The article in brief
US Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas admitted he received luxury trips worth more than five million kroner from conservative billionaire Harlan Crowe.
Pro Publica has revealed trips taken in 2019, which included Bali and an exclusive club in California.
Thomas claims he followed advice not to report gifts unrelated to the court from close friends.
Attorney George Conway is calling for a thorough criminal investigation into Thomas and his finances.
Thomas' wife, Jenny Thomas, was involved in efforts to keep Trump in power after the 2020 election.
Conservative Justice Clarence Thomas' admission comes in an annual report on private finances submitted by the justices of the US Supreme Court.
The trips taken by billionaire conservative Thomas — and major Republican financier — Harlan Crowe took place in 2019 and were previously revealed by Pro Publica Which prompted Thomas to make a change in this year's submission.
The trips went to Bali on a private cruise, where Clarence Thomas and his wife Jenny Thomas cruised around the islands on a luxury yacht, and to a gentlemen's club in Northern California. Thomas himself did not write anything about the value of the voyages, but their value had previously been estimated at just over five million kroner. Regarding Pro Publica's disclosure, Clarence Thomas defended its actions:
“Early in my time at the Court, I sought advice from my colleagues and others in the judiciary, and was told that this kind of personal generosity from close and private friends with no connection to the Court was not to be reported. I have continued to follow this advice throughout my time at the Court.” My state and I always tried to follow the guidelines.
Requires criminal investigation
Not everyone agrees that gifts are acceptable.
“It is truly time for a full-scale criminal investigation and a congressional investigation into Thomas, his finances and his taxes. “What he received and did not report is completely improbable and that has long been clear,” attorney George Conway writes in X.
However, Republican Senator Tom Cotton comes to Thomas' defense.
“Relying on the great Justice Clarence Thomas is simply a dishonest attempt to intimidate the court. “If leftists cannot control an institution, they try to delegitimize it.” X.
Clarence Thomas, like Justice Samuel Alito, has been in trouble in the past for being suspected of favoring Republicans and especially Donald Trump. Thomas' wife Jenny was prominent in efforts to keep Donald Trump in power after the 2020 election, while it was recently revealed that Justice Samuel Alito flew the American flag upside down in the days after the storming of the Capitol – a symbol that Trump then used. supporters, which according to US law means you – or the country – are in “dire distress.”
Even more liberal Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson allowed gifts in the form of tickets from Beyoncé — but of a much lower value than the gifts Thomas received.
“Unapologetic writer. Bacon enthusiast. Introvert. Evil troublemaker. Friend of animals everywhere.”
More Stories
Trump's call could pave the way for an attack on Iran
The United States launched the attack – with warplanes and warships
Scientists were shocked by the greenness of Antarctica the world