A group of House and Senate Democrats sent a letter to Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts demanding an investigation of Clarence Thomas after it was revealed that he has been taking secret lavish vacations on a private jet and superyacht paid for by GOP megadonor, Harlan Crow, for years without disclosing them.
“We write to request an investigation into these and other outstanding allegations of unethical, and potentially unlawful conduct at the Supreme Court. To date the court has barely acknowledged, much less investigated these allegations,” the lawmakers wrote, noting that public trust in the Supreme Court has “plummeted to an all-time low.”
“We believe that it is your duty as Chief Justice ‘to safeguard public faith in the judiciary’ and that fulfilling that duty requires swift, thorough, independent and transparent investigation into these allegations,” the letter reads.
The letter was sent one day after a bombshell report from ProPublica revealed that Thomas has been accepting gifts from Crow for years without disclosing them. The outlet found that Thomas had accepted lavish trips to Indonesia and New Zealand on board Crow’s superyacht, regularly flies on Crow’s private jet and vacation at properties own by the billionaire
These trips would have cost tens of thousands of dollars but they do not appear on Thomas’ financial disclosures.
In a statement on Friday, Thomas said he was “advised that he did not need to disclose any of the trips.
“Early in my tenure at the court, I sought guidance from my colleagues and others in the judiciary, and was advised that this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the court, was not reportable,” Thomas said.
However, Democrats noted in their letter that “federal financial disclosure laws require senior government official, including Supreme Court Justices, to report gifts such as these annually.” They argue that there are “limited” exceptions under the law to allow officials to “enjoy hospitality in the course of ordinary, personal friendships.”
“These exceptions are not meant to allow government officials to hide from the public extravagant gifts by wealthy political interests,” the letter said.
