Justice Clarence Thomas is arguably one of the most polarizing figures we have ever had on the Supreme Court bench.
He has been under attack from Day One, but the more recent attacks have been very personal, something the Justice addressed during a recent interview.
Talking Points…
- Recent Thomas criticisms
- Thomas responds
- Analysis
Justice Thomas is very familiar with being scrutinized, considering it started the moment he was nominated to the bench. While the attacks against him have always been personal in nature, they have gotten quite vicious as of late and now include attacks against his wife, Ginni.
First and foremost, a ProPublica piece broke down the “gifts” Thomas has received while sitting on the bench. The piece concentrated on the relationship between Harlan Crow, a mega-donor for the GOP, and Thomas. Over the years, Thomas has enjoyed some lavish vacations on Crow’s dime, but both parties have defended this by saying this is how Crow treats his friends.
Thomas has also been raked over the coals regarding comments made by his wife after the 2020 election, as well as texts that she had sent to Trump’s then-Chief of Staff, Mark Meadows. Democrats have pounced on this, demanding that Thomas recuse himself from all cases related to Trump.
Thomas has never been on to crave the spotlight. He quietly goes about his business, but the media and liberal organizations are constantly firing attacks at the man in an effort to have him removed from the bench.
Thomas attended a judicial conference in Alabama on Friday, where he opened up the allegations made against him and his wife. In part, he stated:
“My wife and I, the last two or three years, just the nastiness and the lies.
“There’s certainly been a lot of negativity in our lives, my wife and I, over the last few years, but we choose not to focus on it.”
Thomas also commented on the changes he has seen in DC regarding how people are treated now, stating:
“Especially in Washington, people pride themselves in being awful.
“It’s a hideous place, as far as I’m concerned. Because the rest of the country, it’s one of the reasons we like R.V.-ing, you get to be around regular people who don’t pride themselves in doing harmful things, merely because they have the capacity to do it.”
I have always thought it was a bit foolish for Thomas to accept these trips and gifts from Crow, but in all honesty, he was not doing anything the other justices on the court were not also doing. If you look over the trip and gift reports filed yearly, you will see that justices on both sides are cashing in with private donors.
If you are going to criticize Thomas, make it fair and go after everyone. I have always stated that people seem to forget about the trips RBG took when she was alive, where, in one case, she received a lavish trip from someone who had won a rather significant case before the court the previous year.
That is what angered me so much about the ProPublica piece. It was clearly biased and targeted, framing Thomas as the exception when it is definitely the norm. Go after one, go after them all, or else it is not journalism… it is just merely a biased hit piece.
