We all know liberals and Democrats are dying to have a conservative justice replaced with a liberal.
They have been going after Justice Clarence Thomas for years, turning up the heat since Trump left office. With Thomas’ absence from the court on Monday, there were rumors flying all over the place about where he was.
Talking Points…
- Thomas missing from court
- Reactions
- Analysis
When Monday’s Supreme Court session started, Justice Clarence Thomas, 75, was noticeably missing from the bench. There were no press releases or statements from the court as to why he was not there.
The absence was announced by Chief Justice John Roberts, who stated that Thomas would be able to participate in the cases presented on Monday by supplying him with transcripts and briefs of the day’s cases, but again, no reason was given as to why Thomas was missing from the bench. When Thomas did not participate remotely, the rumors really started to fly.
Slate reporter Mark Joseph Stern poured some gasoline on the rumors by offering “context” to Thomas’ absence. He posted:
“Context that may or may not be helpful: In the recent past, Justice Thomas phoned into oral arguments when he couldn’t attend in person, allowing him to ask questions remotely. He isn’t doing so this time.”
The reactions online from liberals and Democrats were fairly disgusting, with some even hoping that Thomas had met his demise or that he was horribly ill and would not be able to return to his spot on the bench.
Fortunately, Thomas returned to the court again on Tuesday, taking up his usual spot on the bench. However, there is still no explanation as to why he was not in court on Monday, nor why he did not participate remotely as he had done in previous absences when he was gone for medical reasons.
I really wish Thomas had sent out a press release on this, but that obviously did not happen. What his absence did do, however, was refuel the attacks against Thomas by liberals and Democrats who wanted to see Thomas removed from the bench.
Thomas has stood tall as the longest-serving justice on the bench, but I would have to imagine people literally rooting for you to die and questioning every single word that comes out of your mouth has taken a toll on Thomas over the years.
For that reason, if and when a Republican takes back the White House, I fully expect Thomas to step down and retire. Justices Thomas, Roberts, and Alito are three of the four oldest justices on the bench, and there is no way Thomas and Alito would ever voluntarily step down while a Democrat was in office.
Having said that, at the end of the next presidential term, Thomas and Alito will be in their mid to late 70s, and Justice Roberts will be 73 years old. While I can see Roberts stepping down with a Democrat in office to balance out the court, Thomas and Alito will want to ensure that conservatives remain in control, so this presidential election has even more at stake than usual.
