Hi,
ANOTHER bombshell just dropped about Supreme Court Justice Clarence
Thomas.
According to the latest report, Justice Thomas secretly appeared at
fundraising events for the Koch brothers' network of powerful right-wing
political organizations and hobnobbed with Charles Koch annually at an
exclusive all-male resort in Northern California.
Even more damning is that after being wined and dined for years by the
Kochs, Thomas flipped his vote on a major legal doctrine called "Chevron
deference," which the Kochs had lobbied on for years.^1
This breathtaking corruption would prompt severe disciplinary action on
any lower-court judge. But because the Supreme Court has no binding code
of ethics, Thomas is getting away with it.
Enough is enough. It's past time for Congress to force the Supreme Court
to enact a binding code of ethics to hold Thomas and other justices
accountable.
[ [link removed] ]Will you donate to Demand Progress Action to support our work,
including pressuring Congress to pass the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal,
and Transparency Act?
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Multiple reports this year have already shown how Thomas lives a life of
luxury thanks to a shadowy network of ultrarich conservative megadonors.^2
Now it's clear that these gifts were part of an effort by the Koch
brothers and other big-money special interests to flip Clarence Thomas's
vote on Chevron deference, the key legal precedent established in the 1984
case Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council.
Back in the '80s, corporate America loved Chevron deference, because it
gave the Reagan administration the ability to impose lax rules on
polluters. So did Thomas, who drafted an opinion in 2005, upholding the
Chevron ruling.
But when Democrat Barack Obama was in the White House, conservatives began
to sour on the Chevron opinion. Nearly two decades and innumerable luxury
vacations later, Thomas has changed his tune, too.^3
Now the Supreme Court is poised to overturn the Chevron doctrine entirely
in a case shepherded by Koch network lawyers. The result could be a
massive rollback of protections for workers, consumers, and the
environment.
The Supreme Court cannot and will not police itself. That's why Demand
Progress Action has already mobilized more than 100,000 people to demand
that Congress pass the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency
Act.
[ [link removed] ]Will you donate $10 to Demand Progress Action to support
our work, including pressing Congress to enact Supreme Court ethics
reform?
With gratitude for all that you do,
Tihi and the team at Demand Progress Action
[ [link removed] ]DONATE
Sources:
1. The Lever, "Clarence Thomas Reversed Position After Gifts And Family
Payments," [ [link removed] ]May 9, 2023.
2. ProPublica, "Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network
Donor Events," [ [link removed] ]September 22, 2023.
3. The Lever, "Clarence Thomas Reversed Position After Gifts And Family
Payments," [ [link removed] ]May 9, 2023.
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