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mr. Crow, meanwhile, told ProPublica that he’s been friends with the Thomases for years and extends “hospitality” — “no different from the hospitality we have extended to our many other dear friends,” he said.
Carrie Severino, president of the Judicial Crisis Network and a former Thomas clerk, defended her old boss.
“Mr. Crow made very clear in his statement that the hospitality he has extended to his dear friend, Justice Thomas, is no different from that he has shown to his other close friends,” she said.
