A judicial organization that sets national policy for federal courts has rejected a request by two Democratic lawmakers to refer Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to the Justice Department over free trips and gifts from wealthy benefactors that were largely omitted from their financial declaration forms.
The group, the Judicial Conference, sent identical letters Thursday to Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., who chairs the subcommittee on the Judiciary in the Federal Courts, and Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga., the subcommittee’s ranking member of the Judiciary in courts, which asked him in 2023 to refer Thomas to the attorney general for an investigation following a ProPublica report on free trips and gifts to Thomas from billionaire Harlan Crow and others.
Judicial Conference Secretary Robert J. Conrad Jr. said Thomas had filed amended financial statements “that address several issues identified in his letter” and argued that there is legal uncertainty about whether the Judicial Conference has the authority to refer complaints about the judges of the Supreme Court.
“Because the Judicial Conference does not oversee the Supreme Court and because any effort to grant the Conference such authority would raise serious constitutional questions, one would expect Congress to at a minimum clearly establish any such directive. But no directive appears. expressed of this type in this provision,” said Conrado.
He rejected a similar request Thursday from Citizens for Renewing America President Russ Vought, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Office of Management and Budget, who filed an ethics complaint against Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson over allegations that she failed revealed details about income. from her husband’s medical malpractice consultancy.
Conrad said both judges had amended their financial disclosures and agreed to follow guidelines issued to other federal judges.
Whitehouse criticized Conrad’s response, saying in a statement that it “ultimately fails to address the only real question that the Judicial Conference should have focused on during the nearly two years it devoted to this matter: Are there reasonable grounds to believe that Did Judge Thomas intentionally violate the disclosure law?”
“By all appearances, the judiciary is shirking its legal duty to hold a Supreme Court justice accountable for ethical violations,” Whitehouse added.
Spokespeople for Johnson and Citizens for Renewing America, a conservative social welfare group, did not immediately respond to requests for comment Thursday evening.
Elliot S. Berke, Thomas’ attorney, said his client “has fully complied with the new disclosure requirement” after guidance issued in 2023 specified that a reporting exemption for personal hospitality gifts did not apply to gifts. transportation or commercial property.
White House and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., directly called on the Justice Department in July to criminally investigate whether Thomas violated federal ethics and tax laws. No such investigations have been announced.
The Supreme Court formally adopted a new code of ethics in 2023, but more than a year later, questions remain about its application.
