Democrat Senators Call For Criminal Probe of Clarence Thomas

Two Democratic lawmakers requested that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas be criminally investigated for ethics and tax law violations.

According to reports, Senators Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island and Ron Wyden of Oregon sent a letter to  Attorney General Merrick Garland formally requesting that he appoint a special counsel to criminally investigate Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas for his failure to disclose lavish gifts from wealthy friends who happen to be donors to Republican-backed causes.

“We do not make this request lightly,” the senators wrote in their letter, dated July 3. “Supreme Court justices are properly expected to obey laws designed to prevent conflicts of interest and the appearance of impropriety and to comply with the federal tax code.”

They specifically asked that the special counsel look into whether Justice Thomas violated federal ethics and tax laws by failing to reveal as income that he received a luxury recreational vehicle with a forgiven debt of $267,000. A representative for Justice Thomas didn’t respond to press inquiries.

The letter goes on to state that Thomas had “repeated opportunities” to explain why he didn’t disclose these gifts to the Senate Finance Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee’s panel overseeing federal courts which Wyden and Whitehouse chair, respectively. Thomas’ actions demonstrate a “willful pattern of disregard for ethics laws,” and they added,

“No government official should be above the law.”

The letter’s publication comes after Justice Thomas was revealed in January to have received substantial gifts from donors such as Harlan Crow in the past such as premium tickets to sporting events and luxury vacations. Thomas’ attorney, , wrote that his client’s earlier disclosure to the committees “fully complied with all judicial disclosure rules on this matter.” Thomas has also come under fire due to his wife, Ginni Thomas’ involvement in efforts to help overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Arizona for Donald Trump.

The request also comes as Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez filed a motion to impeach Justice Thomas and Justice Samuel Alito on Wednesday (July 11). In her statement, the New York congresswoman wrote that both men’s refusal to recuse themselves from cases “in which they hold widely documented financial and personal entanglements” has led to an “unchecked corruption crisis on the Supreme Court.”

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