Senators Sheldon Whitehouse and Ron Wyden, both Democrats, are urging Attorney General Merrick Garland to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas for potential ethics violations and breaches of tax laws.
In a strongly-worded letter to the Justice Department, the senators detail Thomas’s failure to disclose significant gifts from conservative billionaires, which were only revealed through investigative reporting.
“The scale of the potential ethics violations by Justice Thomas, and the willful pattern of disregard for ethics laws, exceeds the conduct of other government officials investigated by the Department of Justice for similar violations,” the letter, dated July 3, reads. “The breadth of the omissions uncovered to date, and the serious possibility of additional tax fraud and false statement violations by Justice Thomas and his associates, warrant the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate this misconduct.”
Whitehouse, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Federal Courts, and Wyden, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, argue that Thomas’s actions not only violate the Ethics in Government Act but also raise serious concerns about compliance with federal tax laws. They point to findings from Senate investigations into undisclosed loans and other favors received by Thomas, suggesting potential discrepancies in his financial disclosures and tax filings.
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The senators emphasize the urgent need for a special counsel to ensure an impartial investigation into Thomas’s conduct, asserting that public trust in the judiciary and the Justice Department demands thorough scrutiny.
Their action comes amid broader Democratic discontent with the conservative-leaning Supreme Court and follows calls from some lawmakers for potential impeachment proceedings against Thomas after controversial rulings benefiting former President Trump.
Whitehouse and Wyden have pledged to conduct a thorough investigation into allegations of misconduct within the highest echelons of the judiciary, promising a rigorous examination of Justice Thomas’s conduct and his connections with influential conservative figures.
