GOP megadonor Harlan Crow is refusing to provide a Senate committee with a list of items he gave to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas over the past two decades, according to The Hill.
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee sent the request demanding the list after a bombshell report from ProPublica last month revealed that Thomas has been receiving luxury gifts and vacations paid for by Crow for years without disclosing them.
In a letter to the committee on Tuesday, Crow’s attorney Michael Bopp said his client will not comply with the committee’s request citing separation of power and the panel’s lack of authority over the matter, according to The Hill.
“As an initial matter, however, we have serious concerns about the scope of and authority for this inquiry. As you are aware, the Committee’s powers to investigate are not unlimited. Indeed, the Committee must have a legitimate legislative purpose for any inquiry, and the scope of the inquiry must be reasonably related to that purpose,” Bopp wrote.
The attorney also questioned the timing of the request and argued that Democrats are seeking the records to target Justice Thomas.
“Given the letter’s timing and focus, this inquiry appears to be a component of a broader campaign against Justice Thomas and, now, Mr. Crow, rather than an investigation that furthers a valid legislative purpose,” Bopp argued.
Wyden called Bopp’s argument a “joke” in a statement to the Hill and suggested that the committee might issue a subpoena for the documents.
“The bottom line is that nobody can expect to get away with waving off Finance Committee oversight, no matter how wealthy or well-connected they may be,” Wyden said. “I will send a full response to Mr. Crow’s attorney in the coming days. I’m also going to discuss with my committee colleagues how best to compel answers to the questions I put forward last month, including by using any of the tools at our disposal.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee sent a similar request to Crow on Tuesday demanding a full accounting of gifts to Thomas and any other justice on the Supreme Court, according to the Washington Post.
