Judge Clarence Thomas accepted private school fees for his grandfather from GOP donor Harlan Crowe.
A new ProPublica investigation found:
ProPublica interviewed Martin, his former classmates and former staff at both schools. The exact total amount Crow paid for Martin’s tuition over the years is unclear. If he had paid for all four years at the two schools, the price tag would have been more than $150,000, according to public records of the schools’ tuition.
Thomas did not report tuition fees from Crow on his annual financial statements. Several years ago, Thomas announced a $5,000 gift from another friend to Martin’s education. It is not clear why Crown reported that payment.
Thomas and his wife took in his grandfather Mark Martin and raised him as a child.
Federal law requires Thomas to declare gifts to spouses and dependents. Since Thomas had legal custody of Martin and was raising her, the payment to cover the fee should have been disclosed.
It’s clear that Clarence Thomas is picking and choosing what to include on his disclosure forms, which is the main reason the Supreme Court needs ethics oversight.
Republicans will try to oust a liberal judge or justice from office if he is found to be taking gifts such as tuition fees for his dependents.
Corruption at Justice Thomas is reaching mind boggling levels. The conservatives on the Supreme Court have a serious ethics problem. So far, there have been no ethics issues related to liberal judges in the court, but since none have been found yet, the court does not need ethics reform.
In an ideal world where good governance takes priority, Thomas would be asked to retire or be impeached, but Republicans would never impeach the House; So Justice Thomas isn’t going anywhere.
The scandal around Thomas is getting worse, and the hope for the country is that the pressure will finally reach the Republicans and force them to support ethics reform for the Supreme Court.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a member of the White House Press Pool and Congressional Correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a bachelor’s degree in political science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform activities.
Awards and professional memberships
Member of the Association of Professional Journalists and the American Political Science Association
