Dear People For supporter,
In January, the Supreme Court ruled on a request by Trump to block the release of White House records to the House Select Committee investigating January 6. Justice Clarence Thomas was the sole dissenter in the 8-1 ruling, arguing in favor of allowing Trump to keep the truth about what happened that day hidden.[1]
Aside from the red flags this raises about Justice Thomas’ ideological – and perhaps partisan – extremism, the decision should sound the alarm for all Americans concerned about Supreme Court justices’ adherence to basic standards of ethics. And here’s why:
A new in-depth investigation by The New York Times Magazine further reveals the significant involvement of Justice Thomas’s wife Ginni Thomas in far-right extremist movements, including efforts to overturn the 2020 election, provide support to the so-called “Stop the Steal” movement, and bury the truth about the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.[2]
There have been concerns for a long time that Justice Thomas has not been able to draw a clear line of separation between his responsibilities as a Supreme Court justice and the extremist political activities of Ginni Thomas, which go back decades.
It’s become clear that Justice Thomas cannot be trusted to be a fair arbiter in cases involving the far-right political movements in which his wife has been and remains deeply involved. And with our whole system of government itself under perhaps the greatest threat it’s ever faced, by insurrectionists and other pro-Trump authoritarians, we cannot afford to have someone on the Supreme Court eager to side with the enemies of democracy.
Supreme Court justices are not currently bound by the same ethics rules that apply to all other federal court judges. So removing Justice Thomas’s influence in these cases is vital to protecting against impropriety and making sure justices’ personal political allegiances don’t put them at odds with defending our constitutional democracy.
Justice Thomas should not have been involved in the White House records case and should recuse himself from further cases involving such subject matter.
Thank you for everything you do,
– Ben Betz, Director of Digital & Organizing
Source:
[1] "In Rebuke to Trump, Supreme Court Allows Release of Jan. 6 Files." (The New York Times, 1/19/2022.)
[2] "The Long Crusade of Clarence and Ginni Thomas." (The New York Times, 2/22/2022.)
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