Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas said he is worried about eroding the credibility of the court and efforts to politicize the institution while spouting Republican talking points about ‘cancel culture.’
On Friday, Thomas told a group of about 500 people in Utah at an event hosted by former Republican U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch’s foundation that he is worried about “cancel culture” and a lack of civil debate, according to the Associated Press.
“I’m afraid, particularly in this world of cancel culture attack, I don’t know where you’re going to learn to engage as we did when I grew up,” he said. “If you don’t learn at that level in high school, in grammar school, in your neighborhood, or in civic organizations, then how do you have it when you’re making decisions in government, in the legislature, or in the courts?”
He also slammed calls by Democrats to add more justices on the court. Democrats in Congress introduced a bill last year to add four justices to the bench, and President Joe Biden has convened a commission to study expanding the court.
“You can cavalierly talk about packing or stacking the court. You can cavalierly talk about doing this or doing that. At some point the institution is going to be compromised,” Thomas said. “By doing this, you continue to chip away at the respect of the institutions that the next generation is going to need if they’re going to have civil society.”
Thomas also blasted the media for cultivating inaccurate impressions about public figures, according to AP.
Thomas and his wife, Ginni, a political activist has come under scrutiny for her work with groups involved in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack and people whose cases have been presented before her husband in the Supreme Court.
